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Time of India
22-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
IIIT-Delhi, French researchers develop AI tool to outsmart drug-resistant superbugs
New Delhi: In a boost to scientific advancement aimed at curbing the global threat of drug-resistant infections, researchers from the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology-Delhi ( IIIT-Delhi ) and France's Inria Saclay have developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-based system that can recommend effective combinations of existing antibiotics to fight superbugs . Superbugs are germs like bacteria and fungi that cause hard-to-treat infections. Most superbugs are bacteria that have developed antibiotic resistance - the ability to survive antibiotic medications. The project, jointly led by Professor Angshul Majumdar and Dr Emilie Chouzenoux, is part of a broader India-France research collaboration between Deep Light (Delhi) and CentraleSupelec, a French engineering school, said an official statement of IIIT-D. The team includes engineer Stuti Jain and graduate researchers Kriti Kumar and Sayantika Chatterjee, it added. "This is an excellent example of how AI and international collaboration can come together to solve real-world medical challenges and our method makes it possible to use existing knowledge more effectively and opens the door to smarter, faster responses to antimicrobial resistance (AMR)," Prof. Majumdar told PTI. AMR occurs when bacteria adapt to antibiotics, rendering them ineffective. Prof. Majumdar said the misuse of antibiotics, particularly in countries like India, is a major contributor to the crisis. "We often take antibiotics even for viral infections, which don't require them. Over time, bacteria evolve and adapt. As a result, even simple infections like urinary tract infections or wounds can become resistant to treatment," he added. The AI system that the team developed goes far beyond traditional rule-based models. It analyzes real-world clinical decisions from leading Indian hospitals and combines this with bacterial genome data and the chemical structure of antibiotics to recommend optimal treatment options. The system was successfully tested on multi-drug resistant strains like Klebsiella pneumoniae, Neisseria gonorrhoeae and Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Prof. Majumdar shared a harrowing case from AIIMS, Kalyani, where a young patient's artificial hip joint became infected and was unresponsive to even last-resort antibiotics. "It was a simple muscle infection, but it became untreatable. The patient from a poor family was left bedridden and without options," he said. "This is the reality of AMR - it can devastate lives even when the infection seems ordinary." The professor said the AI model offers combination therapy suggestions, mirroring how doctors treat advanced cases today. "Instead of recommending one antibiotic, our system can propose a cocktail of drugs based on the genome sequence of the bacteria," said Majumdar. "Doctors can ask for five or ten possible options for a specific strain and the AI suggests viable treatments," he added. While the model is currently focused on bacterial infections, it can be retrained to tackle viral infections or even lifestyle diseases like hypertension, where drug resistance is emerging. "Our core motivation was to address infectious diseases - a problem that plagues countries in Southeast Asia, Africa and Latin America far more than it does the West," said Majumdar. "There's less funding for this kind of work, but the impact is massive," he added. The team hopes that their model would eventually be embedded in hospital systems and public health frameworks, particularly in regions with limited access to advanced diagnostics. With AMR recognized as one of the most pressing global health threats of the 21st century, this AI-powered solution may offer doctors a timely, data-driven ally in the battle to preserve the effectiveness of antibiotics.
