These days antibiotic resistant bacteria are frequently cited in the news as the modern health threat to be feared. Bacteria such as MRSA and E. Coli are taking the lives of more and more people each year, and such news stories report little to no hope of combating these new deadly strains of bacteria. However, scientists now believe they may have found a new source of hope in an unlikely place–cockroaches!
Well, cockroach brains to be more specific. And perhaps not only roaches but also other insects such as locusts could possess nervous systems that produce natural antibiotics. Up until recently, scientists thought that roaches could only spread disease and infection by traveling from unsanitary conditions to places where we store, prepare, and even eat food.
However, It is the animals that live in filth that possess stronger immune defenses, since these animals can obviously survive despite inhabiting environments which are tainted with varieties of different bacteria. Now these bacteria loving insects can be used to develop drugs, which could combat infections in humans. If you have ever needed a reason to tolerate the existence of roaches, you now have one, as they may save your life one day.
How does this affect your opinion of the cockroach? Will you choose to kill one the next time you find it in your house, or mercifully transport it back into the wild?
