Study shows advances in antibiotics may lead to antibacterial break-through

CHICAGO According to a study published in the journal Cell, researchers have found three compounds that may yield promising new antibiotics.

Announced Thursday, the study found the compounds ­ myxopyronin, corallopyronin and ripostatin ­ prevent bacteria’s RNA polymerase from using DNA to make the proteins the bacteria need to reproduce.

The researchers found that the compounds can work against tuberculosis, a potentially fatal bacterial infection that affects roughly one-third of people in the world, particularly in developing countries.