BACTERIA, ANTIBIOTICS

AND ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

Photo: Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacteria, NIAID (from flickr).1 Photo: Staphylococcus epidermidis bacteria, NIAID (from flickr).2

BASIC LECTURE

By ReAct Funding from Marie-Claire Cronstedts Stiftelse

 OUTLINE OF THIS LECTURE

•  About bacteria

•  About antibiotics

•  Antibiotic resistance
–  How does it form and spread?
–  What are the consequences for global health?

•  What can you do?

 ABOUT BACTERIA
•  Bacteria are small (microscopic size) organisms that can
be found in most environments, for example in soil, water
and on and inside the human body
•  There are around 50 million bacteria
in every gram of surface soil
•  We would not survive without them!
–  Help degrade the food we eat
–  Protect against pathogens

Photo: Bacteria, Umberto Salvagnin (from flickr).3

 DISEASE-CAUSING BACTERIA
•  A few bacteria can be dangerous to our health by causing
infections and even death
•  We can get them from outside the body:
–  Other humans, animals, food, water

•  Sometimes our “own” bacteria can cause disease

•  Examples of bacterial infections:
–  Pneumonia
–  Blood stream infections
–  Urinary tract infections
–  Wound infections Photo: Klebsiella pneumoniae, NIAID (from flickr). 4

–  The sexually transmitted disease gonorrhea

 ANTIBIOTICS
•  Antibiotics are medicines for bacterial infections
•  Examples of antibiotics: Photo: Antibiotics, Michael
Mortensen (from flickr). 5

–  Penicillin and Ciprofloxacin

•  Penicillin was discovered by Alexander Fleming in 1928

–  Introduced as medicine in the 1940’s

•  Antibiotics can have “broad” or “narrow” spectrum

–  Broad spectrum: Active against many different types of bacteria
–  Narrow spectrum: Active against one or a few types of bacteria
 ANTIBIOTICS
•  Antibiotics do not work against viruses!
•  Examples of viral infections:
–  The common cold
–  The flu (influenza)

European Antibiotic Awareness Day key messages, ECDC.

 ANTIBIOTICS
•  Antibiotics are effective against bacteria
–  However, antibiotics have only marginal effect against
some bacterial infections such as uncomplicated sinus
infections and ear infections (bacterial otitis)

–  The body’s immune system can normally take care of

these infections without antibiotics

•  But for some bacterial infections antibiotics are

life-saving medicines!
–  For example for blood stream infections (sepsis) and
pneumonia
 ANTIBIOTICS
•  Before antibiotics there was no effective cure for
bacterial infections
•  Antibiotics were considered “a miracle cure”

è Saved countless lives!

è Made modern medicine possible!

•  Antibiotics cure infections, prevent infections

upon surgery, and make transplantations and
cancer treatment safer
 ANTIBIOTICS
•  Antibiotics are the cornerstones of modern medicine!

Photo: M. Pränting
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
•  Massive use of antibiotics the past 80 years, both
appropriate and inappropriate has lead to:

Increased occurrence and spread of

bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics

Photo: Drug resistance by Iqbal Osman (from flickr). 6

 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE = The ability of bacteria to
protect themselves against the effects of an antibiotic

•  Bacteria are experts at surviving in changing environments

•  In large bacterial populations there are often a few
resistant bacteria
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
•  Antibiotics select for resistant bacteria

Antibiotics kill or stop growth of

susceptible bacteria

Population of mainly
susceptible bacteria
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
•  Antibiotics select for resistant bacteria
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
Is antibiotic resistance a problem?
•  Antibiotic resistance leads to treatment failures
•  Antibiotic resistance threatens our ability to perform
modern medical procedures
•  Antibiotic resistance imposes a major economic burden
on society
•  Antibiotic resistant bacteria already cause many deaths
around the world
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

Antibiotic resistant bacteria each year cause:

•  More than 38,000 deaths in Thailanda
•  More than 23,000 deaths in the USAb
•  25,000 deaths in the European Unionc

