Are you ill? Hug a frog.

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Following up on an ancient Russian way of keeping milk from going sour — by putting a frog in the bucket of milk — scientists have identified a wealth of new antibiotic substances in the skin of the Russian Brown frog. The study appears in ACS' Journal of Proteome Research.

A. T. Lebedev and colleagues explain that amphibians secrete antimicrobial substances called peptides through their skin. These compounds make up the majority of their skin secretions and act as a first line of defense against bacteria and other microorganisms that thrive in the wet places frogs, toads, salamanders and other amphibians live. A previous study identified on the skin of the Russian Brown frog 21 substances with antibiotic and other potential medical activity. Lebedev's team set out to find more of these potential medical treasures.

They used a sensitive laboratory technique to expand the list of such substances on the frogs' skin, identifying 76 additional substances of this kind. They describe lab tests in which some of the substances performed as well against Salmonella and Staphylococcus bacteria as some prescription antibiotic medicines. "These peptides could be potentially useful for the prevention of both pathogenic and antibiotic resistant bacterial strains while their action may also explain the traditional experience of rural populations," the scientists concluded.

The American Chemical Society is a nonprofit organization chartered by the U.S. Congress. With more than 164,000 members, ACS is the world's largest scientific society and a global leader in providing access to chemistry-related research through its multiple databases, peer-reviewed journals and scientific conferences. Its main offices are in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio.

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- Jim

‘Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing ever happened.’ Sir Winston Churchill

I can see the headlines now.

A nationwide Salmonella breakout has some known as "Froggers" carrying Russian Frogs in their mouths.

I also expect to see "Frog Slime" soon in capsule form. I guess it is no stranger than
the Krill Oil I take now.

Dan

No thanks on that. I just find it hard to believe that such folklore really exists, even if it is from Russia.

I always wonder who thought it would be a good idea to put the Frog in the Milk to begin with? They had to have some idea of the properties of the Frogs skin, or it was an accidental thing like they found a Frog in a old bucket of Milk and noticed it was not spoiled.

Dan

Most antibiotics are derived from organisms, penicillin, streptomycin, etc, Frogs live in filthy water and have permeable skins, they would not stand a chance without antibiotics.
Magainin was isolated from frogs years ago and is an excellent antibiotic. Many reptiles, amphibians and fishes have effective antibiotics.
The Aztecs used penicillium cultivated on tortillas to treat infections centuries before Flemming identified penicillin and the US cultivated the fungus on urinals for WW II.
One of the least known medical prowesses is the fact that Alexander and his few men survived years of frequent battles in which each one of them was usually wounded, including in tropical India, only because his doctors had dozens of excellent natural antibiotics, including Aloe vera. In Contrast WW I and II (before penicillin) Europeans died from their wounds in hospitals thanks to "modern medicine".

Probably nobody though of using a frog. A frog lept into the milk and they noticed that it didn't spoil.

People wouldn't have to walk with a frog in their mouths, Pharma would patent it (as if they had invented it) and synthesize it and make a fortune until the patent expired.