[{"command":"openDialog","selector":"#drupal-modal","settings":null,"data":"\u003Cdiv id=\u0022republish_modal_form\u0022\u003E\u003Cform class=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form ecl-form\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 action=\u0022\/en\/article\/modal\/5794\u0022 method=\u0022post\u0022 id=\u0022modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 accept-charset=\u0022UTF-8\u0022\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHorizon articles can be republished for free under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EYou must give appropriate credit. We ask you to do this by:\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 1) Using the original journalist\u0027s byline\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 2) Linking back to our original story\u003Cbr \/\u003E\n 3) Using the following text in the footer: This article was originally published in \u003Ca href=\u0027#\u0027\u003EHorizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003ESee our full republication guidelines \u003Ca href=\u0027\/horizon-magazine\/republish-our-stories\u0027\u003Ehere\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cp\u003EHTML for this article, including the attribution and page view counter, is below:\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cdiv class=\u0022js-form-item form-item js-form-type-textarea form-item-body-content js-form-item-body-content ecl-form-group ecl-form-group--text-area form-no-label ecl-u-mv-m\u0022\u003E\n \n\u003Cdiv\u003E\n \u003Ctextarea data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 aria-describedby=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 id=\u0022edit-body-content\u0022 name=\u0022body_content\u0022 rows=\u00225\u0022 cols=\u002260\u0022 class=\u0022form-textarea ecl-text-area\u0022\u003E\u003Ch2\u003ENew drugs... at the bottom of the ocean\u003C\/h2\u003E\u003Cp\u003ESupplies of new antibiotics are running dry, and if nothing is done to fight the problem, then scientists believe that within 10 to 20 years, bacteria will have become resistant to all major antibiotics, meaning simple infections could be fatal.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan\u003EMore than a third of EU countries have experienced a significant increase in drug-resistant\u0026nbsp;E.\u0026nbsp;coli and klebsiella, a bacteria which can cause pneumonia, over the past four years.\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOn top of that, there has not been a new antibiotic registered since 2003, and the marine environment represents an untapped source for new biologically active molecules, in particular antibiotics.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAs part of the EU-funded PharmaSea project, scientists are looking for new drugs in some of the deepest trenches in the oceans, in the belief that evolution may have progressed differently there.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EPharmaSea, backed by more than EUR 9.5 million from the EU, will collect and screen samples of mud and sediment from the huge, previously untapped oceanic trenches. The team comprises experts from Belgium, Denmark, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Norway, Spain, Switzerland and the UK.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThey have a specific goal in mind - to discover five new antibiotics ready for patient use by the end of the current decade, sourced from the diversity of marine life in our oceans.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cstrong\u003ESalvage techniques\u003C\/strong\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EAccess to really deep water is restricted to oceanography ships and deep sea sampling equipment, so the team will use \u2018inexpensive and robust\u2019 equipment based on that used in the salvage sector.