Beware of Greeks Bearing Gifts

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Particularly, in this case, if you are a bacterium, and the Greek is bearing iron. Today's Illumination comes to us from the world of medicine, as scientists have developed a new antibiotic that manages to trick bacteria into absorbing it.

Essentially, the body's defense against infection is to create an iron-poor environment. This medication hitches a ride with iron, which the bacteria absorbs. Then, the caller is inside the house! And doctors have another way of fighting infection.

New antibiotics are needed, as germs have a bad habit of becoming tolerant of the ones we have. Having new ways of delivering them is certainly a step in the right direction.


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