Science and medicine are constantly evolving, looking for solutions to illnesses in the most unlikely places. A new study, published in Cell Reports Medicine, shows that a dreaded bacteria, which causes severe illness in humans, can help - a lot! – in the regeneration of tissues and organs.
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The star of this article is the bacteria mycobacterium leprae, responsible for leprosy – a disease that became better known as leprosy. According to research published in Cell Reports Medicine, the bacteria can double the size of the liver, stimulating a healthy growth of the organ.
This happens because the bacteria wants to infect more tissue. She's smart, isn't she? To do this, it converts one body tissue into another. And detail: it is not a defective growth. It's healthy and fully functional.
You know the most curious thing of all? It's just that the researchers realized that the bacteria is causing the organ to "go back in time". That is, an adult liver goes back to the stage where it is an “adolescent” liver.
As? It is not yet known.
For the time being, studies have only been carried out on armadillos. But scientists are confident that the effect could be similar in humans.
The scholars' idea is to use this ability of bacterium in the development of therapies for the repair of organs in people awaiting a transplant. According to the research, the results are an indicator of future approaches to the treatment of liver diseases.
In the conditions in which leprosy develops, the mycobacterium leprae causes alteration, decrease or total loss of thermal, tactile or pain sensitivity. There are also reports of loss of muscle strength.
The most affected places are usually hands, feet, arms, legs and eyes. In more severe cases of the disease, limbs can be permanently disabled.
Fortunately, science has advanced enough that today we have a cure for leprosy. The treatment is done with the association of two or three drugs, all orally. Best of all: everything is available for free through the Unified Health Service (SUS).
Graduated in Social Communication at the Federal University of Goiás. Passionate about digital media, pop culture, technology, politics and psychoanalysis.
