Sea sponge ‘engineers’ its toxin
Scientists have figured out how the coral reef sea sponge makes its extreme poison—it outsources toxin production to a bacterium living with it symbiotically.
“Cell kill activity is the starting point for many anti-cancer and antibiotic strategies. Having direct control over the structure of these molecules may allow modulation of activity through ‘designed biosynthesis’ potentially leading to future therapies centered on the more effective targeting of cancerous cells or microorganisms,” says Neil Oldham of the University of Nottingham’s School of Chemistry.
Full story at Futurity.
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
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