Potential new target for antibiotics against E. coli, other bugs

Scientists have identified a protein that is essential to the survival of E. coli bacteria, and consider the protein a potential new target for antibiotics. E. coli is part of the gram-negative family of bacteria, characterized by having an extra membrane, called the outer membrane, that reduces the chances for a drug to penetrate the cell to kill it. Inhibiting this protein, however, would require getting past just one of the two membranes, meaning it could be an attractive new target for antib...