A surprising find in a thousand-year-old ancient text has led modern-day scientists to a real solution against Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria. Originally intended for the treatment of eye infections, styes, and pustular infections of eyelash follicles, it was unexpected to find it serves as a modern-day superbug killer. In fact, it far exceeded the effectiveness of vancomycin, which is reserved as a last-ditch drug for serious MRSA infections.

Ancient wisdom still true
The ancient text titled, Bald's Leechbook, had been shelved in the library at the University of Nottingham's Institute for Medieval Research. Until one day a professor happened to be browsing the brittle pages of the book and had the idea to test the medical recipes she found there.

Associate Professor in Viking Studies Christina Lee found a tenth century potion reputed to be used in the treatment of eye infections. She naturally wondered about the ancient recipes and what they might reveal about the nature of medieval medicine — she wanted to see if ancient healers used scientific wisdom in the remedies they chose.

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Deciding to test the potion, she translated the recipe from a transcript of the manuscript. The timing couldn't have been better. There were scarce antimicrobial medications in the development channels at Nottingham University, so Freya Harrison, microbiologist and research fellow at the Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, was ready to get involved.

Nottingham's scientists made four different batches of the potion, using fresh ingredients for each batch. They developed a control batch using distilled water and a brass sheet to serve as the container for brewing. In the control batch they left out the vegetable compounds required in the working formula.

Brewing an ancient remedy
The recipe called for some unexpected ingredients, such as two species of the genus Allium, which includes onion and garlic. Other ingredients were honey, wine, and oxgall, which is bile found in a cow's stomach. The process involved brewing the concoction in a brass vessel, straining it, and allowing it to sit and ferment for nine days prior to administering it.