Indian Express
22-05-2025
- Health
- Indian Express
Can hospital superbugs chew up stents and implants? Here's what a new study says
A dangerous hospital-acquired bacteria can digest and live on plastics present in sutures, stents, wound dressings and implants in your body. Researchers from UK's Brunel University also found that when the bacteria used plastics as its food source, it led to the formation of more biofilms — barriers that can protect the pathogen from attacks by the immune system and antibiotics. The finding means that bacteria, such as the one they studied, could degrade medical implants, lead to infections at the site of the implant and cause infections that are harder to treat. What did the researchers find? There are bacteria in the environment that have developed the capacity to break down different types of plastics. So researchers wanted to see whether bacteria that cause infections in humans could also lead to such degradation within the body. For the study, scientists looked for different pathogens with genes that could potentially produce enzymes similar to the ones that environmental bacteria use to degrade plastics. While they found several hits, they selected a Pseudomonas aeruginosa sample that came from a patient's wound. They isolated an enzyme — which they named Pap1— that could digest a type of bio-degradable plastic frequently used in medical devices called polycaprolactone (PCL) plastic. The researchers found that the enzyme degraded 78 per cent of the plastic sample in just seven days. Importantly, the researchers found that the bacteria were not only degrading the plastic, they were also using it as their carbon source — effectively eating it. 'This means we need to reconsider how pathogens exist in the hospital environment. Plastics, including plastic surfaces, could potentially be food for these bacteria. Pathogens with this ability could survive for longer in hospitals,' Dr Ronan McCarthy, author and professor of biomedical sciences at Brunel University, said in a release. Why is this concerning? This is concerning for several reasons: One, bacteria could live on in hospitals or within a patient even when there aren't any other nutrients present. Two, they could degrade medical devices that use plastics, leading to their failure. This could lead to a rethink of materials that should be used for medical devices. Three, researchers found that the plastic-digesting bacteria could cause more severe infections. The researchers further found that the bacteria were using the broken down plastic molecules to create biofilms (a matrix made of sugars, proteins, fats and DNA) that make pathogens more resistant and difficult to treat. Four, degrading medical devices would also mean that the pathogens would be able to create pits and niches within the human body, where it could be shielded from the immune system and antibiotics, again causing difficult-to-treat infections. Are there other pathogens that could have this ability? Researchers found that other pathogens like Streptococcus pneumoniae, Klebsiella pneumoniae and Acinetobacter baumannii, too, carried genes that could potentially create plastic-digesting enzymes. More studies are needed. Importantly, the researchers found that Pap1 enzyme was structurally similar to known enzymes that can degrade even more hardy plastics such as PET bottles.
Daily Maverick
13-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Maverick
Fort Hare doctor leads charge to find healthier preservative for chicken
A researcher from the University of Fort Hare received her doctorate for her work exploring whether the leaves of the moringa tree can be used as a healthier preservative for meat, and particularly chicken. Last week, Zimasa Dubeni was awarded a doctorate by the University of Fort Hare for her research that investigated the use of moringa leaves as a healthier preservative for meat and especially chicken. The soft-spoken lab technician said the research had proven that moringa extract, a powerful antioxidant, significantly slows down the growth of bacteria on chicken. She said she hoped to find a healthier way to preserve meat because some preservatives are believed to be carcinogenic. Moringa trees grow abundantly in Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal. Dubeni said that when she arrived at the University of Fort Hare 20 years ago, she had no idea what to study. A kind administrator took time to talk to her and steered her in the direction of studying for a BSc degree. 'I have always liked biodiversity and how everything depends on one another,' she said. For her postgraduate work, she turned her attention to botany, and for her PhD focused on the benefits of an extract made from the leaves of the moringa tree. 'As moringa is widely considered a source of nutrients and vitamins and is used as an immune booster and a nutritional supplement, for skin rashes and moisturisation, I wanted to investigate if it can be used to preserve meat. 