Researchers from the University of the Philippines Los Baños have discovered that the soils of Mt. Mayon host bacteria that contain potential antibiotic and anticancer properties.
The researchers said that a specific bacterial species from the soils of Mt. Mayon showed potential antibiotic and anti-colorectal cancer activities.
The bacteria was identified as Streptomyces sp. A1-08. It has shown antibiotic activity against numerous potentially pathogenic microorganisms and anti-colorectal cancer potential.
Researchers said that it is one of the 30 bacteria that were isolated from soil samples of Mt. Mayon in Malilipot, Albay.
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“We have high hopes of getting new and novel species because this is a less explored environment, a volcano”, Kristel Mae P. Oliveros, the project leader and an assistant professor in UPLB Microbiology Division.
“We were totally surprised and excited,” she added.
Once the researchers have confirmed that Streptomyces sp. A1-08 is a new species, they will name it “Streptomyces mayonensis A1-08” in honor of our country.
The team of researchers have initially isolated 30 bacterial species from Mt. Mayon’s volcanic soils.
Thirteen of them have shown varying antibiotic activities.
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The test organisms are Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Staphylococcus aureus and its methicillin-resistant variant, Candida albicans, Aspergillus niger, and an unspecified Fusarium species.
“One of the objectives of the study is to screen actinomycete isolates for antimicrobial activity. Therefore, we ensured that our selected test organisms would represent some of the major groups of microorganisms, including bacteria, yeasts, and molds to capture a broader antimicrobial spectrum result,” the researchers said.
“The choice of test organisms was also associated with the World Health Organization’s (WHO) list of human pathogens that pose an imminent danger to human health by 2050, mainly due to antibiotic resistance,” they added. (TDT)