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u003Cspan class=\u0022img_legend\u0022 style=\u0022float: left;\u0022\u003E\u003Cfigure role=\u0022group\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cimg alt=\u0022For sampling sediments from the deep seas, the team of Prof. Marcel Jaspars (University of Aberdeen) will employ strategies used by the salvage industry. \u00a9 Marcel Jaspars\u0022 height=\u0022113\u0022 src=\u0022\/research-and-innovation\/sites\/default\/files\/hm\/HO3-THIS%20ONE%20PharmaSea-Marcel_Jaspars_2009.jpg\u0022 title=\u0022For sampling sediments from the deep seas, the team of Prof. Marcel Jaspars (University of Aberdeen) will employ strategies used by the salvage industry. \u00a9 Marcel Jaspars\u0022 width=\u0022200\u0022\u003E\n\u003Cfigcaption class=\u0022tw-italic tw-mb-4\u0022\u003EFor sampling sediments from the deep seas, the team of Prof. Marcel Jaspars (University of Aberdeen) will employ strategies used by the salvage industry. \u00a9 Marcel Jaspars\u003C\/figcaption\u003E\n\u003C\/figure\u003E\n\u003Cem\u003EFor sampling sediments from the deep seas, the team of Prof. Marcel Jaspars (University of Aberdeen) will employ strategies used by the salvage industry. \u00a9 Marcel Jaspars\u003C\/em\u003E\u003C\/span\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe team, led by Professor Marcel Jaspars of the University of Aberdeen in Scotland,\u0026nbsp;will search for organisms by lowering sediment collecting equipment into the trench bed from\u0026nbsp;fishing vessels.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EHaving scoured for marine organisms more than 2\u0026nbsp;000\u0026nbsp;metres below sea level, scientists will then attempt to grow unique bacteria and fungi from the sediment that can be extracted to isolate novel drug-like molecules for testing.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe first tests will be carried out in the autumn in the Eastern Pacific Ocean, off Chile and Peru, followed by tests in the Arctic and Antarctic.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Our guiding philosophy is simple,\u2019 said Prof. Jaspars. \u2018Unique and extreme environments can yield new species of marine micro-organisms. By choosing deep and cold marine environments we hope to tap novel diversity not seen before. Deep ocean trenches are islands of diversity in which evolution may have progressed differently.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EOne of the main aims is to look for new antibiotics in newly discovered marine bacteria and the team will focus on drug discovery for neurological, inflammatory and other infectious diseases as well as in the area of cancer treatment.\u003Cblockquote class=\u0022tw-text-center tw-text-blue tw-font-bold tw-text-2xl lg:tw-w-1\/2 tw-border-2 tw-border-blue tw-p-12 tw-my-8 lg:tw-m-12 lg:tw--ml-16 tw-float-left\u0022\u003E\n \u003Cspan class=\u0022tw-text-5xl tw-rotate-180\u0022\u003E\u201c\u003C\/span\u003E\n \u003Cp class=\u0022tw-font-serif tw-italic\u0022\u003E\u2018By choosing deep and cold marine environments we hope to tap novel diversity not seen before.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\n \u003Cfooter\u003E\n \u003Ccite class=\u0022tw-not-italic tw-font-normal tw-text-sm tw-text-black\u0022\u003EProfessor Marcel Jaspars, University of Aberdeen, Scotland\u003C\/cite\u003E\n \u003C\/footer\u003E\n\u003C\/blockquote\u003E\n\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EBy the end of the project, in September 2016, it is hoped this innovative form of bio-prospecting will have significantly advanced the fight against antibiotic resistant bacteria.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EMarine and coastal environments contain about 90\u0026nbsp;% of all organisms on Earth, and European seas are home to over 36 000 known species - with thousands as yet unclassified.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u2018Many of these organisms produce a wealth of chemical compounds,\u2019 said Professor Heikki Vuorela, of the University of Helsinki. \u2018Our hope is that any discoveries may pave the way to a healthier future, both for people and the marine environment.\u2019\u003C\/p\u003E\u003C\/textarea\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E\n\n \u003Cdiv id=\u0022edit-body-content--description\u0022 class=\u0022ecl-help-block description\u0022\u003E\n Please copy the above code and embed it onto your website to republish.\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n \u003C\/div\u003E\n\u003Cinput autocomplete=\u0022off\u0022 data-drupal-selector=\u0022form-x4jrzlu1r-ek0brhwbw3rdhujac0mtgknlciqctqn8e\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_build_id\u0022 value=\u0022form-X4JrZLU1r_Ek0BRHWBW3rdHuJaC0mTgkNlcIQCtqn8E\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003Cinput data-drupal-selector=\u0022edit-modal-form-example-modal-form\u0022 type=\u0022hidden\u0022 name=\u0022form_id\u0022 value=\u0022modal_form_example_modal_form\u0022 \/\u003E\n\u003C\/form\u003E\n\u003C\/div\u003E","dialogOptions":{"width":"800","modal":true,"title":"Republish this content"}}]