Photo: Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

Bacteria by NIAID (from flickr) 7

aPhumart P, Phodha T et al. Health and Economic Impacts of Antimicrobial Resistant Infections in Thailand: A Preliminary Study. J. Health Syst Res. (2012) 6(3).
bUS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Antibiotic resistance threats in the United States, 2013. (2013). http://www.cdc.gov/drugresistance/threat-report-2013/
pdf/ar-threats-2013-508.pdf
cECDC/EMEA. Technical Report. The bacterial challenge: time to react. (Sept 2009). http://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications/Publications/

0909_TER_The_Bacterial_Challenge_Time_to_React.pdf
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE

… but the consequences of antibiotic resistance are

most severe for the poor. For example:

•  In South Asia (India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nepal, Bangladesh)

one newborn child dies every 5 minutes from blood
stream infections (sepsis) because the antibiotics given
are not effective due to bacterial resistancea

aBhuttaZ, Presentation at the Global Need for Effective Antibiotics - Moving towards Concerted Action. http://www.reactgroup.org/uploads/publications/presentations/
opening-session-zulfiqar-bhutta.pdf
 ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE
•  Antibiotic resistance is a global issue!
–  Exists on all continents
–  Affects both low- and high income countries
–  Affects both strong and weak health systems

Photo: The Blue Marble, Eastern Hemisphere March 2014,

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (from flickr). 8
How did we end up here?
USE & INAPPROPRIATE USE OF ANTIBIOTICS
•  Use in human and animal medicine
•  Use to increase growth of farm animals
•  Use for routine prophylaxis in farm animals
à Selection and maintenance of resistance

How did we end up here?

USE & INAPPROPRIATE USE OF ANTIBIOTICS
à Selection and maintenance of resistance

SPREAD OF
RESISTANT BACTERIA
•  Poor hygiene and
sanitation
•  Food and water
•  Travel

How did we end up here?

USE & INAPPROPRIATE USE OF ANTIBIOTICS
à Selection and maintenance of resistance

SPREAD OF
RESISTANT BACTERIA

How did we end up here?

LACK OF NEW ANTIBIOTICS

•  The last new antibiotic class that has been
introduced as medicine was discovered in 1987
•  Older antibiotics are rapidly becoming ineffective
due to antibiotic resistance
 LACK OF NEW ANTIBIOTICS

Adapted from Silver 2011

•  No new drugs for typhoid fever, gonorrhea, blood stream

infections or postoperative infections
•  Some bacteria already resistant to all available antibiotics
 WHAT CAN YOU DO?
•  Use antibiotics only when you need it
–  Not for a common cold or the flu

•  Ask your doctor for advise

–  Don’t pressure
–  Don’t self medicate

•  Wash your hands, especially….

–  Before and after handling and preparing food
–  After visiting the bathroom

•  Teach others about antibiotic resistance!

 Thank you for your attention!
For more information about antibiotic resistance, please visit:

www.reactgroup.org
www.reactgroup.org/toolbox
Image references
1 Photo: Mycobacterium tuberculosis Bacteria, the Cause of TB by NIAID 7 Photo: Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) Bacteria by
(from flickr) NIAID (from flickr)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/niaid/5149398656/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/niaid/5927204872/
https://www.flickr.com/photos/niaid/ https://www.flickr.com/photos/niaid/
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2 Photo: Staphylococcus epidermidis Bacteria by NIAID (from flickr)
8Photo: The Blue Marble, Eastern Hemisphere March 2014 by NASA
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Goddard Space Flight Center (from flickr)
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3 Photo:
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/
Bacteria by Umberto Salvagnin (from flickr)
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All images downloaded 5th of Nov 2014 unless otherwise specified
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4 Photo: Klebsiella pneumoniae by NIAID (from flickr)

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5Photo: Antibiotics by Michael Mortensen (from flickr)

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6 Photo: Drug resistance by Iqbal Osman (from flickr)

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