Japan Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (JAIST) scientists have isolated a bacterium from the intestines of Japanese tree frogs that, in a single dose, completely eliminated colorectal Cancer tumors in mice and provided lasting immunity. The microbe, Ewingella americana, outperformed standard therapies like anti-PD-L1 antibody and the chemotherapy drug doxorubicin, revealing a potent new frontier in microbiome-based cancer treatment.
Why do amphibians and reptiles, living in pathogen-rich environments and undergoing extreme cellular stress, rarely get spontaneous cancer? A research team in Japan suspected the answer might live in their guts—and they were right. Their search through the microbiomes of cold-blooded animals has uncovered a bacterial strain with an astonishing, two-pronged ability to seek out and destroy tumors, offering a blueprint for a completely new class of living medicine.
The team, as reported by New Atlas, isolated 45 bacterial strains from Japanese tree frogs, fire-bellied newts, and grass lizards. After intensive screening, one candidate stood out: Ewingella americana from the frog gut. When administered intravenously to mice with colorectal cancer, a single dose led to complete tumor regression in every animal. Even more remarkably, those mice resisted new cancer cells later, suggesting the treatment had established protective immune memory.
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“Ewingella americana exhibited remarkably potent cytotoxic activity with selective tumor-targeting ability,” the researchers noted. Their investigation, detailed in a study covered by New Atlas, revealed a brilliant dual mechanism. First, the bacterium is facultatively anaerobic, meaning it thrives in low-oxygen environments. It homed directly to tumors, multiplying 3,000-fold within 24 hours while ignoring healthy tissues. There, it secreted toxins that directly killed cancer cells.
Simultaneously, the bacterial invasion acted as a powerful alarm, rallying the host’s immune system. The tumors became flooded with neutrophils, T cells, and B cells, creating a sustained attack from within. This combination of direct microbial assault and robust immune activation proved far more effective than conventional treatments in their studies.
A critical advantage is the bacterium’s natural safety profile. E. americana was rapidly cleared from the body, becoming undetectable within a day, and caused only transient, manageable inflammation. Over two months, treated mice showed no signs of organ damage or chronic toxicity. The bacterium also remained sensitive to common antibiotics, providing a crucial safety switch. This contrasts with genetically engineered bacterial therapies, highlighting the value of searching nature’s existing microbial library.
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The implications are vast. “These findings suggest that gut microbiomes of lower vertebrates harbor numerous uncharacterized bacterial species with exceptional therapeutic potential,” the researchers concluded. This work establishes a proof-of-concept for mining the animal kingdom for novel therapeutics. The team is now planning studies on breast cancer, pancreatic cancer, and melanoma, and exploring how this natural bacterial therapy could complement existing regimens.
While the leap from mice to humans is significant, the fundamental biology is promising. Tumors’ leaky, oxygen-starved environments are common across species, making this a compelling strategy. The JAIST discovery turns a simple frog into a potential wellspring of hope, underscoring that the next medical revolution might not come from a synthetic lab, but from the ancient, co-evolved wisdom of the natural world.
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