'It would be good to find something that can cut down on the use of synthetic meat preservatives. I was interested in finding out if moringa could slow down bacterial growth, especially in chicken,' she explained. Dubeni said that, if successful, finding a way to incorporate moringa into meat preservation — especially chicken — could provide significant relief to families living in rural areas where there isn't electricity or electricity provision is often unreliable. In another academic paper published in a peer-reviewed journal, she added that the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria had increased the urgency to search for new antimicrobials of plant origin. In this paper, she wrote that the moringa leaf extract was effective against bacteria like E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus — both eliminated by moringa extract in six hours — and Klebsiella pneumoniae, eliminated in eight hours under laboratory conditions. She said the extract used was not toxic and was well tolerated by humans, which was one of the reasons she chose it for her work in food preservation. Her research on chicken meat, published in November last year, showed that the moringa extract effectively suppressed and delayed bacterial growth. While there was no salmonella growth in any sample, some treated samples experienced a slight increase in bacterial growth toward the end of the storage period. However, concentrations of 0.5% and 0.25% significantly reduced bacterial growth, even at higher storage temperatures of 25°C. 'We decided on chicken because it is very susceptible to spoiling,' she added. But now her next step is to find a way to stop the moringa extract they are using from staining the chicken green. 'Because really, who wants to eat green meat?' she laughed. Academic career She also has her sights set on an academic career. 'I want to become a lecturer. My journey has been a difficult one. Without the support of my supervisor, I probably would not have been able to finish my degree,' she said. She is now supervising students completing their Honours and Master's degrees. 'Eventually, I want to be a professor in my field and supervise students who can reach these heights too. We need more people to study biodiversity,' she said. She said as a child who attended a township school she didn't have a lot of exposure to careers in science. 'I would tell every young girl who wants to get into science to hold on to that dream. You need a focal point. Without it, you won't know what to work towards or how you will need to work. 'Don't be afraid to ask. You need an end goal in mind. Don't be scared to be judged. Ask about a career you want to pursue. Take every negative challenge as motivation. If you are not hungry enough, you won't work hard enough,' she said. 'Through my struggles, I discovered my strengths. Failure is part of the journey.' Today, she said, her mother tells her that she cannot believe that Dr Dubeni is the same woman as the 18-year-old who walked into Fort Hare not knowing what she wanted to be. 'I want to pay tribute to my mom,' said Dubeni. 'She has been a beacon of home and a pillar of strength for me. I wanted to prove to her that she did a great job raising me.' DM
The Star
12-05-2025
- Health
- The Star
Washing machines: An unexpected source of antimicrobial resistance
A malfunctioning washing machine can be the cause of annoyance and inconvenience if it stops mid-cycle or does not drain, meaning clothes do not get washed properly, or at best, take longer than usual to dry if the spin cycle is off-kilter. But ineffective machines could be having a more dangerous impact than just being unable to erase a food stain or coffee splash: they could be spreading antimicrobial resistance by failing to rid clothes of some bacteria. Among the germs surviving on laundry are Staphylococcus aureus (which causes a range of skin and respiratory infections) and Klebsiella pneumoniae (which, as the name suggests, can cause pneumonia). 'Our research shows that domestic washing machines often fail to disinfect textiles, allowing antibiotic-resistant bacteria to survive,' said Britain's De Montfort University professor of microbiology Dr Katie Laird, whose team's study was published in the medical journal PLOS One. 'If we're serious about transmission of infectious disease via textiles and tackling antimicrobial resistance, we must rethink how we launder what our healthcare workers wear,' she said, after her team tried out six home washing machine models to see if they could successfully decontaminate healthcare worker uniforms. The team found that when they washed contaminated fabric in hot water, three of the machines 'did not disinfect the clothing during a rapid cycle', while two 'failed to clean sufficiently during the standard cycle'. Worse still, the team found that bacteria can develop resistance to domestic detergents, which in turn can render certain antibiotics ineffective against them. Doctors and scientists have been warning in recent years that overuse and misuse of antibiotics, including as an ingredient in animal feed or as a default medication at the first sign of illness in babies or toddlers, could lead to an 'antibiotic apocalypse'. Between 1.2 million and 4.9 million people worldwide are killed each year by infections after antibiotics do not work, according to University of Oxford estimates published by The Lancet medical journal in 2022, which also published a paper last year (2024) suggesting that at least 700,000 of those deaths could be prevented by making clean water more widely available and improving sanitation. – dpa ALSO READ: Study: Superbugs expected to kill 39 million by 2050
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Gut toxin may be a ‘critical piece of the puzzle' behind the rise in early-onset colorectal cancer
