ing patients from infections, and a
future of discovery will be needed
to prevent this outbreak of newly
resistant biotic strains.
Discussion).” This shows the development of homology searches and
the hope that future gene clusters
will contain new antibiotic information that we can use and re-develop.
The article is optimistic, stating that
“Teixobactin has excellent activity
against Gram-Positive Pathogens,
including drug-resistant strains”.
This is vital for companies such as
GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca
researching a new antibiotic to
replace resistant strains. The new
antibiotic is arguably a break in the
seemingly bleak period of scientific
discovery in this field. Scientists
suggest that “Inhibition of teichoic
acid synthesis by teixobactin would
help liberate autolysins, contributing to the excellent lytic and killing activity of this antibiotic”, suggesting a stronger, more powerful
antibiotic will be developed and
available in the future. The development of “teichoic acid synthesis”
is arguably a procedure which can
be used on future new developments of bacteria and therefore
improve the strength and stability
of this medicine in killing bacteria
in patients. Of course, one antibiotic will not change the course of
a scientific apocalypse in prevent-
The new field of resistance from the
body is an ideology which scientists
hope to erase, the CDC (Centres
for Disease Control and Prevention)
are fighting to produce clearer
patient instruction to reduce the
risk of antibiotic resistance. Many
aspects of antibiotic resistance rely
on the understanding of patients,
for example, if a patient were to
not finish the prescribed amount of
antibiotic. The NHS explains that
“Strains of bacteria can mutate,
over time, become resistant to a
specific antibiotic. The chance of
this increases if a person does not
finish the course of antibiotics as
some bacteria may be left to develop resistance.”9 This highlights the
importance of the patient being
fully aware of the need to finish a
course of antibiotics and therefore
can prevent the urgency of the
need for new strains of antibiotics,
in some cases.
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