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 Who would have guessed that the biggest trend to hit 21st century fridges would be the type of milk we drink? From bovine to soya, goat to camel, the latest sensation in milk consumption is wallaby milk.
Wallabies, being an Australasian marsupial are at the forefront of milk technology, thanks to an antimicrobial compound found in their breast milk which is 100 times more effective than penicillin in killing antibiotic resistant ‘superbugs’.
Researchers from the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) in Melbourne, Australia, have discovered that the super-potent compound – AGG01 – has the potential to fight off bacteria and fungus including e.coli and salmonella and a relative of the hospital superbug, MRSA.
The DPI scientists have been researching the chemical properties of the breast milk of Tammar wallabies to pinpoint how their immune-deficient newborns build up resistance to bacteria during their growth in the pouch. The scientists identified more than 30 anti-microbial factors using an advanced computer system and bioinformatics technologies.
Dr Ben Cocks who led the DPI research team, believes that “the compound found in wallaby milk has the potential to be commercially synthesised and may prove vital in the war against increasingly resistant and human disease.”
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