Image: © Fortgens Photography/Stock.adobe.com
The Limerick-based researchers worked with doctors to understand and prevent the spread of bacteria in the hospital.
Researchers from the University of Limerick (UL) and Queen’s University Belfast (QUB) have discovered a new species of bacteria that is resistant to antibiotics.
In a paper published in the Journal of Hospital Infection, the researchers explained how they analysed samples taken from patients at University Hospital Limerick and from its wastewater system.
A sample from one patient showed the presence of a new bacteria that is resistant to many common antibiotics, including some that are used for antimicrobial resistant (AMR) bacteria.
It is believed the patient was exposed to the bacteria following admission to the hospital. Fortunately, the patient was asymptomatic and did not require treatment with any of the antibiotics the bacteria is resistant to.
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a serious and growing public health issue. It makes infections harder to treat and increases the risks associated with medical procedures and treatments. It’s estimated that in 2019 more than 1.2m people died as a direct result of bacterial AMR. This is predicted to rise to 10m by 2050.
The research team, led by Prof Colum Dunne from UL’s School of Medicine, have spent more than a decade trying to understand the microbes that circulate in hospitals and infect patients. The goal is to understand what and where they are so that systems can be put in place to prevent and control the spread of infections.
Using data from a large-scale study of the hospital’s wastewater system and by sequencing the genome of the new bacteria, the researchers identified the Limerick bacteria as a new addition to the recently classified Pseudocitrobacter bacterial family.
Dunne explained that hospital environments are the ideal place for bacterial mutations to occur due to the heavy use of antibiotics and other pharmaceuticals.
“In our hospital group, there is a recognition of these risks,” Dunne said. “Our work has been enabled by a forward-looking approach to infection prevention and the facilitation of research by the hospital’s management.”
How to tackle the rise of resistance
Dunne said that the identification of new bacterial species will happen more frequently as the analysis techniques they used become more widely available and less expensive.
The research team were keen to emphasis the importance of collaboration between scientists and clinicians to tackle the rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
“This all-Ireland collaboration underpins the importance of cross-disciplinary academic and clinical research in monitoring, identification and control of potential emerging bacterial threats in the healthcare system,” said Prof Brendan Gilmore, study co-author and professor of pharmaceutical microbiology at QUB.
Dr Nuala O’Connell, a consultant and UL adjunct associate professor in clinical microbiology, said the research collaboration “enabled us to understand the potential route of acquisition [of the bacteria], which will impact on infection prevention and control strategies”.
“This is an example of innovation with real impact for society,” Dunne said. “University-based researchers bring expertise and access to sophisticated molecular equipment that, together with the clinical knowledge of hospital-based doctors and surveillance scientists, can help to ensure patient safety is protected.”
Last year, researchers at Trinity College Dublin worked with a global team to create a molecular blueprint of an enzyme found in bacteria that may be used to design effective drugs to attack them.
10 things you need to know direct to your inbox every weekday. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic’s digest of essential sci-tech news.
