Monoclonal antibodies – treatments developed by cloning a cell that makes an antibody – could help provide an answer to the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance, say scientists.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, genomic surveillance proved vital in helping understand the evolution and spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. Now, an international group of researchers is calling for its potential to be harnessed to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a major global challenge that could ultimately result in many more deaths than the coronavirus pandemic.
A new study has found that a highly antibiotic-resistant strain of the superbug MRSA – methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus – has emerged in livestock in the last 50 years, probably due to widespread antibiotic use in pig farming.
Rising resistance to antibiotics is a worrying prospect, but a success story happening across the farms of the UK gives hope that something can be done.
Since childhood Stephen Baker says he had a grim fascination with poo. He caught the bug for microbiology and spent 12 years in Vietnam researching bacteria that cause diarrhoea. Stephen thinks that antibiotic-resistant bacteria is likely to be humanity’s biggest killer in the future. But says that if we keep doing the science, we have hope.
Chioma Achi is worried about the global misuse of antibiotics in agricultural practices. Her work helping farmers in Nigeria to reduce infection in livestock and use fewer antibiotics in animal feed was highlighted in the recent Vice-Chancellor’s Research Impact and Engagement Awards.
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