The Blessed Clay from Boho, Northern Ireland: Can the Nature of Spiritual Healing Sites Guide us Towards New Sources of Drug Discovery?

In 2016, a group of scientists isolated Streptomyces sp. myrophorea, an antibiotic producing microorganism, from the "Blessed Clay" of Fr. McGirr, an old Irish folk cure found in Boho, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. In this essay, the authors examine the common elements between this spiritual healing site and others around the world and compare these motifs with characteristics commonly associated with the discovery of antibiotic producing microorganisms. The authors also contemplate whether this discovery adds any credence to spiritual healing practices and if sites like these have the potential to guide researchers toward new pharmaceutical discoveries. Taking into account local sensitivities and cultural traditions, the authors propose that similar spiritual healing sites should be carefully studied for evidence of microorganisms that might produce useful pharmaceuticals.