Antimicrobials are drugs used to prevent and treat infections in humans, animals and plants. They kill or slow the growth of microorganisms such as bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. Antimicrobials include antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals and antiparasitics.
Antimicrobial resistance occurs when microorganisms change over time and no longer respond to treatment, making infections more difficult to treat and increasing the risk of disease spread, serious illness and even death. Antimicrobial-resistant microorganisms are sometimes referred to in the media as “super bacteria”.
In Canada, antimicrobial resistance now accounts for 26% of hospital-acquired bacterial infections. This prevalence could well increase over the next few years. This represents a real burden for the healthcare system. Internationally, it has become one of the top 10 threats to public health, with over 700,000 deaths in 2019, a projected 10 million deaths per year by 2050, and costs reaching 10 trillion US dollars. What’s more, in the context of climate change, a one-degree rise in temperature can increase the resistance of certain microorganisms by a factor of 10, and promote the migration of resistant pathogens from warmer to colder regions.
Genomics can play a central role in understanding and countering antimicrobial resistance, notably through the development of diagnostic tools, surveillance and prevention measures, and the discovery of new treatments.
References
Antimicrobial Resistance Collaborators (2022). Global burden of bacterial antimicrobial resistance in 2019: a systematic analysis. Lancet, 399(10325), pp. 629-655.
Bailey, D., Kougioumoutzi, E. & Anholt, M. (2021). UK – Canada One Health Workshop on Antimicrobial Resistance in Agriculture and the Environment.
Council of Canadian Academies (2019). When antibiotics fail. Ottawa (ON): Expert Panel on the Potential Socio-Economic Impact of Antimicrobial Resistance in Canada, Council of Canadian Academies.
World Health Organization. (2020). Antimicrobial Resistance.