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Andrei Papkou
Scientists from the Department of Zoology, Oxford University, show that a single gene that codes for an efflux pump predisposes some strains of pathogenic S.aureus to evolve high levels of ciprofloxacin resistance. Bacterial efflux pumps actively pump out chemicals from bacterial cells – sort of like a bacterial bucket brigade – and this an important way that bacteria cope with exposure to a range of toxic chemicals, including antibiotics.
Their experiments involved a common human pathogen, Staphylococcus aureus, that is an important source of antibiotic resistant infections in health care settings (ie MRSA). They used a broad-spectrum antibiotic called ciprofloxacin that was developed in the 1980s, and initially heralded as a solution to MRSA infections.
The full article is available on the University of Oxford website