Discovered by culturing 'unculturable' soil bacteria, it killed pathogens with no detectable resistance in early studies.
Part of the Foundational & therapeutic peptides cluster
Overview
Teixobactin is an 11-residue nonribosomal depsipeptide antibiotic from the soil bacterium Eleftheria terrae, discovered in 2015 using the iChip to grow previously unculturable microbes. It binds the conserved cell-wall precursors lipid II and lipid III, blocking both peptidoglycan and teichoic-acid synthesis, and no resistant mutants emerged in early laboratory studies. This page is educational and not medical advice.
Source & context
Biological / chemical source: Soil bacterium Eleftheria terrae (isolated using the iChip)
Primary research or clinical context: Research antibiotic studied against Gram-positive pathogens
Discovery via the iChip
Teixobactin came from screening bacteria grown in situ in soil using the isolation chip (iChip), which coaxes microbes that will not grow on standard plates. Its 2015 report in Nature highlighted how untapped environmental bacteria remain a source of new antibiotic chemistry.
Mechanism and prospects
The peptide contains unusual residues, including enduracididine, and binds the pyrophosphate-sugar portion of lipid II and lipid III. Because these targets are non-protein and highly conserved, resistance was slow to appear in preclinical work against Staphylococcus aureus and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. It is inactive against Gram-negative bacteria and remains investigational.
FAQ about Teixobactin
What is Teixobactin?+
Teixobactin is an 11-residue nonribosomal depsipeptide antibiotic from the soil bacterium Eleftheria terrae, discovered in 2015 using the iChip to grow previously unculturable microbes. It binds the conserved cell-wall precursors lipid II and lipid III, blocking both peptidoglycan and teichoic-acid synthesis, and no resistant mutants emerged in early laboratory studies. This page is educational and not medical advice.
Is Teixobactin an approved medicine?+
Teixobactin is discussed here as a research / educational topic. Research antibiotic studied against Gram-positive pathogens. This is not medical advice.
What is the typical length of Teixobactin?+
Teixobactin is commonly described as approximately 11 amino acids (Nonribosomal depsipeptide antibiotic).