A bug that may hold the key to fighting heart disease has been discovered by Spanish scientists in the most unlikely of places - sewage.
The bacterium, called Gordonia cholesterolivorans, was uncovered within waste sludge by scientists at the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and has the potential, through genetic modification, to enable the break down of cholesterol in humans.
Cholesterol is a steroid found in all body tissues and is often used as a stabiliser or emollient in cosmetics. As a result, many steroids, including cholesterol, can be found in urban sewage. Gordonia bacteria have been recognised as a separate group of bacteria since 1997 but it is only now that it has been isolated that the full potential of the bacteria has been recognised.
Gordonia cholesterolivorans is already used to degrade a large amount of environmental pollutants including various plastics, rubber and dangerous explosive compounds such as hexogen. It is now hoped that the bugs metabolising qualities can be harnessed for use in pharmaceutical and medical products in the near future.
Unfortunately, due to the fact that some Gordonia species are poisonous to humans, it is not likely that the bug will be able to be used directly in these treatments. Rather it will enable scientists to identify and construct metabolically engineered strains which will be invaluable in the treatment of high cholesterol in humans.