Bacteriocins as alternatives to antibiotics for combating infections in veterinary medicine

Multi-resistant bacteria are a growing problem in both human and veterinary medicine and can lead to infections that are difficult to treat. Pyoderma in dogs are skin diseases that are often caused by infection with Staphylococcus pseudintermedius, but can also be caused by other types of staphylococci such as Staphylococcus aureus. An increasing proportion of antibiotic-resistant S. pseudintermedius, often in combination with fungal infections, has in recent years made it increasingly difficult to treat skin and ear infections in dogs. The overall goal of this project has been to develop new antibacterial alternatives to antibiotics for the treatment of infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria in animals. We have developed 4 different prototype formulations that effectively kill bacteria like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (MRSP) in skin infections in mice. The formulations contain various combinations of the patented bacteriocins garvicin KS, micrococcin and EJshort. The bacteriocins are a type of peptide isolated from probiotic bacteria with antimicrobial effect. The bacteriocins we have patented have a synergistic effect with traditional antibiotics and other known bacteriocins, and combination therapy reduces the development of resistance compared to individual treatments. Project results are noe out-licensed to biotechnology company Agribiotix AS , which will now further develop the formulations for optimal effect on skin and ear infections in dogs and will now start effect studies in collaboration with animal clinics in Norway. This company was startet to bring results from this project and more towards commercialisation.

Dette prosjektet har ledet til publikasjoner på høyt internasjonalt nivå, økt kunnskapen i forskningsgruppen og resultert i patentert teknologi. Prosjektresultatene og patentene fra dette prosjektet er nå lisensiert til det ny-oppstartede bioteknologi selskapet Agribiotix AS. Dette er for å bringe den utviklede teknologien videre til marked.