Antibiotic Resistance Research Makes Progress

Agricultural Research Service scientists and cooperators have used an advanced genetic screening technique to identify more than 700 genes that give microbes like Salmonella, E. coli, Campylobacter, Listeria, and Enterococcus the ability to resist antibiotics and other antimicrobial compounds. These organisms can cause food poisoning and are thus a major public health concern.

Researchers are concerned that some of these organisms have acquired genetic resistance to the antibiotics used to kill them. Finding the genes that confer resistance is an important step for scientists looking for new ways to control these organisms.

To accomplish their goal - researchers selected about one-thousand unique genes that included the words - antimicrobial resistance - in their description. Then they designed a microarray of more than 700 DNA probes. Fluorescent dyes were put into contact with the slides. The gene then fluoresced and thus identified the antimicrobial resistance gene that was in the bacterium.