Scientists fear life-saving drugs could soon be useless

Dec 31 2009 by Tony Henderson, The Journal

Heavy metal pollution also has the same effect, with the resistant gene created in bacteria also working against antibiotics.

Prof Graham said: “We are contending that in 200 years of industrial activity we have slowly increased the level of background resistance.

“We now have more resistance in general in nature.

“We have caused evolution to occur with bacteria becoming more resistant to antibiotics. This can lead to a loss of effectiveness of antibiotics and a greater chance that the drugs we need to treat disease will not work.”

Prof Graham said that 150 years ago life expectancy was moderately low. “People got sick and died. But with the use of antibiotics, life expectancy has increased drastically,” he said.

“Now we have a different type of problem. We have some pathogens which are resistant to the drugs which have made us more healthy.

“We have already done the ‘easy’ drugs and its is getting harder and more expensive to make drugs which do work.”

Of the Newcastle findings, Prof Graham said: “I think it tells us we have changed the environment and it is very probable that is the reason why drugs are less effective.”

He said that more studies are desperately needed between environmental and public health researchers to determine whether this increasing pool of resistance is contributing to harmful bacteria, such as MRSA.