Obulytix, a spin-off of Ghent University and KU Leuven, led by Yves Briers, is developing groundbreaking lysine enzymes as a new, effective treatment against bacterial infections. This technology offers a potential solution to the growing antibiotic crisis by eliminating bacteria in a rapid and specific way, without the drawbacks of traditional antibiotics.
Antibiotic Resistance
The antibiotic crisis is forcing scientists to develop new, innovative approaches to fighting bacterial infections. Bacteria are developing resistance to existing antibiotics at an ever-increasing rate, seriously undermining the effectiveness of these treatments.
What does Obulytix do?
Yves Briers and his team at Obulytix focus on the use of lysines, proteins used by bacteriophages to break down bacterial cell walls. These molecular scissors work extremely quickly and are capable of killing bacteria without promoting the development of resistance. Lysines work species-specifically, meaning they target only the harmful bacteria and leave the good bacteria in our bodies untouched.
What are the benefits?
- Speed: lysines cut the cell walls of bacteria more than 1,000 times per second, giving bacteria no time to develop resistance.
- Specific action: lysines target only specific bacteria, keeping the patient's microbiome intact.
- No impact on metabolism: this makes lysines effective against bacteria that go into a kind of hibernation and evade traditional antibiotics.
Future prospects
With Obulytix's technology, customized lysines can be developed for various applications. Initial preclinical tests are promising, and the technology has the potential to be widely applied in intensive care settings. Eventually, it could become possible to provide general practitioners with simple tests and personalized lysine treatments for their patients.
Obulytix is working to further optimize and commercialize their lysine enzymes. Yves Briers aims to make optimized lysines for the main bacterial infections available in the future and hopes that GPs will be able to prescribe specific lysines based on simple diagnostic tests within a few decades.
Contact information
- Yves Briers: researcher profile
- Email: info@alfasent.com
- Website: https://www.obulytix.com/
- LinkedIn: Obulytix