Antibiotic

If you’ve ever found room for dessert when you thought you were full, your gut bacteria might be to blame. Caltech scientists have shown that mice given antibiotics ate far more sugary snacks, hinting at a bacterial influence on overeating.

Drugs given to the whole body can be too much of a shotgun approach, damaging cells that aren’t meant to be targeted. A new study has found that cloaking drugs inside red blood cells could help guide powerful but toxic antibiotics to target bacteria.

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are common and treatable, but there can be complications, especially when the bacteria become drug resistant. Now, a new drug combo has shown promise in a Phase 3 clinical trial.

The rise of drug-resistant bacteria calls for new approaches to how doctors protect against bone infection after joint replacements, and a potent new form of bone cement is poised to take up the fight.

Scientists have recently had success in curing mice of a serious type of pneumonia, using what are described as "microrobots." The bots were actually live algae cells, which carried life-saving medication throughout the rodents' lungs.

Scientists have identified a toxin used by bacteria to kill others through a unique mechanism. It's the first found to directly target RNA in what the team describes as “a total assault on the cell,” which could lead to a new class of antibiotics.

Bacteria are fast developing resistance to our best drugs, leaving us poised on the edge of a major health crisis. But a new antibiotic has shown promise against several key “superbugs,” while minimizing damage against good bacteria in the body.

Bacteria are great at resisting antibiotics, but they can’t fight tiny drills ripping them open. Researchers have now demonstrated next-generation molecular drills that are activated by blue light and could revolutionize the fight against superbugs.

Algorithms have helped uncover a new antibiotic that shows promise against some nasty bacteria, using a novel mode of attack that should be hard for them to develop resistance to. Most importantly it could unlock a whole new arsenal of antibiotics.

New studies have highlighted the importance of judicious antibiotic use, one found antibiotics can increase a person’s risk of fungal infections, while another suggests antibiotic use in old age is linked to higher risk of inflammatory bowel disease.

A study has shown how engineered bacteria can protect the gut microbiome from the impact of antibiotic use. Mouse studies showed the bacteria breaks down antibiotics in the intestine while still allowing high levels of the drugs to enter the bloodstream.

While it's a good idea to avoid the overuse of antibiotics whenever possible, little else works on severe cases of acne. There may be new hope, however, as recent research suggests that probiotic bacteria could provide an effective treatment.