Artificial intelligence helps find new antibiotic
The technology ’ s ability to process massive amounts of data led to the discovery
An artificial intelligence-powered system has allowed researchers to identify a novel antibiotic that can eliminate common bacteria causing several hard-to-treat infections .
Often found in hospitals , Acinetobacter baumannii is a bacterial species that can cause pneumonia , meningitis , and other serious infections .
“ Acinetobacter can survive on hospital doorknobs and equipment for long periods of time , and it can take up antibiotic resistance genes from its environment . It ’ s really common now to find A . baumannii isolates that are resistant to nearly every antibiotic , � said Jonathan Stokes , senior study author and an assistant professor of biochemistry and biomedical sciences at McMaster University , in a press release .
The scientists used artificial intelligence ( AI ) to sift through a list of about 7,000 potential drug compounds to check whether any of them could stop the growth of A . baumannii .
�This finding further supports the premise that AI can significantly accelerate and expand our search for novel antibiotics , � said James Collins , senior study author and the Termeer Professor of Medical Engineering and Sciences in MIT ’ s Institute for Medical Engineering and Science ( IMES ) and Department of Biological Engineering , in the press release . �I am excited that this work shows that we can use AI to help combat problematic pathogens such as A . baumannii . �
The researchers named the new substance abaucin and showed that it could treat wound infections in mice as well as A . baumannii strains isolated from humans .
Globally , many bacteria have been growing resistant to antibiotics and A . baumannii belongs to one of the 12 bacterial families posing the greatest threat to human health , according to a list the World Health Organization compiled to boost research on new antibiotics .
�This list is a new tool to ensure R�D responds to urgent public health needs , � said Dr Marie-Paule Kieny , WHO ’ s Assistant Director-General for Health Systems and Innovation , in a press release . �Antibiotic resistance is growing , and we are fast running out of treatment options . If we leave it to market forces alone , the new antibiotics we most urgently need are not going to be developed in time . �
In addition to the lack of adequate sanitation , poor infection prevention , and lax control in many healthcare settings , the overuse of antibiotics in both humans and animals is another driver of antibiotic resistance . The WHO has now listed antimicrobial resistance ( AMR ) as one of the top 10 global public health threats due to the rising rates of resistance in a host of common infections previously treated effectively with antibiotics . Some of the most widespread include urinary tract infections , sexually transmitted diseases , and certain forms of diarrhoea .
Bacteria that are now resistant to medications directly killed roughly 1.2 million people in 2019 , according to a study published in The Lancet , while the number of deaths associated with hard-to-treat pathogens stood at almost five million , meaning effective antibiotics could have saved all these lives in a single year .
Bacteria that are now resistant to medications directly killed roughly 1.2 million people in 2019
GlobalHealthAsiaPacific . com ISSUE 3 | 2023
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