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News & Reports
News & Reports antimicrobial resistance
Research councils unite to tackle antimicrobial resistance ALL seven UK research councils have joined forces with the Wellcome Trust and a number of government bodies in a coordinated initiative to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR) ‘on all fronts’. The research councils intend to collaborate to coordinate the work of medical researchers, biologists, engineers, vets, economists, social scientists, mathematicians and designers to address all aspects of the problem. The initiative will be led by the Medical Research Council, which has calculated that £275 million has been spent on researching AMR in the UK since 2007. ‘Yet,’ it says, ‘to date, no effective solutions have been found and it has been estimated that current antibiotics will be all but useless within the next two decades.’ It notes that the recent report from the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee on antimicrobials
stated that collaboration between different areas of research was paramount in tackling resistance (VR, July 12, 2014, vol 175, p 30). Describing the aims of the initiative, the MRC said: ‘The problem of AMR extends beyond human health. Animals, particularly livestock, are increasingly being infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Such bacteria are found in varied environments – from fields and rivers to hospitals or the kitchen sink – but little is known about how human and animal AMR are related. The initiative will work to identify common characteristics of AMR in both humans and in farm and wild animals in order to find new drugs in a pipeline that has all but dried up.’ It added that researchers would also be investigating how to track the extent of AMR in different environments, such as the sea, rivers, air and soil and in organisms, as
well as in food, homes and hospitals. It also noted that researchers funded by the Natural Environment Research Council had recently found an imipenem-resistant Escherichia coli in a UK river; imipenem is a broad spectrum antibiotic that is used in people when other antibiotics are not effective. Greg Clark, who was appointed as science minister following last week’s Cabinet reshuffle, commented: ‘This unique collaboration involving all seven research councils will help to drive forward important advances in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. The united strategy announced today will provide a more coordinated approach to research gathering by bringing together leading cross-industry experts against what is one of today’s greatest scientific problems.’ doi: 10.1136/vr.g4722
July 26, 2014 | Veterinary Record | 79
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on May 29, 2015 - Published by group.bmj.com
Research councils unite to tackle antimicrobial resistance Veterinary Record 2014 175: 79
doi: 10.1136/vr.g4722 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/175/4/79.1
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Notes
To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
News & Reports
News & Reports antimicrobial resistance
Research councils unite to tackle antimicrobial resistance ALL seven UK research councils have joined forces with the Wellcome Trust and a number of government bodies in a coordinated initiative to tackle antimicrobial resistance (AMR) ‘on all fronts’. The research councils intend to collaborate to coordinate the work of medical researchers, biologists, engineers, vets, economists, social scientists, mathematicians and designers to address all aspects of the problem. The initiative will be led by the Medical Research Council, which has calculated that £275 million has been spent on researching AMR in the UK since 2007. ‘Yet,’ it says, ‘to date, no effective solutions have been found and it has been estimated that current antibiotics will be all but useless within the next two decades.’ It notes that the recent report from the House of Commons Science and Technology Committee on antimicrobials
stated that collaboration between different areas of research was paramount in tackling resistance (VR, July 12, 2014, vol 175, p 30). Describing the aims of the initiative, the MRC said: ‘The problem of AMR extends beyond human health. Animals, particularly livestock, are increasingly being infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Such bacteria are found in varied environments – from fields and rivers to hospitals or the kitchen sink – but little is known about how human and animal AMR are related. The initiative will work to identify common characteristics of AMR in both humans and in farm and wild animals in order to find new drugs in a pipeline that has all but dried up.’ It added that researchers would also be investigating how to track the extent of AMR in different environments, such as the sea, rivers, air and soil and in organisms, as
well as in food, homes and hospitals. It also noted that researchers funded by the Natural Environment Research Council had recently found an imipenem-resistant Escherichia coli in a UK river; imipenem is a broad spectrum antibiotic that is used in people when other antibiotics are not effective. Greg Clark, who was appointed as science minister following last week’s Cabinet reshuffle, commented: ‘This unique collaboration involving all seven research councils will help to drive forward important advances in the fight against antimicrobial resistance. The united strategy announced today will provide a more coordinated approach to research gathering by bringing together leading cross-industry experts against what is one of today’s greatest scientific problems.’ doi: 10.1136/vr.g4722
July 26, 2014 | Veterinary Record | 79
Downloaded from http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/ on May 29, 2015 - Published by group.bmj.com
Research councils unite to tackle antimicrobial resistance Veterinary Record 2014 175: 79
doi: 10.1136/vr.g4722 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/175/4/79.1
These include:
Email alerting service
Receive free email alerts when new articles cite this article. Sign up in the box at the top right corner of the online article.
Notes
To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/
