With a looming crisis of antibiotic resistance threatening the future of the world, scientists from the Rockefeller University in New York have identified hotspots across five continents to mine unexploited antibiotic and anti-cancer drugs.

The scientists have analysed soil from beaches, forests and deserts after inviting the public to submit samples as part of a citizen science effort called Drugs from Dirt. For this study, 185 samples were taken from rainforests, temperate forests, deserts and beaches in the US, China, Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, the Dominican Republic, Australia and South Africa.

Earlier this month, scientists had found a new antibiotic, the first in 30 years, called teixobactin, from a sample of dirt in New England......click for more

 

 

 

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