Cockroaches, a new source of antibiotics

Cockroaches may look disgusting, but they can resist other things that are even nastier. A new study suggests that the brains of cockroaches and locusts contain substances that can kill drug-resistant bacteria such as E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus. These efforts could lead to new advances in the fight against disease.

Extracts from the tissues of American cockroaches and desert locusts can kill up to 90 percent of E. coli and Staphylococcus aureus bacteria, Simon Lee of the University of Nottingham in the United Kingdom reported.