Investigating Countermeasures for Mirror Bacteria

At Panoplia Laboratories, we conduct science that informs sound biosecurity policy. While much of our work focuses on AI and biosecurity, some risks warrant empirical investigation, including whether society could defend against hypothetical mirror bacteria (i.e., organisms built from mirror-image biomolecules) that may evade natural immunity.

In our new preprint, we conducted three experiments to provide data on this question:

• Can we repurpose existing chiral antibiotics? We evaluated four approved, chiral antibiotics (chloramphenicol, linezolid, tedizolid, and aztreonam) by testing their mirror versions against natural (non-mirror) bacteria. The mirror compounds showed minimal to no antibacterial activity across a diverse 18-strain panel, implying that these standard antibiotics would likely fail against mirror infections.

• Could mirror antibiotics be safe if developed as drugs? In mice, these four mirror compounds exhibited favorable single-dose acute toxicity profiles, suggesting mirror antibiotics could be considered for further evaluation as potential treatments.

• Can we develop vaccines against mirror antigens? When conjugated to carrier proteins and adjuvanted, mirror peptides elicited robust and specific antibody responses, indicating a potential path for mirror-life vaccines.

This project reflects our broader approach: when critical biosecurity questions lack data, we conduct targeted wet-lab studies to address these gaps. While our primary focus remains understanding how AI will transform biology, we also pursue defensive research to inform preparedness for emerging threats.