Global effort may help win battle against antibiotic resistance

Nov 17 2016

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) does not seem to cause much worry among the general population and can be thought of as a future problem. However, superbugs are already claiming victims and this is not going to stop if we don't act collectively. Because of the overuse of antibiotics, common bacteria have evolved to defeat even our most powerful antibiotics and will result infections that cannot be treated anymore. If we don't find long term solutions, by 2050 it will kill more people than cancer.

Raising awareness, a tool against antibiotic resistance
Informing the general public is a main priority in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. Friday 18th of November is the European Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness day 2016 and is the perfect moment to gather global effort into raising awareness for a wider audience.

There isn't one unique answer to fight AMR. Different solutions must be implemented together, including the research for new antibiotics, better diagnostic tools and processes and a smarter use of the existing antibiotics to name a few.

"A cure, how long?" The exhibition on antibiotics' history
The Rotterdam museum has created an exhibition on antibiotics "A cure, how long?" from November 2016 to May 2017. It demonstrates the consequences for our health, our healthcare methods and shows how inventive scientists and pharmaceutical companies seek innovative solutions. The exhibition is supported by the European research project DIAGORAS.

Point-of-Care platform to identify antibiotic resistances for personalised treatment
In response to this global health and economic burden, the DIAGORAS project is developing a Point-of-Care diagnosis platform that will identify - within 1 hour - a wide range of viruses and bacteria responsible for respiratory tract and oral infections. Practitioners, dentists and emergency rooms will be able to use the device for a better and quicker diagnosis, helping them reduce useless and harmful overprescription of antibiotics.

European expertise
The consortium consists of acknowledged experts both from academia and industry from 11 teams established in 8 countries - Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, France, Czech Republic, Sweden and United Kingdom.

It is trans-trandisciplinary and possesses the broad expertise in Microfluidics, Lab-on-a-Chip, Microsystems Engineering, Molecular Diagnostics, Biomimetic Hydrogel Synthesis, GMP Production of Cellular Therapeutics, Advanced Light Microscopy, High-throughput Screening, High-content Imaging and Application of Biochemical Assays.