For almost three-quarters of a century, antibiotics were called miracle drugs and magic bullets. Lately they have fallen on hard times. Only two systemic antibacterial agents have been approved for use in humans since 2008, compared to 16 between 1983 and 1987. It's been over 40 years since new classes of antibiotics were introduced to treat Gram-negative bacilli (GNB). As bacteria continue to become resistant to commonly used antibiotics, there is fear the limited arsenal of effective antibiotics will soon be deleted. The looming (some say it is already underway) battle between man and microbe could be billed as the match of the Millennium.
Late Nobel Laureate Dr. Joshua Lederberg sounded a warning in 1999 when he said the "future of humanity and microbes" would boil down to "episodes of our wits versus their genes." He voiced this observation 41 years after receiving the 1958 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine for his discovery that bacteria can mate and exchange genes. This finding was not good news for the human race. The human body is made up of 100 trillion or so cells, of which 90 trillion are not human. Rather, they are bacteria, viruses and other microorganisms all industriously honing their gene traits to develop resistance to many antibiotics. In the battle of the body's antigens against pathogens, that's like sending a rifle squad of ten infantrymen to face a full 10,000 troop Marine division.
In the battle of wits, predicted by Dr. Lederberg, humans have a chance to gain an edge. Already in the animal health field several pioneering products are controlling bacteria and inflammation without engendering antibiotic resistance. Basically, some of these compounds replicate naturally occurring antimicrobial peptides that kill bacteria, but also block gene transfers that would evolve into resistant and viral strains.
Humans can bring an even sharper wit to the war on microbes if they directed public focus on where the issue of antibiotic resistance is most acute: the public health programs and hospital systems where incidents of resistance have actually been documented. It is counterproductive to lay blame for the increase in resistance disproportionately on the food animal industry.
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