Antibiotic resistance and the environment—there and back again

Abstract

Antibiotics and their metabolized products in human and animal waste are the major cause of antibiotic resistance in bacteria. Understanding what happens to drugs after their use could improve methods to remove antibiotics from rivers and soils and reduce the prevalence of resistance in bacterial populations in the environment.

Antimicrobial Dendrimeric Peptides: Structure, Activity and New Therapeutic Applications

“…Antimicrobial resistance is a composite phenomenon due to a host of circumstances, but its rise has certainly been hastened by the selective pressure exerted by the use and misuse of antimicrobial agents in both animals and humans. The natural environment is also a vast source of antibiotic resistance, since it “harbors a diverse reservoir of resistance determinants, including resistance genes and the mobile genetic elements that operate as vectors for them” [6]. In addition to the need to preserve the effectiveness of existing antibiotics through a wiser use of their properties, the scarcity of new antimicrobial agents on the horizon to replace those that have become ineffective calls for the urgent quest for new anti-infective substances to be developed and deployed in the clinic.…”

Editorial: Antibiotic Resistance in Aquatic Systems

“…WWTPs are mainly aimed at reducing solid and nutrient loads to surface waters, but this does not guarantee biodegradation of trace chemical pollutants or genetic elements. Although advanced disinfection facilities can greatly reduce the danger of waterborne diseases (United States Environmental Protection and Agency, 2004), antibiotics and ARGs can still be released to the environment in disinfected effluents (Michael et al, 2013; Rizzo et al, 2013; Berkner et al, 2014; Carey and McNamara). Recent works report the improvement of disinfection in terms of ARG removal (Munir et al, 2011; McKinney and Pruden, 2012; Guo et al, 2013; Yuan et al, 2015; Zhuang et al, 2015).…”

Silk‐Based Antimicrobial Polymers as a New Platform to Design Drug‐Free Materials to Impede Microbial Infections

“…Surgical site infections (SSI) are one of the most serious complications after post‐transplant and surgery, accounting for 20% of all healthcare‐associated infections each year. Despite recent improvements in healthcare, namely the use of broad spectrum antibiotics and the improvement of surgical techniques, SSI continues to persist, posing an alarming threat to public health worldwide . In addition, the economic burden of patient hospital care is also significant .…”

“…Healthcare‐associated infection costs related to SSI have been estimated to be on average €325 per day in Europe and $25 546 per infection in the United States . The recurrent use of antibiotic therapeutic to treat microbial infections has led to the increase in microbial strain resistance, and thus, reducing antibiotic treatment efficacy . One of the causes that contribute to the development of SSI could be the contamination during surgery or contamination of the medical devices even prior to implantation.…”