Health

Antibiotic resistance study looks at soil bacteria

NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted Feb. 6, 2006

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Studying bacteria that live in dirt could prove to be useful in identifying how and why antibiotic resistance happens in the bacteria that infect people, according to research in the Jan. 20 Science.

Researchers found that the numerous ways soil-dwelling bacteria become resistant to antibiotics are identical to resistance patterns seen in patients. Soil-dwelling bacteria also play a central role in treatment of infectious diseases. Approximately two-thirds of all antibiotics are produced by bacteria called actinomycetes, commonly found in soils, compost and other environmental sources.

Researchers from McMaster University in Ontario screened 480 strains of soil bacteria isolated from diverse locations for resistance to 21 clinically relevant antibiotics. At high drug concentrations, the soil-dwelling bacteria displayed a stunning level of resistance, said the researchers. Not only were the bacteria resistant to an average of seven to eight antibiotics, but every strain was found to be multidrug-resistant.

"This work could prove to be extremely valuable to the drug development process, complementing traditional laboratory studies of clinical situations," said Dr. Gerry Wright, chair of biochemistry and biomedical sciences at McMaster's Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine.

Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2006/02/06/hlbf0206.htm.

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