A new mechanism involved in the transfer of antibiotic resistance has been described

The antibiotic resistance is often transferred from one bacterium to another through the genetic mobile elements. A study coordinated from by Dr. Manuel Espinosa has confirmed the presence of this type of elements in more than 200 bacteria strains isolated in different hospitals on which genomic analysis have also been performed. This behavior has been observed analyzing the genome of a strain of streptococcus B causing bacterial sepsis at Ramón y Cajal Hospital in Madrid. These results may help for a better control of this type of resistance tranfers, designing the strategies and handle more rationally the use of antibiotics.

In this study published in the journal Open Biology (Open Biol. 6: 160084) have collaborated the Universidad de La Laguna, Hospital Universitario Nuestra Señora de Candelaria (Tenerife), Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES), Institut Pasteur (France) and University of Cambridge (UK).