A compound studied by scientists from the Vale Institute of Technology (ITV), the Federal University of South and Southeast Pará (Unifesspa) and partner institutions has demonstrated viricidal and bactericidal properties and is capable of eliminating cancer cells.
A study carried out by scientists at the Sustainable Development arm of the Vale Institute of Technology (ITV-DS), the Federal University of South and Southeast Pará (Unifesspa) and partner institutions provided an encouraging description of the therapeutic potential of a chemical compound produced by a new bacterium found in Amazonian soil in the region of Paragominas in eastern Pará. The chemical compound demonstrated virucidal and bactericidal properties and with potential to eliminate cancer cells without damaging healthy cells, according to the discoverers. The findings were published on Tuesday, March 12, in Scientific Reports, a scientific journal from the publishers of Nature.

The researchers studied the pharmaceutical potential of a Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria strain. This bacterium produces a surfactant of microbial origin or biosurfactant called rhamnolipid. This compound has shown promising results against pathogenic microorganisms of medical and veterinary interest. The study also assessed the compound’s toxicity against three types of viruses (herpes simplex, murine coronavirus and respiratory syncytial virus). A solution of this compound, at a concentration of 250 μg/mL, inhibited 97% of viral activity in the three types of viruses mentioned. Similar results were observed with a 50 μg/mL solution for 15, 30 and 60 minutes, suggesting that virucidal efficacy is related to the time the virus is exposed to the biosurfactant.

Another test showed that rhamnolipid (biosurfactant), at a concentration of 12.5 µg/mL, showed potential selectivity in reducing the proliferation of breast tumor cells after one minute of exposure in the laboratory.

According to ITV’s José Pires Bitencourt, one of the article’s authors, the compound “is a substance that helps the bacterium capture some nutrient that is useful for its growth, as well as helping communication between bacteria of the same species.” He adds that during the study, all concentrations of the compound reduced the viability of the cancer cells to less than 50% in 72 hours, demonstrating an anti-tumor potential comparable to the levels achieved by standard chemotherapy.

Bitencourt explains that the environmental conditions of Amazonian soil are conducive to compounds of pharmaceutical interest, such as the one studied by the researchers. “Different subspecies of bacteria found in various soil conditions produce biosurfactants, influenced by factors such as climate, soil evolution, the water regime, interaction with other organisms and human impact,” he says.

According to Sidnei Cerqueira dos Santos, a professor at the Federal University of South and Southeast Pará and one of the authors of the paper, rhamnolipid “can also be used as a survival strategy for these bacteria in unfavorable environments, to reduce or inhibit cell toxicity, such as soil contaminated by metals.” The compound has great potential for the development of novel compounds to control microorganisms and viruses, and to treat breast cancer.