Bacteria with therapeutic potential found in rainwater

 Researchers from the University of Oviedo have succeeded in isolating and cultivating bacteria with potentially therapeutic capacities in rainfall, hail and snow. The discovery of these atmospheric resources is a novel and unexplored source for the discovery of new drugs. This is indicated by Gloria Blanco, professor of the Microbiology Area of ​​the Functional Biology Department of the Asturian academic institution. This researcher explains that the main source of antibiotics and antitumors is nature, where there are bacteria called actinobacteria, with pharmacological potential, especially the species of the genus Streptomyces. These organisms, which during the 20th century were considered exclusive to the terrestrial environment, also live abundantly in the oceans.

In February 2013, this group of scientists from the University of Oviedo began to isolate bacteria from atmospheric precipitation samples collected in the cities of Gijón and Oviedo. Over the past three years, Gloria Blanco's team has managed to cultivate a large number of these microorganisms obtained from atmospheric sources in the laboratory. Studies have confirmed in this way that these bacteria, in addition to living in terrestrial and marine environments, can move associated with the hydrological cycle. Gloria Blanco highlights the "obvious interest" of these discoveries given current medical needs.

The discovery of these actinobacteria in atmospheric precipitation also has an added ecological value. This team of researchers has proposed a model of dispersion of these microorganisms by land, sea and air following the hydrological cycle of the planet. The key point in her hypothesis, according to the professor of the Department of Functional Biology, is in the generation of marine aerosols that form clouds and that, in this process, take with them bacteria that will later be disseminated throughout the Earth's continents and oceans. . These works have recently been published in the journal Microbial Ecology .

Scientists point out that these atmospheric resources represent a novel and unexplored source for drug discovery

The research line of this multidisciplinary team, made up of biologists, biotechnologists, chemists and doctors, focuses on the search for new antibiotics and antitumors from previously unexplored natural habitats. Professor Blanco highlights that, given the growing problem of drug resistance, the search for new molecules is becoming more and more necessary.

Researchers from the University of Oviedo began isolating Streptomyces from terrestrial lichens in 2007 and, in 2010, they took a further step by finding populations of these bacteria in algal ecosystems on the beaches of Gijón. These first signs encouraged them to search for these microorganisms in the deeper marine environments of the Cantabrian Sea. Thus, in 2012, upon learning about the DOSMARES project expeditions to the Avilés Canyon, the scientists got in touch with the marine ecologist José Luis Acuña, who invited them to participate in the BIOCANT3 campaign in the spring of 2013. That same year they began to isolate the first actinobacteria in the rain, hail and snow that fell in Asturias.

Professor Gloria Blanco highlights the work of a team of professionals from different areas of knowledge of the University departments, such as Functional Biology, Biology of Organisms and Systems, and Chemical Engineering and Environmental Technology. Specialists from the Central University Hospital of Asturias (HUCA), Cabueñes Hospital and the Principality Fishing Experimentation Center also participate. The study is part of the research lines of the Asturias Marine Observatory (OMA) on the exploration of the marine life of the Cantabrian Sea and the exploitation of its natural resources. The OMA is part of the initiatives launched by the Campus of International Excellence of the University of Oviedo. This last year,