Emily Chan
One of the most popular Roman structures still standing in what is now England are the Roman baths located in the city of Bath, Somerset.
These bathing facilities were meticulously designed and contained grand architectural features. They served as places of hygiene, socialization, and even healing.
Researchers from the School of Biomedical Sciences at the University of Plymouth tested the water from the ancient baths and found that it really did have healing properties of a sort.
The water contained microbial lifeforms that produced antibiotic substances that destroy deadly bacteria such as E. coli and Staphylococcus Aureus, which are common today and pose as threats to human health.
According to the researchers, these healing substances can be used to create effective medicines to treat antimicrobial resistance if they are collected on a large scale.
Antimicrobial resistance occurs when parasites, viruses, bacteria, and fungi no longer respond to treatment involving the same drugs, making infections harder to treat and increasing the risk of the spread of severe illness.
“Antimicrobial resistance is recognized as one of the most significant threats to global health, and the hunt for novel antimicrobial natural products is gathering pace,” said Dr. Lee Hutt, a biomedical sciences lecturer at the University of Plymouth.
“This study has for the first time demonstrated some of the microorganisms present within the Roman baths, revealing it as a potential source of novel antimicrobial discovery.”
Roman baths have been discovered in other places as well, including Austria, Spain, Croatia, and Lebanon.
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