British researchers develop new drug - with maggotsBritish researchers have developed a new antibiotic using maggots which can be used to treat bugs including some strains of the drug-resistant bacteria MRSA MRSA Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. See MARSA. , they announced Tuesday. The team from Swansea University in south Wales has created Seraticin, a drug made from the secretions of green bottle fly green bottle fly see lucilia. green bottle fly An opportunistic insect pathogen, which causes a myasis/maggot infestation, pupating in open sores or purulent discharges larvae Larvae, in Roman religion Larvae: see lemures. . They hope it will be turned into a treatment that can be injected, swallowed as a pill or used as an ointment ointment /oint·ment/ (oint´ment) a semisolid preparation for external application to the skin or mucous membranes, usually containing a medicinal substance. oint·ment n. . Professor Norman Ratcliffe, who led the researchers, said there was more work to be done before the full benefits of the discovery could come to fruition. "It takes approximately 20 mugs of maggots to yield just one drop of purified Seraticin at present," he said. "Thus the next stage will be to... produce this chemically on a larger scale." 
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