COMBAT AMR
COMplex Biofilm & AMR Transmission
COMBAT AMR PROJECT
Research at COMBAT AMR involves constant analysis of the research questions we explore. Since 2021, we have been driven by this mission of discovery. Watch the below video introducing the five different work packages and read on to find out more about our latest work.
SOURCING COLLECTING & ANALYSING BIOFILMS FROM ONE HEALTH ENVIRONMENTS
Our team has collected 45 raw biofilms across Europe from home kitchen and bathroom sink drains and hospital ward sink drains.
Raw biofilms have been sent to our team in Finland for chemical analysis
Biofilm material has been prepared for our small scale complex biofilm model
TESTING THE REPRODUCIBILITY & REPEATABILITY OF OUR MODEL
The small scale complex biofilm model is up and running in all the participating laboratories.
The microbial diversity of four core biofilms developed with our model is being analysed by 16S RNA sequencing.
The impact of commercially used disinfectants on microbial viability, diversity and biofilm regrowth post-treatment is being investigated.
AMR GENES ABUNDANCE IN MULTI-SPECIES BIOFILMS
We have developed and optimised shot-gun metagnomic protocols to understand AMR genes abundance in our complex biofilms.
We are planning to study the impact of commercially available chemical or biological disinfectants on AMR genes abundance.
SEARCHING FOR MULTI-DRUG RESISTANT BACTERIA AND CLASS-1 INTEGRONS
Class 1 integrons can confer several phenotypes including resistance to a broad range of antibiotic classes, heavy metals and biocides.
Our team is actively searching for class-1 integrons in our environmental biofilms collected from One Health environments.
Our team is also actively looking for multi-drug resistance bacteria identified in the WHO Global priority list of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
PROOF OF CONCEPT
Applying laboratory findings to the field is the goal of COMBAT AMR.
Our findings will help the team select for the best interventions that control both multi-drug resistant bacteria and AMR genes and apply these solutions to the environment.
