Another great news for plant food lovers: scientists found in green leafy vegetables an unusual carbohydrate that protects the microflora of our intestines.
This is reported by the journal Nature Chemical Biology.
A joint team of researchers from Australia and the United Kingdom found in the greenery sulfoquinovose (SQ), which is formed as a result of photosynthesis.
Our bacteria successfully utilize the sulfoquinose, obtaining from it carbon and sulfur.
As you know, sulfur is an important raw material for the synthesis of amino acids and proteins, building blocks of all living organisms. Therefore, SQ plays an important role in the nutrition and reproduction of our intestinal bacteria.
"Every time we eat green leafy vegetables, we get significant portions of the sulphoquinose, which serves as a wonderful treat for microflora," said lead author Dr. Ethan Goddard-Borger of the Eliza Hall Medical Institute in Parkville, Australia..
Dr. Goddard-Borger explains that SQ is especially important for the protective strains of E. coli (Escherichia coli) and a number of other beneficial bacteria. All of them create a barrier to pathogens, preventing them from colonizing our intestines.
Scientists say that intestinal bacteria are utilized by SQ using a special enzyme called YihQ. He splits the sulfoquinose so that the bacterium can assimilate the sulfur and other components contained in it.
This discovery gave an answer to the riddle, which for almost 50 years: how sulfur, the key element for life, is drawn in living nature? According to one of the authors of Professor Spencer Williams (Spencer Williams), the enzyme YihQ became the missing link in the chain.
When a bacterium cleaves a sulphoquinose, it releases sulfur into the environment, which is immediately included in the circulation of this element in the wildlife.
This discovery can lead to the development of new types of antibiotics with a completely unique mechanism of action that can even affect multi-resistant super bacteria without affecting the beneficial organisms.
"Enzymes like YihQ will deliver antibiotics directly into the microbial cells, killing pathogenic strains of Escherichia coli and other bacteria such as Salmonella," explains Dr. Goddard-Borger.
In the meantime, scientists are racking their brains over new drugs, we should think about how to diversify their menu with spinach, green onions, feces or a zhiruha.
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