# Fruit fly sleep protein yields peptides that inhibit drug-resistant bacteria in lab tests

Source: [Biology News - Evolution, Cell theory, Gene theory, Microbiology, Biotechnology](https://phys.org/news/2026-11-fruit-fly-protein-yields-peptides.html) · 2026-11-13 · Life
Page: https://themorning.science/story/fruit-fly-sleep-protein-yields-peptides-that-inhibit-drug-resistant-bacteria-in-4f5b20368ec07af8
Kind: research · Impact: medium

## In brief

- Researchers at the University of Tsukuba and collaborating institutions identified short antimicrobial peptides derived from Nemuri, a sleep-inducing protein in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster.
- The peptides inhibited drug-resistant bacteria in lab tests.
- The research is published in the journal Nature Communications.

## Why it matters

The work shows that a protein from a model organism can yield peptides active against drug-resistant bacteria, a laboratory-stage starting point for possible new antimicrobial candidates.

## Coverage

- [Fruit fly sleep protein yields peptides that inhibit drug-resistant bacteria in lab tests](https://phys.org/news/2026-11-fruit-fly-protein-yields-peptides.html) — Biology News - Evolution, Cell theory, Gene theory, Microbiology, Biotechnology, 2026-11-13

Tags: antimicrobial peptides, antibiotic resistance, drosophila, sleep, microbiology

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Brief generated by AI (claude-haiku-5-5) from the reporting listed under Coverage. Headlines belong to their publishers. The Morning Science – https://themorning.science