MU: By combining our expertise, we have begun to investigate the unknown microbiomes of several deep-sea sponges. It is one of the best studied deep-sea regions in the world, but for many of the species we are working on, we don’t even have the most basic information beyond their identity.Ī medically promising glass sponge species from the genus Euplectella, retrieved by Kerry from the Atlantic seabed and potentially new to science (Image: Plymouth University, Marine Institute Ireland, Eurofleets 2) One that has shown promising results is from the genus Euplectella, found between 700 to 1,700 metres deep in the north-east Atlantic. At Plymouth we have begun to look at a number of different deep-sea sponge species. However, almost all research undertaken so far has been on sponges from shallow waters. Kerry Howell (KH): Sponges are one of the most promising sources of potential medical uses, with 145 reported antimicrobial compounds isolated between 20. Mat Upton (MU): We’ve grown bacteria from the sponges that Kerry has retrieved from the deep-sea floor and tested them in the lab to see if they kill other bacteria. Jessica Aldred (JA): What did you discover and how? But they warn that such potential could be lost in the drive to exploit the ocean floor for minerals. At the University of Plymouth they have discovered antimicrobial properties in bacteria that live in a species of deep-sea sponge – a potential breakthrough in the fight against antibiotic-resistant superbugs. Prof Mat Upton is a medical microbiologist and Dr Kerry Howell is a deep-sea marine ecologist.
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