Lysozyme: a little goes a long way

Lysozyme is an antibacterial enzyme produced by the body in tears, saliva, and other secretions. It helps protect moist parts of the body exposed to the environment, like our eyes.

In this MSNBC article, the idea of attaching billions of copies of the lysozyme enzyme to carbon nanotubes and then using them to coat surfaces in hospitals, gyms, and other places where germs are a problem is suggested.

My worry: that dramatically increasing bacterial exposure to one of the human body's frontline defenses runs up the odds that some bacteria evolve to defeat the enzyme.

And then where does that leave us?

Our modern germ problem has more to do with our attempt to live in a sterile environment and our habit of raising livestock in unnaturally close quarters than it does from not having the right tools to fight disease.