New technology poised to play a key role in combating antimicrobial resistance

Increasing pressures on health services have led to excessive prescribing of commonly used antibiotics, increased prescription errors and, subsequently, the emergence of antibiotic resistance. and increased use of antibiotics of last resort. This new technology is expected to play a vital role in the fight against antimicrobial resistance.

Professor Douglas Kell has developed a technology using flow cytometry that detects and counts individual bacteria in a urine sample, and can determine which antibiotic is most effective at killing these bacteria. The most effective antibiotic can then be prescribed to the patient.

Professor Kell believes that "precise technology" could be used as a portable instrument in clinics and hospitals.

Professor Kell said: "What we have been able to do for the very first time is to provide a very quick method that will allow us to determine whether an antibiotic will kill organisms in the urinary tract infection or not. This method is fast enough so that the results are available within the time before a doctor's departure.

"Modern clbadic methods often rely on the discovery of the genotype of the present organism and the sequence of DNA, but that does not really tell you if the organism is likely or not, in the meaning to prevent it from growing, to the antibiotic In the question. "

Antimicrobial resistance or AMR – which occurs naturally over time and usually through genetic changes – is the ability of a microbe to resist the effects of a drug that could treat it successfully. Microorganisms that develop antimicrobial resistance are sometimes called "superbugs". RAM is widely regarded as one of the biggest threats to society.

Professor Kell added: "Most often, a patient presents in a general clinic with a urinary tract infection or a suspected urinary tract infection.The doctor wishes to administer an antibiotic.

"Very often, it is unclear which antibiotic will cure the infection.

"What would be desirable, is to do a test that could tell you which antibiotic will act on a time scale of about 30 minutes or less, so that the patient gets the right prescription before leaving the Clinic of the general practitioner, capable of performing