New rules for cellular entry may aid antibiotic development

Tests show clues to fighting drug-resistant gram-negative bacteria

antimicrobial

MAKE WAY  An antimicrobial (mostly green and white in this illustration) that has been modified to target gram-negative bacteria travels through a channel (brown) on its way inside an E. coli cell.

M.F. Richter et al/Nature 2017

Like entry to an exclusive nightclub, getting inside a gram-negative bacterial cell is no easy feat for chemical compounds.