Researchers from the University of Bath (UK) and Emory University (USA) are developing a new way to identify and treat toxic superbugs, such as MRSA, and hoping crowd-funding can help.
Scientists at the University of Bath and Emory University want to use the latest sequencing technologies to build a much clearer picture of how these bacteria cause disease. By using ‘Big Data’ they plan to create an online database that would enable doctors to make quicker and better decisions about treating such infections.
The infections are caused by micro-organisms that have developed resistance to a range of antibiotics making them incredibly difficult to treat. They are most common in hospital settings, affecting severely ill people. However, there has been a worrying increase in the number of cases of infections of healthy people with no previous hospital exposure.
Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) causes a range of problems, from abscesses on the skin, to much more significant problems, especially when it gets into deeper tissue. In the lungs, MRSA can cause pneumonia which itself can be deadly.
Once in the blood stream, MRSA can also attack heart tissue causing endocarditis, and mortality rates rise to 40 percent. Recent reports in the U.S. suggested that infections caused by MRSA caused more deaths than HIV/AIDS.
Current treatments generally involve the prescription of a cocktail of antibiotics, some of which kill the bacteria and others shut off their release of toxins. This approach has led many, including the UK’s Chief Medical Officer this March, to highlight concerns about the ‘ticking time bomb’ of antibiotic resistance.
Now scientists Tim Read and Ruth Massey, currently working together as a result of the Raymond Schinazi International Exchange Programme, are drawing on their collective expertise in sequencing genomes to analyze the toxicity of different bacteria and to predict their antibiotic resistance.
Commenting on the project, Schinazi Fellow and creator of the genome database Staphopia, Read says, “MRSA inflicts a terrible burden on society, not only in terms of thousands of deaths directly attributable to the disease but also in the reduction of quality of life suffered by those who survive the infection. We need to stop MRSA infections using every tool available. This project combines lab science and “big data” type analysis to improve our ability to give effective treatment.”
Massey, from the University of Bath’s Department of Biology & Biochemistry explains, “We envisage that genome sequencing will become the primary means of diagnosis in clinics. What is missing are the tools and understanding to translate this genetic information into clinically useful information. In time, this project will allow doctors to upload a genetic sequence online to find out instantly whether the strain they are dealing with is highly toxic or not, and how it will respond to antibiotics.
“You can sequence the genome of a bacterium in a matter of hours and we already have a large collection of clinical strains to analyse. However, one of the limitations we currently face is manpower in inputting the genomic data. So using the site indeigogo we’re hoping to raise £10,000 (c. $15,000) to provide a fund for a student to work for a year developing this project further.”
Commenting on the opportunity this would present for a student, Massey adds, “A student would end up with a multi-disciplinary set of skills which could be applied well beyond this project.”
To watch the crowd-funding video and to pledge your support to this project see: http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/fighting-superbugs-with-big-data
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