Antibiotic News and Research

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Antibiotics are drugs used to treat infections caused by bacteria and other microorganisms.

Obstructive salivary gland disease treatment: an interview with Thomas Cherry, Cook Medical

Everyone is familiar with urinary stones (kidney stones). The same thing can actually happen in your salivary ducts. These types of stones and strictures occur not nearly as frequently as kidney stones but they still occur quite often. The latest data we have seen showed about 1 in 5,000 patients actually have some type of obstructive salivary duct disorder.

From COOK MEDICAL INC. 19 Apr 2013

Antibiotic resistance: A growing problem in hospital and outpatient settings

A new study concludes that problems with antibiotic resistance faced by outpatients may be as bad as those in hospitalized patients, and that more studies of outpatients are needed - both to protect their health and to avoid inappropriate or unnecessary drug use.

19 Apr 2013

Circumcision offers men some protection against HIV, discovers TGen-led study

Male circumcision reduces the abundance of bacteria living on the penis and might help explain why circumcision offers men some protection against HIV, according to a study led by the Translational Genomics Research Institute.

17 Apr 2013

Pneumococcal vaccine: an interview with Graham Clarke, CEO ImmBio

The pathogen that we are talking about is called streptococcus pneumoniae. That is a fairly common bacteria and if you did a nasal swab you would find that quite a lot of people have this bacterium living in their nasal passages.

16 Apr 2013

New study to discover preventive use of antibiotics for Lyme disease

At the start of the "Tick Week", the Netherlands National Institute for Public Health and the Environment and Wageningen University are commencing a large-scale study to discover whether preventive use of antibiotics can stop Lyme disease developing after a tick bite.

16 Apr 2013

New nanosponge safely removes dangerous toxins from bloodstream

Engineers at the University of California, San Diego have invented a "nanosponge" capable of safely removing a broad class of dangerous toxins from the bloodstream - including toxins produced by MRSA, E. coli, poisonous snakes and bees.

15 Apr 2013

US biochemist to be honoured with Inhoffen Medal Braunschweig, Germany

How do bacteria cope when exposed to toxic mercury, how are they able to outlast antibiotics, and how can they be killed using so-called "suicide inhibitors?" These are but a few of the many research topics US biochemist Christopher Walsh has devoted his career as a scientist to.

15 Apr 2013

Gold nano-bullets to defeat cancer

Cutting edge research into an experimental therapy that deploys nano-particles of gold in the fight against cancer earned an Alberta high school student, 16, top national honours today in the 2013 "Sanofi BioGENEius Challenge Canada" (SBCC).

11 Apr 2013

Scientists demonstrate feasibility of using already-approved drugs against pathogens

In the most extensive screen of its kind, Texas Biomed scientists in San Antonio have demonstrated the feasibility of repurposing already-approved drugs for use against highly pathogenic bacteria and viruses.

11 Apr 2013

Tiny proteins prevent bacterial gene transcription

In the search for new antibiotics, researchers are taking an unusual approach: They are developing peptides, short chains of protein building blocks that effectively inhibit a key enzyme of bacterial metabolism.

10 Apr 2013

Disinfection intervention highlights effective method in removing antibiotic-resistant bug

With rates and deaths associated with Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) at historically high levels, many hospitals have taken extra steps to reduce these infections. New research finds that a dedicated daily cleaning crew who adequately clean and disinfect rooms contaminated by C. difficile using a standardized process can be more effective than other disinfection interventions.

10 Apr 2013

Antibiotic drug minocycline yields modest improvements in children with fragile X syndrome

The antibiotic drug minocycline yields "modest" but meaningful improvements in functioning and mood for children with fragile X syndrome (FXS), reports a study in the April Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics, the official journal of the Society for Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics.

9 Apr 2013

Anacor signs research agreement to discover drug candidates to treat neglected diseases

Anacor Pharmaceuticals today announced that it has signed a research agreement with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (the Gates Foundation) to discover drug candidates intended to treat two filarial worm diseases (onchocerciasis, or river blindness, and lymphatic filariasis, commonly known as elephantiasis) and tuberculosis.

9 Apr 2013

Researchers use single-cell genome sequencing approach to analyze microbe from biofilm in hospital

A team of researchers led by scientists from the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI) has published a study outlining the recovery and genomic analysis, using single-cell genomic techniques, of a periodontal pathogen, Porphyromonas gingivalis, from a hospital sink.

6 Apr 2013

Anti-vaccination messages spread more easily than positive ones on Twitter, researchers find

On Twitter, a popular microblogging and social-networking service, statements about vaccines may have unexpected effects -- positive messages may backfire, according to a team of Penn State University researchers led by Marcel Salath-, an assistant professor of biology.

5 Apr 2013

A new method to kill pathogenic bacteria

Engineering researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed a new method to kill deadly pathogenic bacteria, including listeria, in food handling and packaging. This innovation represents an alternative to the use of antibiotics or chemical decontamination in food supply systems.

3 Apr 2013

Minocycline can help reduce hemorrhagic stroke damage

A new study will help determine if an antibiotic is a partial antidote for the poisonous effect blood has on the brain following a hemorrhagic stroke, researchers say.

2 Apr 2013

Report highlights ecological cost of pharmaceutical waste

Pharmaceuticals commonly found in the environment are disrupting streams, with unknown impacts on aquatic life and water quality.

2 Apr 2013

Viewpoints: Budget woes leave Democrats with painful choices; David Kessler on health hazards of antibiotics in meat; the pros and cons of not hiring smokers

USA Today: Entitlements Or Investment? Democrats Must Pick Democrats therefore face a fundamental and inescapable choice: they can support funding current consumption, especially by older Americans who are not working, or future investment, particularly in scientific research and innovation.

29 Mar 2013

Microbiologists identify unique resistance mechanisms of E. coli to carbapenems

As public health authorities across the globe grapple with the growing problem of antibiotic resistance, Tufts University School of Medicine microbiologists and colleagues have identified the unique resistance mechanisms of a clinical isolate of E. coli resistant to carbapenems.

27 Mar 2013