What ever happened to Bt?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bacillus_thuringiensis


Bacillus thuringiensis is a Gram-positive, soil dwelling bacterium of the genus Bacillus. Additionally, B. thuringiensis also occurs naturally in the caterpillars of some moths and butterflies, as well as on the surface of plants.[1]
B. thuringiensis was discovered 1901 in Japan by Ishiwata and 1911 in Germany by Ernst Berliner, who discovered a disease called Schlaffsucht in flour moth caterpillars. B. thuringiensis is closely related to B. cereus, a soil bacterium, and B. anthracis, the cause of anthrax: the three organisms only differ in their plasmids. Like other members of the genus, all three are aerobes capable of producing endospores.[1]
Upon sporulation, B. thuringiensis forms crystals of proteinaceous insecticidal ?-endotoxins (Cry toxins: Bacillus thuringiensis Toxin Nomenclature) which are encoded by cry genes. Cry toxins have specific activities against species of the orders Lepidoptera (Moths and Butterflies), Diptera (Flies and Mosquitoes) and Coleoptera (Beetles). Thus, B. thuringiensis serves as an important reservoir of Cry toxins and cry genes for production of biological insecticides and insect-resistant genetically modified crops.rms-37016.shtml


And the crystal protien, Bt's active ingredient Cry5B, which (was/is?) considered non-toxic to mammals:



http://news.softpedia.com/news/Bacterial-Toxin-Used-as-Insecticide-Kills-Inte...



A toxic protein produced by Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt), a bacterium used against crop pest insects, has been discovered as highly effective in the treatment of hookworm (photo) infections.

Hookworms attach to the intestine and feed on their host’s blood and nutrients, causing anemia and weight loss. This finding could help the development of drugs with no secondary effects in the treatments for hookworm and other soil-transmitted nematode infections or intestinal worms, which are a major health problem in developing countries.

Nearly two billion people are infected with these intestinal parasites, and many are children, who are at particular risk for anemia and delayed growth.

The protein, called Cry5B, given orally to laboratory hamsters infected with hookworms, eliminated the parasites, curing anemia and restoring weight gain in the hamsters at the same level as mebendazole, one of the drugs currently used to treat infections in humans.

The protein kills both larval stages and adults and impairs the release of eggs by females. Because this protein is safe to humans and other vertebrates and can be produced inexpensively in large quantities, it has the potential to substantially improve this global health problem.

"Our ability to control parasitic nematode infections with chemotherapy on a global scale is dependent on the availability of medicines that are safe, effective, and inexpensive to manufacture," said Michael Cappello, professor of pediatrics and epidemiology & public health at Yale School of Medicine. Tweet