New antibiotic discovered in wallaby milk

New antimicrobial found in the milk of the Tammar wallaby

Australian researchers discovered the compound AGG01 about a year ago in wallaby milk and have since learnt more about its properties. It appears to a potent antimicrobial that is active against a range of organisms including fungi, and bacteria such as E. coli, salmonella, Pseudomonas spp. and of particularly interest, MRSA, the multi-drug resistant form of golden staph.

It is relatively uncommon for a single compound to be active against such a wide range of bacteria.

Assuming that it is safe in humans, this new compound could potentially make a huge contribution to our dwindling number of effective antibiotics.

From: The Sydney Morning Herald

Wallaby's milk beats super bugs (excerpt)
By Orietta Guerrera
April 24, 2006

...The team from the Victorian Department of Primary Industries was examining the ingredients of wallaby milk when it identified the super-potent compound, and its potential to combat a range of bacteria and fungus, including E.coli, salmonella, and the hospital super bug, golden staph.

The team's leader, Ben Cocks, yesterday said the discovery could have a profound impact on both animal and human health.

"We made the first observation a bit over a year ago, and since then we've got much more information about it, about how it's made, the range of bacteria that it's active against, and how potent it is," Dr Cocks said. "And from a biological, evolutionary perspective it's very interesting because there's no equivalent in humans or in cows. It seems as if the placental mammals … lost the gene for this anti-microbial."

Wallabies are born without a proper immune system, and rely on nutrients in their mother's milk until they begin to develop antibodies at 100 days old...