Well-Known Natural Compound Shows Unexpected Effect Against a Dreaded Pathogen

Argyrin B Combats Diarrhea-Causing Pathogens While Preserving the Gut Microbiome

12-Oct-2026 - Treatment with broad-spectrum antibiotics often leads to side effects, as it affects not only the pathogens but also the “good” bacteria in the gut. A research team from Hannover Medical School (MHH), Saarland University Hospital (UKS), and the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research ...

New hope against superbugs: A completely new molecule has been identified

Promising antibiotic candidate discovered

16-May-2025 - An international team of researchers, led by the University of Vienna and the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland, has discovered saarvienin A, a new type of glycopeptide antibiotic. Their findings, now published in Angewandte Chemie International Edition, introduce a ...

Chlorotonil: Game-Changer in the Fight Against Multidrug-Resistant Pathogens

Researchers decipher novel mode of action of natural product antibiotic

17-Apr-2025 - The development and spread of antibiotic resistance represents one of the greatest threats to global health. To overcome these resistances, drugs with novel mode of action are urgently needed. Researchers at the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland (HIPS) have now uncovered ...

An innovative antibiotic class for drug-resistant bacteria

New active compounds inspired by a bacterium

26-Nov-2024 - Antibacterial drugs are important to treat infections. But increasing bacterial resistance to current drugs — making them ineffective or only partially effective — means that new ones are urgently needed. Building on previous work, researchers from the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical ...

Drug discovery within the patient

Genetic analysis of bacteria from humans and animals paves the way for new active ingredients

21-Oct-2024 - Microorganisms do not just colonize the body of mammals during infections. Billions of microbes can be found on and in healthy humans and animals at any given time, communicating with each other via chemical signals and thus influencing their health. In two studies, researchers from the Helmholtz ...

Searching for the microbial treasure

New family of bacteria with high pharmaceutical potential discovered

17-May-2024 - Most antibiotics used in human medicine originate from natural products derived from bacteria and other microbes. Novel microorganisms are therefore a promising source of new active compounds - also for the treatment of diseases such as cancer or viral infections. A team from the Helmholtz ...

Two bugs with one stone

Researchers optimize drug candidate against multi-resistant bacteria and parasites

20-Jun-2022 - The development of new active substances against pathogenic bacteria, parasites, fungi and viruses is gaining importance, as established antiinfectives are becoming increasingly ineffective due to the development of resistance. At the Helmholtz Institute for Pharmaceutical Research Saarland ...

Putting pathogens on mute

Researchers develop novel strategy for treating hospital germs

23-Mar-2021 - The bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa is among the most common causes of pneumonia and poses a major challenge to hospitals worldwide. The treatment of infections with Pseudomonas aeruginosa is usually challenging because the bacterium forms so-called biofilms, which protect it from drugs. Dr ...

How bacteria turn off an antibiotic

19-Dec-2018 - Many common antibiotics are increasingly losing their effectiveness against multi-resistant pathogens, which are becoming ever more prevalent. Bacteria use natural means to acquire mechanisms that protect them from harmful substances. For instance against the agent albicidin: Harmful ...

Hospital germs have their flaws too

Researchers discovered a target for novel medications

09-Jul-2018 - The hospital germ Pseudomonas aeruginosa can cause serious wound as well as lung and urinary tract infections, especially in weakened individuals. Pseudomonas manages time and again to survive attacks of the immune system and antibiotic therapies. One key to the success of this persistent ...