

Why Some Civil War Soldiers Glowed in the Dark - deeths
http://mentalfloss.com/article/30380/why-some-civil-war-soldiers-glowed-dark

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BrandonMarc
Mostly-harmless (to humans) bacteria that release crude antibiotics in order
to kill competing bacteria ... Now that's impressive. The glowing part is an
amazing add-on, helping the symbiotic relationship with the parasitic micro-
worms the bacteria live in/with.

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coupdejarnac
I wonder if the chemicals produced by the bacteria could be synthesized and
made into a useful medicine. Perhaps useful for immunocompromised patients?

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forktheif
That's where a lot of antibiotics come from.

Antibiotics that have names ending in -mycin often come from bacteria.

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JulianMorrison
I wonder if human-caused antibiotic resistance turns around and harms the
critters who were originally using that antibiotic as self defense?

