Exploitative Tricks Of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria

Eric Pamer and colleagues found that antibiotic-treated mice had lower amounts of an intestinal antimicrobial protein, RegIII gamma, which can kill antibiotic-resistant bacteria such as vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE). So therapies that increase levels of this protein may fend off infection with antibiotic-resistant bacteria, they suggest.

Infections caused by highly antibiotic-resistant bacteria, such as VRE, are an increasing menace in hospitalized patients. It's been assumed that antibiotics kill off many different types of intestinal bacteria, opening up a nutrient-rich niche in which resistant bacteria can thrive. This study, however, suggests an alternative explanation whereby resistant bacteria exploit antibiotic-induced innate immune deficits.

Author contact:

Eric Pamer (Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA)
E-mail: pamere@mskcc.org

Abstract available online.

(C) Nature press release.

Message posted by: Trevor M. D'Souza