(Dennis Thompson – HealthDay News) — Do you want to prevent a Respiratory infection? A bunch of antibiotic Neosporin rubbed inside the nose could help you combat a variety of invasive respiratory virusesstates a study recent.
Laboratory animals whose noses were treated with neomycin (he principal ingredient of the ointment Neosporin over the counter) set up a robust immune defense both against him COVID virus as against a highly virulent type of influenza, the researchers found.
The same nasal approach also appeared to work in humans, this time with Neosporin itself. He ointment triggered a rapid immune response from genes in the human nose that serve as the first line of defense against invading viruses, the researchers reported in the April 22 issue of the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
“This is an exciting finding, that a cheap, over-the-counter antibiotic ointment can stimulate the human body to activate an antiviral response,” he said. Akiko Iwasaki, professor of immunobiology and dermatology at Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut.
Neosporin contains neomycin, bacitracin and polymyxin B, according to the U.S. National Institutes of Medicine. The COVID-19 virus has infected more than 774 million people and killed nearly 7 million, researchers noted in background notes. Meanwhile, influenza viruses cause up to 5 million cases of severe illness and half a million deaths each year.
Against these threats, humans deploy treatments that are typically taken orally or intravenously, the researchers noted. These approaches focus on stopping the progression of infections. But researchers believe that a therapy focused on the nose has a much better chance of stopping infections before they can spread to the lungs and cause life-threatening diseases such as pneumonia.
Starting with mice, the researchers found that nasal neomycin triggered a strong immune response in those exposed to COVID and flu viruses. Neomycin also strongly defended laboratory hamsters against contact transmission of COVID, the researchers noted. Some healthy humans who had their noses rubbed with Neosporin also showed a strong immune response.
“Our findings suggest that we may be able to optimize this cheap, generic antibiotic to prevent viral diseases and their spread in human populations, especially in resource-limited global communities,” Iwasaki said in a Yale news release. “This approach, because it is host-directed, should work no matter what the virus is.”
More information
The US National Institutes of Health has more information about Neosporin.
SOURCE: Yale University, press release, April 22, 2024
*Dennis Thompson. HealthDay Reporters ©The New York Times 2024
