با کمال مسرت اعلام می‌داریم که یکی از اعضای شورای پژوهشی مرکز تحقیقات دکتر مریم شفاعتی، به عنوان کوتاپیک ادیتور مجله معتبر "FrontiersinPharmacology" انتخاب شده است. این مجله که در حوزه‌های مختلف علمی فعالیت می‌کند، در میان ۲۵ درصد برتر مجلات جهانی قرار دارد و به عنوان یک منبع معتبر برای پژوهشگران شناخته می‌شود.

Unveiling the Future of Antibiotics: Exploring the WHO Priority List of Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria for Discovery, Research, and Development of Novel Therapeutics

About this Research Topic

Antibiotic resistance is one of the biggest threats to global health, food security, and development today. The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared that antibiotic resistance is one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity. A growing number of infections – such as pneumonia, tuberculosis, gonorrhea, and salmonellosis – are becoming harder to treat as the antibiotics used to treat them become less effective. Misuse and overuse of antimicrobials are the main drivers in the development of drug-resistant pathogens.

WHO has released a groundbreaking list of antibiotic-resistant priority pathogens, outlining twelve bacterial families that pose an immense threat to human well-being. Categorized into three tiers based on the urgency for new antibiotics, the list encompasses critical priority pathogens, high priority pathogens, and medium priority pathogens. Critical priority pathogens includeAcinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and members ofEnterobacteriaceae (Klebsiella, Escherichia coli, Serratia, andProteus). The high priority group comprisesEnterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Helicobacter pylori, Campylobacterspp.,Salmonellae, andNeisseria gonorrhea. Lastly, medium priority pathogens consist ofStreptococcus pneumoniae, Haemophilus influenza, andShigellaspp.

These bacteria have become resistant to a large number of antibiotics, including carbapenems, vancomycin, methicillin, fluoroquinolone and third-generation cephalosporins – the best available antibiotics for treating multi-drug resistant bacteria.

The emergence and spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria have become a critical global health challenge, necessitating the urgent exploration of alternative therapeutic strategies. Natural products derived from botanicals, fungi, soil, and marine sources have demonstrated promising bioactive properties and are potential reservoirs of novel compounds with antimicrobial activity. Compounds from Brazilian peppertree, American beautyberry, and European chestnut have been found to inhibit dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Researchers unearthed a new strain of bacteria in medicinally active Irish soil effective against top four multi-resistant pathogens. The investigation of marine spongeAgelas disparled to the discovery of a powerful antimicrobial compound called Dibromoageliferin, which belongs to the bromopyrrole alkaloid class. This compound exhibited remarkable effectiveness against multidrug-resistant pathogens, offering promising potential for combating challenging bacterial infections. This research topic aims to investigate the efficacy of these diverse natural sources against WHO priority list of antibiotic-resistant pathogens, with the ultimate goal of identifying and developing new therapeutics to combat antibiotic resistance. This research theme welcomes original research articles and review articles from researchers worldwide, contributing to the collective effort in unearthing nature's potential to unveil the future of antibiotics and combat antibiotic resistance effectively.