A chemical found in garlic — known as allicin — may have potential as a treatment against a bacteria group that causes life-threatening lung conditions and is highly resistant to antibiotics, according to study conducted by the University of Edinburgh in the United Kingdom.
The Burkholderia cepacia complex bacteria group has been known to cause serious and transmissible lung infections in cystic fibrosis patients. The number of therapies that treat Bcc infections are limited and frequently require the use of three or four antibiotics at once.
Researchers found allicin not only inhibits the growth of Bcc bacteria, it can kill the pathogens when used in higher doses by chemically modifying certain enzymes.
Allicin-containing treatments may be used in combination with antibiotics to treat Bcc infections once researchers indentify how exactly the chemical kills the bacteria, according to study co-author Dominic Campopiano, PhD.
"The medicinal power of garlic has a rich history that dates back thousands of years but the chemical structure of allicin was only revealed in the 1940s," said Dr. Campopiano. "Our work suggests that modern methods should be used to further expand our knowledge of this enigmatic molecule and rejuvenate its potential applications."
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