Marine Molecule May Help Combat “Brain-Eating” Amoeba

Primary amoebic meningoencephalitis (PAM), a parasitic disease that causes the rapid deterioration of brain tissue, is one of the most lethal infections known, with a fatality rate exceeding 97%. Caused by the free-living amoeba Naegleria fowleri (N. fowleri), the disease progresses with devastating speed, often leaving patients with only a few days to respond to treatment. Now, researchers at the University of California San Diego have isolated a marine-derived compound that may provide a faster, more effective way to stop the parasite in its tracks.

The researchers report that rutamycin B — a compound isolated from a marine bacterium — demonstrates significant potency at low concentrations against multiple clinical strains of N. fowleri. Most notably, the compound achieves full potency within just four hours, significantly outpacing amphotericin B, the current gold-standard treatment.