Despite the fact that household bleach is commonly used as a disinfectant, exactly how it works to fight bacteria remained an open question. Now, a report in the November 14th 2008 issue of the journal Cell, a Cell Press publication, provides an answer.
The researchers found that hypochlorous acid, the active ingredient in bleach, causes the unfolding of proteins in bacteria in much the same was that heat stress or fever does. Those denatured proteins then clump together irreversibly into a mass in living cells, similar to what happens to proteins when you boil an egg, according to the researchers.
The bacteria aren’t totally defenseless, however. Under those circumstances, a protein chaperone called heat shock protein Hsp33 springs to action, protecting proteins from the aggregation effect and increasing the bacteria’s bleach resistance. Protein chaperones are generally defined as proteins whose function is to help other proteins.
In fact, the innate immune systems of mammals, and specifically immune cells known as neutrophils, release high concentrations of hypochlorous acid (aka bleach) upon recognizing microbial invaders. In addition, some evidence suggests that enzymes that produce bleach may help keep the bacteria in our guts in check.
Source: EurekAlert, November 2008
Chapter: Health :: 11 December 2008