A gut toxin that's been linked to colorectal cancers for more than two decades may be contributing to the sharp rise of the disease in younger people, according to landmark research published Wednesday in the journal Nature. A number of species of harmful gut bacteria — including certain strains of Klebsiella pneumoniae and Citrobacter koseri — produce a toxin called colibactin. Since the mid 2000s, studies have repeatedly shown that this toxin can inflict distinct DNA damage on colon cells that's difficult to repair and can eventually lead to the development of cancer. That DNA damage is particularly prominent in people who developed colorectal cancer at a younger age, researchers at the University of California San Diego said Wednesday. The new study sequenced the DNA of colorectal cancer tumors collected from 981 patients in 11 countries around the world, and found that colibactin-related DNA mutations were 3.3 times more common in patients under the age of 40, compared with those over 70. 'Around 50% of early-onset colorectal cancers in individuals under 40 carried the distinctive signature of colibactin exposure,' senior study author Ludmil Alexandrov, a bioengineering and cellular and molecular medicine professor at UC San Diego, said in an email interview. The finding could have critical implications for public health amid rising rates of colorectal cancer in young people. Two years ago, the American Cancer Society reported that colorectal cancer diagnoses in patients under 55 had doubled between 1995 and 2019, with rates of advanced disease now increasing by roughly 3% every year in people younger than 50. Christopher Johnston, associate professor and director of microbial genomics at MD Anderson Cancer Center, described the connection to colibactin as being potentially crucial to explaining this alarming trend. 'It may be a critical piece of the puzzle,' Johnston, who was not involved with the new research, said. According to Alexandrov, the new findings indicate that colibactin's damaging effects begin in childhood, with the initial DNA changes that lead to tumor formation seemingly occurring during the first decade of life. Lifestyle changes over the past 40 years may be predisposing more children to having a greater abundance of colibactin-producing strains of bacteria in their guts. 'There are several plausible hypotheses, including early-life antibiotic use, which may allow these strains to establish more easily; dietary shifts such as increased consumption of processed foods or reduced fiber consumption; increased rates of C-section births or reduced breastfeeding; and wider use of early group childcare which could facilitate microbial transmission during a critical developmental window,' Alexandrov said. 'Collectively these shifts may be tipping the balance towards early-life acquisition of these microbes.' At the same time, many questions remain unanswered. Dr. Shuji Ogino, a professor of pathology and epidemiology at Harvard University, said it's still unclear whether some people are simply more susceptible to the DNA-damaging effects of colibactin than others, or whether it can definitely be attributed to specific lifestyle patterns. Colibactin-producing microbes are also not the only bacteria that have been linked to colorectal cancers. In recent years, both Ogino and Johnston have published studies implicating another gut microbe, called Fusobacterium nucleatum, in the development of the disease. Alexandrov suggested that while colibactin-producing species may cause the initial mutations that drive tumor formation, F. nucleatum may contribute to disease development by enabling the tumor to proliferate and evade the immune system. However, Johnston said this is another area where more research is needed; the original cause of colorectal cancers may be the result of a combination of microbes and their toxins. 'Microbial interactions could amplify these effects,' he said. 'For example, in patients with a hereditary colorectal cancer syndrome called familial adenomatous polyposis, studies have shown that when Bacteroides fragilis co-occurs with colibactin-producing DNA damage is significantly enhanced.' Over the next two to three years, Alexandrov said he and his colleagues are planning to develop a noninvasive test that uses stool samples to determine whether people have had prior exposure to colibactin-producing bacteria. 'The goal is to identify people who are at elevated risk for developing early-onset colorectal cancer, ideally before any disease has developed,' he said. 'We would want to have these people regularly checked.' Given the wealth of evidence for the role of colibactin in these diseases continues to grow, scientists say that it's also now important to explore preventive approaches, such as targeted probiotics or vaccines. 'Considering the abundance of reproducible evidence, targeted interventions that seek to eliminate these specific microbes are now warranted,' Johnston said. 'Vaccination-based approaches are a logical next step, such as the development of a childhood vaccine, potentially with boosters, that generates immune memory against colibactin-producing E. coli,' he said. 'The caveat here is that this is a long game, requiring examining the incidence of young-onset colorectal cancer over time in vaccinated individuals, which would take decades.' This article was originally published on
