Ants are capable of producing antibiotics

Some ants have very varied systems for treating their wounded, including by producing antibiotics.

Ecological researchers have discovered that ants are capable of treating their wounded, particularly with antibiotics. Explanations from Mathilde Fontez, editor-in-chief of the magazine Epsiloon.

franceinfo: An international team has just published this study on ants. What did the researchers observe?

They observed Matabele ants, a species widespread south of the Sahara, and discovered a sophisticated system for treating their wounded. It must be said that injuries to this ant are frequent: they only feed on termites which must be hunted, but which defend themselves – 20% of the ants engaged in raids have one or two legs missing when returning to the nest and many have sores.

The worker ants then spring into action and treat them. First, the researchers were surprised to find that they were able to distinguish wounds that were infected from those that were healthy. The workers take care of infected wounds as a priority. They start by cleaning them with saliva. Then they apply a substance that they produce with a gland located at the back of their thorax: an antibiotic substance.

Have the researchers analyzed it?

Yes, and they were quite stunned by the richness of this product. They counted 112 components, half of which have an antimicrobial or healing effect. In mammals, saliva is known to be antiseptic; many animals lick their wounds to clean them. But this is a much richer substance. Moreover, the treatment is very effective: it reduces the mortality rate of injured people by 90%.

This is quite similar to the medical procedures we use. Is this surprising?

Yes, this is the finding of the researchers. With the exception of humans, we have never seen such a sophisticated treatment system: sorting of patients, care in several stages, a drug! Over the course of evolution, these ants have designed an entire dispensary. We should call these workers nurses. For now, this is a unique case. Perhaps because of their diet – this permanent confrontation with termites – these ants have suffered a particularly strong selection pressure which has brought them this far.

But the researchers are already planning to study other species, while continuing to analyze the Matabele ants’ antibiotic. Because it overcomes, in particular, a bacteria which also affects humans, the pyocyanic bacteria. We could therefore derive new treatments, for us this time.

For further : the study published in Nature (in English).