ipes! yo! blimey! good morning, Vietnam! hold the phone! wait! hang on!

[Guest guest]

" They had previously spotted that one type of antibiotic, which

interferes with DNA production in bacteria, causes release of

radicals. When they used a fluorescent dye that lights up in the

presence of hydroxyl molecules, the researchers were surprised to

discover that the same free radicals appeared if bacteria were treated

with antibiotics that instead attack the cell wall or the

protein-making machinery. "

Could this be part of a death program, rather than the cause of death?

I recall a paper I studied about how some protozoan, killed with

metronidazole, shows certain hallmarks of self-destruction, such as

DNA cleavage at regular intervals. It seems extremely unlikely that

metronidazole itself would perform this periodic cleavage, though it

does cleave DNA.

This is from news.nature, by the way.

One reason why apoptosis might exist in unicellular microbes (a

paradox at first glance), would be to destroy viruses and thus

preserve kin.

I'll definitely be scrutinizing this paper ASAP.

>

> " Antibiotics are known to attack different vital processes in

> bacteria. But a study published in Cell1 today has revealed that three

> major classes of unrelated drugs use the same ultimate weapon to

> finish off the infectious critters. All of them force bacteria to

> create killer bursts of oxygen-containing molecules called hydroxyl

> free radicals. "

>