The most threatening, drug-resistant bacteria are resistant to three classes of antibiotics (as defined by their mode of action or bacterial target). The baddest bugs of the bunch are unbeatable. They can block, pump out, or degrade any antibiotic we’ve got to throw at them. “They just scoff” at drugs.

Why have so few new antibiotics been developed in the past few decades, and how can new tools be used to spur antibiotic discovery and development?

It’s alarming to me that modern drug discovery technologies have failed to yield new antibiotics but have been very successful in other therapeutic areas. I think it calls for some careful examination of the sources of failure. 

Researchers at McMaster’s Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research (IIDR) have identified a promising lead in the search for new antibiotics.

In a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, they conclude that clomiphene – a widely used fertility drug – exhibits cryptic antibacterial activity against methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus (MRSA).

Off the coast of California, nearly 20,000 feet below the surface of the Pacific Ocean, scientists from the San Diego Institute of Oceaneography are collecting samples of marine life from the ocean floor. At first glance, these small clumps of sediment may appear nothing special, but the micro-organisms which lie within may one day provide an answer to one of the most urgent issues in modern healthcare: the global antibiotic resistance pandemic.

The Michael G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research would like to congratulate fourth-year student Kali Iyer on receiving the 2015 Michael Kamin Hart Memorial Scholarship for Undergraduate Research.

Researchers have proposed a way to force antibiotic resistant bacteria to “evolve backwards” into a pre-resistant state, according to a study published Wednesday inPlos One. It’s just one example of the out-of-the-box thinking science is taking to tackle the problem of antibiotic-resistant bacteria before it’s too late.

A new five-year plan to fight the critical problem of antibiotic resistance brings welcome momentum and attention to a fight that demands a global effort, say leading Canadian researchers in the field. 

When the world’s leading scientists in antibiotic resistance gather next week, McMaster’s experts will be leading the discussions...

Three McMaster University professors have been named Canada Research Chairs.

The announcement was made Friday by the university and the federal ministry of state (science and technology).

Jonathan Bramson and Eric Brown were selected as Tier 1 Canada Research Chairs and will receive $1.4 million over seven years to help in their research work.

Medical science has been forced to get creative in the search for new antibiotic drugs. CBC News reports that researchers at McMaster University recently bypassed the traditional method of searching for antibiotics under optimal lab conditions in favour of finding antibacterial compounds under nutrient-poor conditions. 

A group of researchers at McMaster University are addressing the issue of drug resistance by taking the road less travelled to come up with new approach to find antibiotics.

At a time when scientists are quickly running out of options, McMaster researchers are using a new approach to fighting antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Researchers at McMaster University have discovered this creative approach to
tackle antibiotic resistance to bacterial infections, a frequent complication of those with cystic
fibrosis. Cystic fibrosis is the most common, fatal genetic disease affecting Canadian
children and young adults.

By the time she applied for graduate school, Soumaya Zlitni was a straight A-plus student who spoke three languages and had published in one of the most high profile journals in her field.

Now, at age 27, the PhD candidate in the Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences at McMaster University has been named one of the most promising young minds in the country.

Antibiotic resistance has been a significant problem for hospitals and health-care facilities for more than a decade. But despite the need for new treatment options, there have been only two new classes of antibiotics developed in the last 40 years.

Now a promising discovery by McMaster University researchers has revealed an ideal starting point to develop new interventions for resistant infections.

"McMaster is uniquely positioned for this discovery platform, and this was the missing ingredient - we have one of the best screening/robotic platforms, chemical libraries and expertise in professors Eric Brown and Gerry Wright, who have discovered molecules to combat infectious disease. Now we can combine it all. This team now aims to kill cancer."

Dr. Andrew Macpherson, project leader for the Systems Biology Centre, and Dr. Stephen Collins, group leader, have been awarded CFI funding to support their research. Below is Dr. Gerry Wright, professor and chair, biochemistry and biomedical sciences and Jamal Deen, professor of electrical and computer engineering. File photos.

Their science is small. Their ideas are big. And their rewards are huge. The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) announced yesterday that McMaster University was awarded more than $13.5 million to support three projects that will provide dozens of McMaster researchers and their research teams access to cutting-edge equipment and facilities to continue McMaster's tradition of world-class research.

It's a new age in drug discovery. So says professor of biochemistry Eric Brown, who is among a new breed of researchers straddling the borders of microbiology, genetics and chemistry to develop new therapies intended to counter the growing threat of bacterial drug resistance to existing antibiotics.

McMaster has received four new Canada Research Chairs (CRC) and about $2.5 million from the Canada Foundation for Innovation for infrastructure funding for CRC award winners.

This third round of Canada Research Chairs awards brings the University's total to 26.

The inaugural symposium of McMaster's Antimicrobial Research Centre (ARC) will bring together international leaders in antibiotics and related research fields to discuss their latest findings in the war against "superbugs" or antibiotic-resistant pathogens.