Scientists Now Reveal the Origin of Antibiotic Resistance

(Newswire.net — July 4, 2022) Orlando, FL — Antibiotic resistance continues to affect people and claim more and more lives. Today, scientists are increasingly investigating the various aspects of this global health issue. 

Scientists in Gothenburg, Sweden carried out a study. By comparing thousands of bacterial genomes, they were able to trace back the evolutionary history of antibiotic resistance genes. 

In nearly all cases where an origin is determinable, the gene started to spread from bacteria that, themselves, can cause disease. It is worth noting that while human DNA is only passed down from parent to child, bacteria also share some of their genes across species. 

This new study was published in the scientific journal called Communications Biology. 

This, according to experts, often applies to genes that trigger bacteria to be resistant to antibiotics. Use and overuse of this type of medication actually provide an advantage to bacteria that have already acquired resistance genes. 

This ends up promoting the spread of resistance and making it harder to treat the infection. It is worth noting that such development poses a threat to large parts of modern healthcare. 

In the last decade, there have been rapid advances in DNA sequencing. Such made it possible to study bacterial evolution much more effectively than ever before. 

In this research, the investigating team looked into the scientific literature for claims about the recent origins of antibiotic resistance genes. They also added information from public DNA-sequence databases and critiqued the evidence at hand. 

“Given that the overwhelming majority of bacteria are harmless to us, it was quite surprising that these genes almost exclusively came from bacteria causing disease,” said Professor Joakim Larsson, senior author of the study and director of the Centre for Antibiotic Resistance Research at University of Gothenburg, CARe.

“On the other hand, it makes some sense since such bacteria often trigger antibiotic use when we become infected, and other pathogens are often nearby, ready to engage in gene transfer. These findings underscore the microbial-rich gut flora humans and domestic animals given antibiotics as arenas for resistance evolution.”

Over the years, researchers have been carrying out studies to look into the remedies potentially helpful in reducing the rates of antibiotic resistance. Lessening the prevalence of urinary tract infections (UTIs) plays a significant role in doing this. 

There are plant-based ingredients like the use of D-mannose that may be helpful against the infection. Today, it is widely reported through the use of superior-strength supplements like Divine Bounty D-mannose (amazon.com/D-Mannose-600mg-Cranberry-Dandelion-Extract/dp/B01LX5KGF0).