Antivirulence Antibiotics Better Than Traditional Ones?

A potential solution for the pressing concern about antibiotic resistance is possible with the use of antivirulence antibiotics.

One of the challenges in the medical field is antibiotic resistance. The antibiotic has lost its ability to control or kill bacterial growth when this phenomenon occurs.

The higher-level of antibiotic-resistant bacteria are due to the overuse and abuse of antibiotics, Alliance For The Prudent Use Of Antibiotics informed. This drug is available in some countries without a prescription or it can be purchased over the Internet. Patients sometimes take unwarranted antibiotics to treat a common cold. In some cases, antibiotic-resistance occur due to genetic mutation or by acquiring resistance from another bacterium.

Tim Wencewicz, assistant professor of chemistry at Washington University in St. Louis, believes that instead of searching for one that kill the bacterial outright, it should look for agents that can block virulence factors.

The world "virulen" means "aggressive" or "bad." For microbiologists, it means another thing. Virulent strains of bacteria produce the "virulence factors," these are small molecules and proteins that convert a benign bacterium into a pathogen, Futurity reported. Once it turned into a pathogen or an infectious agent, it causes disease or illness.

Wencewicz is hopeful that antivirulence antibiotics would be a good replacement for cases when bactericidal fails.

The report stated that traditional antibiotics have a seed that triggers its own destruction. The megadoses of antibiotics provided to patients apply tremendous selective pressure to bacterial communities and creates a rich opportunity for resistant strains by eliminating the susceptible ones.

"Antivirulence antibiotics would apply much less selective pressure," said Wencewicz. "If you treat bacteria in a test tube with an antivirulence antibiotic, the bacteria will grow as if there is no antibiotic there. But if you treat bacteria in the human body, bacterial growth will be suppressed.

He stressed that antivirulence antibiotic are just like the traditional bacteriostatic antibiotic. It suppresses the growth of pathogens and gives the immune system time to recognize it and clear it.

So, what's the difference? Antivirulence antibiotics do not kill the bacteria but disarm it, while traditional antibiotics kill or stop the growth of pathogens, mBiosphere shared. The former has not been tested yet. However, a study suggested that these drugs have the potential to fight infection while avoiding the growing concern of antibiotic resistance.

"We could give antivirulence antibiotics to people with healthy immune systems, who would be able to clear infections with this assistance," Wencewic suggested. "...and traditional antibiotics combined with antivirulence therapies to people with compromised immune systems, who really need them."

More studies will be needed to conclude the real potential of the antivirulence antibiotics as a replacement for the traditional drug. It will also need a clinical trial.

Will antivirulence antibiotics put an end to the pressing concern about antibiotic-resistance? Share your thoughts in the comment section below.