India, Jan. 1 -- Researchers at the University of Tubingen have discovered a novel antibiotic agent in the human nose that could be used against pathogenic bacteria. The molecule called epifadin is produced by certain bacterial strains of the species Staphylococcus epidermidis , which occur on the mucous membrane of the inner wall of the nose. In addition, epifadin-producing strains could also be isolated from the skin surface. Epifadin creates a new, previously unknown class of microorganism-killing agents that could be used as a lead structure for the development of novel antibiotics.

The human nose, skin and intestines are colonized by both benign and pathogenic bacteria. These microorganisms live together in so-called microbiomes. If...