A chemist based at the University of Copenhagen has just taken out a patent for a drug that can make previously multidrug-resistant bacteria responsive to antibiotics once again.
Jørn Bolstad and his chemist colleagues hope that the substance will soon be able to tackle the tremendous problems associated with multidrug resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). But first, they need to find investors interested in getting the substance onto the market.
Before the development of penicillin, people dropped like flies in response to minor infections: in the lungs, in small cuts. Even pimples could grow to boils that killed. But one of the main killers prior to the discovery of antibiotics was tuberculosis.
The deadly infectious disease that typically affects the lungs has returned. It has developed a resistance to the majority of antibiotics that would otherwise kill the tuberculosis bacteria. Currently, the disease does not pose an imminent threat to Denmark or the West. However, resistant strains of the bacteria are nearing the region’s borders. This is one of the reasons why doctors around the world are busy trying to solve the problem of drug resistance.
The bacteria shed killing substances
While those bacteria that have developed a resistance remain vulnerable to antibiotics, they have developed an ability to shed bacteria killing substances before any damage is done to them. Colloquially, this is referred to as pooping the substance out, but the scientific formulation is that these bacteria activate an efflux pump.
Jørn Bolstad Christensen has isolated a substance able to block the efflux pump so that an antibiotic remains in bacteria until the bacteria dies.
You could say that we cure bacteria of their resistance, and slay them with antibiotics, explains Associate Professor Jørn Bolstad Christensen.
From antipsychotic to killing bacteria
Working with doctors Jette Kristiansen from the University of Southern Denmark and Oliver Hendricks from the King Christian X’s Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases in Gråsten, Denmark, Jørn Bolstad Christensen discovered that Thioridazin, an antipsychotic drug, was able to kill bacteria without any noticeably harmful effects upon humans. Still, the chemists had an idea that could make the substance more benign.
We now have a substance that is able to block the bacteria’s efflux pump. At very most, recipients of the medication may become slightly sluggish. This is also because very small doses are needed to affect the bacteria, says Jørn Bolstad Christensen.
Researchers hope for quick approval
Because Thioridazin is an approved drug, the research team hopes that the new anti-resistance medication, JEK 47, will be approved without going through the entire process that new pharmaceuticals are typically subjected to. If this is the case, JEK 47 will most likely be a cheap medication that a pharmaceuticals manufacturer could release quickly. However if an investor does not show interest, Christensen is certain about his next step.
The Latest on: Antibiotic resistance
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Antibiotic resistance” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Antibiotic resistance
- Online platform aims to share personal stories about antibiotic resistanceon May 8, 2024 at 12:55 pm
The Global AMR Diary will collect the stories of patients, parents, providers, and others affected by drug-resistant bacterial infections.
- A New Oral Antibiotic Is Available to Treat UTIson May 8, 2024 at 9:32 am
The FDA recently approved Pivya for uncomplicated UTIs. Pivya is an oral tablet that clears bacterial infections in the female bladder.
- Welsh Government's plan to tackle antibiotic resistanceon May 8, 2024 at 8:00 am
People in Wales are being asked to 'play their part' as the Welsh Government launches its next plan to reduce resistance to antibiotics.
- New plan to tackle antimicrobial resistance launchedon May 7, 2024 at 9:37 pm
A new plan to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR), a global issue that makes infections difficult or impossible to treat, has been launched today.
- Study recommends scaling down antibiotic prescriptions to curb antibiotic resistanceon May 7, 2024 at 7:00 am
A study on two years of antibiotic prescribing at Cork and Kerry Southdoc found that children under six accounted for 21% of all antibiotics prescribed ...
- Fred Allendorf: Science and Nature: Evolution of antibiotic resistance in bacteriaon May 7, 2024 at 5:45 am
Approximately 8 million people die annually around the world from infectious diseases caused by bacteria. Bacterial diseases have been the major cause of human mortality throughout history. For ...
- A mother's loss launches a global effort to fight antibiotic resistanceon May 7, 2024 at 3:00 am
Diane Shader Smith's daughter, Mallory Smith, died at age 25 after fighting an antibiotic-resistant lung infection for 12 years. A new book of her daughter's diary entries and a website are aimed at ...
- Raw meat-based diet for pets linked to drug-resistant bacteria, prompting concerns over public health riskson May 5, 2024 at 10:51 pm
Study reveals that raw meat-based pet diets (RMBDs) often harbor multidrug-resistant bacteria, posing significant health risks to both pets and humans, unlike conventionally processed pet foods.
- Automated alerts improved antibiotic prescribing for common infections: JAMA studieson May 3, 2024 at 12:15 pm
Pneumonia and urinary tract infections are the two most common infections requiring hospitalizations and major reasons for the overuse of broad-spectrum antibiotics. | Algorithm-driven alerts help ...
- High levels of resistant bacteria found in uncooked meats and raw dog food: ‘Red flag’on May 1, 2024 at 7:09 pm
High levels of E. coli were found in uncooked meats and raw dog food sold in U.K. grocery stores, according to research presented last week at the ESCMID Global Congress in Barcelona.
via Bing News