Is it a fruit? Is it a vegetable? Or…a superhero?!
This is Sandra Tsing Loh with the Loh Down on Science.
What comes to mind when you think of tomatoes? Pizza… ketchup… maybe heartburn. How about a POWERHOUSE ANTIBACTERIAL? Really? Tomatoes can do that?
Enter Ryan Kwon and team in New York.
They ground up tomatoes and poured them on Salmonella Typhi bacteria, which causes typhoid fever. Within just twenty-four hours, the puree had eliminated ONE HUNDRED percent of Salmonella!
Researchers tested tomato DNA and found two regions that were responsible for this superpower! In less than an hour, these components start destroying Salmonella by breaking open the bacteria.
Researchers tested tomatoes on other bacteria that cause inflammation and gut disturbances, like E. coli. And? Tomatoes to the rescue! No bacteria could be found after tomato juice had been added!
Tomatoes are an amazing and antimicrobial food! Maybe future bacterial treatments could involve something as simple as eating more tomatoes.
Salmonella? Here today, gone TOMATO!
Reference: Kwon, R. et al. Antimicrobial properties of tomato juice and peptides against typhoidal Salmonella. American Society for Microbiology, 03102-23 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1128/spectrum.03102-23