María Soledad Ramírez leads a laboratory in California where she analyzes the evolution of Acinetobacter baumannii (Ab), a bacterium that has become a public health threat worldwide . His work shows greater resistance to antibiotics and surprising adaptability.
According to reports, an Argentine biochemist is in the United States to study the mechanism of resistance to all antibiotics in a “superbug”, which the World Health Organization (WHO) believes is mainly infected in hospital settings and has a high mortality rate. Science and Technology Agency (CyTA).
Researcher María Soledad Ramírez runs her own lab at Cal State Universityat Fullerton, where he is studying the mechanisms of bacterial resistance to antibiotics Acinetobacter baumannii (Ab)which is included in the World Health Organization’s list of critical pathogens.
During a recent visit to Buenos Aires, the researcher presented her latest work to scientists at the Foundation Leroy (FIL).Ramirez pointed out ‘Superbugs’ pose public health risk He was interested in the Ab bacterium “because of its enormous genetic diversity and high mortality rate when it invades the human body,” according to a report published by the CyTA agency.
Twenty years after research began in 2001, the World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have added “Ab” to their list of critical pathogens as “superbugs” resistant to all available antibiotics.
it’s a bacterium, Infects primarily in hospital settings and causes pneumonia, sepsis, and meningitis, and other infections that can lead to death. “Its adaptability is horrendous. It can stay on surfaces, on counters, or in hospital equipment for more than 100 days. Once the antibodies are in the hospital, they are almost impossible to eradicate,” the researchers said.
Furthermore, he maintains that “bacteria have acquired a terrifying ability to evolve and are far more powerful than humans,” explaining that 15 years ago UTIs were easily treated with antibiotics, but “this is no longer the case today, and the information it provides antimicrobial spectrum to be able to determine the best way to approach it”.
According to the scientist, this loss of efficacy is partly related to the bacteria’s natural ability to adapt, but also to the overuse of antibiotics. “When you take a drug without being told, or stop it early because you already feel well, or even because a doctor prescribes it ‘just in case’ or gives in to patient pressure”indicated.
Maria Soledad Ramirez runs her lab at Cal State University.
Another big problem is antibiotics in livestock, which are used as growth factors or prophylactically so as not to affect production. Although the antibody is a nosocomial bacterium with few case reports at the community level, Ramirez said it has also been linked to tropical climates, which is why he estimates climate change will affect the types of infections it causes.
“Antibiotic resistance is one of the top ten public health threats facing humanity”he warned. In his presentation, Ramirez shared conclusions about cefodiclox, one of the latest antibiotics approved by the U.S. drug regulator, the FDA, to treat serious infections caused by “superbugs.” “While its effectiveness is very promising, we’ve seen increased resistance,” he said.
Cefdicol, not yet available in Argentina, is a very special molecule because it is a mixture of two antibiotics of the penicillin family (beta-lactams) to which they added a compound that attracts iron (catechol) . Needed when bacteria cause an infection.
In an effort to limit and curb the health threat posed by bacterial resistance, the Argentine government last week regulated antimicrobial resistance. Antimicrobial Resistance Prevention and Control Act Promote its responsible use in human and animal health.