The Scientist The search for persisters Embers and a colleague last month (July 27) published a study in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy, which, along with a separate paper published this May in the same journal, could help explain how some B. burgdorferi might survive antibiotic treatment. Both in vitro studies demonstrated that certain drugs kill most B. burgdorferi, but leave behind […]
Scientific American Lyme disease may linger for 1 in 5 because of “persisters” These ideas stem from the observation of a few rogue bacterial cells. Kim Lewis, director of the antimicrobial discovery center at Northeastern University, and his colleagues grew B. burgdorferi in the laboratory, treated them with various antibiotics and found that whereas most of the bacteria died within the first day, a small percentage—called persister cells—managed […]
In test tube, ‘pulse-doses’ of antibiotic wipe out Lyme disease bacteria persisters So, though it’s still extremely early research, I was gladdened by a report just out from Northeastern University that a prominent germ-fighting scientist may have found a new way to kill off Lyme disease bacteria even when it persists after antibiotics. In test tubes, at least. Prof. Kim Lewis, chief of Northeastern’s Antimicrobial Discovery Center, […]
Sci-News.com Study: Unique Combination of Antibiotics Kills Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a bacterium that is resistant to many antibiotics. It is responsible for several chronic infections such as osteomyelitis, endocarditis, or infections of implanted medical devices. These infections are often incurable, even when appropriate antibiotics are used. Senior author of the study, Prof Kim Lewis of Northeastern University, suspected that a different adaptive function […]
The Scientist Thwarting Persistence Bacterial antibiotic resistance is widespread and presents ongoing challenges in treating infections. A less widely known—but equally challenging—problem is antibiotic tolerance, where bacteria called persisters are not sensitive to antibiotics because the drugs’ targets are inactive in these dormant cells. Kim Lewis’s group at Northeastern University in Boston, Massachusetts, had previously shown that persisters give biofilms their drug-tolerant properties. Now, […]