05/ 3/06

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Anthrax Assassin

Newton's Third Law of Motion — "All forces occur in pairs, and these two forces are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction" — has an analog in the context of biology: "For nearly every bacterium on the planet, there are naturally occurring viral assassins."

These enemies of bacteria — bacteriophages — "may be a precedent for a whole family of new antibacterials," Joshua Lederberg, professor emeritus at Rockefeller and a 1958 Nobel Laureate for his work in bacterial genetics, tells Chemical & Engineering News.

An enzyme designated PlyPH represents one such phage. Identified by microbiologist Vincent A. Fischetti of Rockefeller University and his colleagues, PlyPH targets and kills anthrax. The discovery may lead to in-body therapy and environmental decontamination. It also offers a possible defense against the rise of antibiotic-resistant organisms.

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