Antibiotic

Researchers at Instituto Gulbenkian de Ciência (IGC) in Portugal and Stanford in the US have identified one particular bacterium, Klebsiella michiganensis, that could be administered after a round of antibiotics to help prevent harmful infections.

Polysporin may be in for some serious competition, as Swedish scientists have created a healing gel that not only kills antibiotic-resistant bacteria, but also reduces inflammation within wounds. It could someday replace antibiotic-based medications.

Researchers at Rice University have developed a new method to kill emerging superbugs, using molecular “drills” to pierce their cell walls. The same technique has also been shown to work on cancer cells.

One of the most alarmingly plausible (and overlooked) doomsday scenarios is the rise of the superbug, bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. But now, scientists have found a new potential treatment – and it was hiding in our skin the whole time.

Bacteria tend to build colonies behind barriers known as biofilms, which are hard for antibiotics to penetrate. Now, researchers at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) have developed a hybrid antibiotic that can punch through some biofilms.

Gum disease is a very common condition, and it's usually caused by bacteria. Although orally-administered antibiotics are typically used to treat severe cases, a new treatment could be much more effective – with fewer side effects.

Researchers at Northeastern University have discovered a new antibiotic called darobactin, hiding in the gut of a tiny, soil-dwelling, parasitic worm. Tests on mice have so far proved promising against gram-negative bacteria.

Disinfectants are essential to fields such as medicine, yet they're difficult to ship to remote villages in developing nations. It may soon be possible to produce germ-killing hydrogen peroxide onsite, however, using just electricity, water and air.

A new study indicates that ants can be very effective at protecting crops from diseases. It's even being suggested that ant-derived antibiotics could be applied on a commercial scale.

A new gold-doped antibacterial nanomesh has been designed as a more effective alternative to pills or needles.

Researchers have analyzed a weapon that bacteria use to kill each other – a toxic "crossbow bolt" – which could inspire new antibiotics.

Although antibiotic levels are currently measured via blood samples, the task could soon be better-managed using a microneedle skin patch.