New antibiotic compound from marine organisms developed

A Scottish biotechnology company has developed a compound after research into marine organisms which it believes could be effective against Clostridium Difficile and types of Staphylococcus and Streptococcus bacteria, the BBC News reported.

Scientists came up with the "AQP-182" compound after screening a portion of its collection of 10,000 marine micro-organisms for substances with anti-infective and anti-inflammatory properties.

It was one of a number of what the company called "druggable" new molecules it had identified.

"From an initial screening of a small portion of our natural product library we have identified 16 novel compounds belonging to totally novel and diverse chemical classes," Aquapharm Biodiscovery's chief scientific officer, Dr Tim Morley, said.

"The most advanced compound AQP-182 has a promising pharmacological and pharmacokinetic profile which is extremely relevant for the treatment of hard to treat resistant bacterial infections," Morley was quoted as saying by the BBC.

Of this latest discovery, Aquapharm said it demonstrated the "potential of marine natural products as a rich source of pharmaceutical chemistry".

A clinical trial of AQP-182 is expected to begin next year, the report said.