Page 454 - AWSAR 2.0

430 || AWSAR Awarded Popular Science Stories - 2019
of time, bacteria have come out with some important mechanisms of resistance to fight against quinolones, and it is still evolving.
Antibiotics kill bacteria by attacking their different cell parts. Every class
of antibiotics has its own target.
Quinolones attack the DNA-
making machinery of bacteria
so that the bacteria cannot
grow and divide. This is very
unique mechanism as no other
class is known to own this.
However, bacteria came out of
the solution for this mechanism.
They made some changes in
the DNA-making machinery,
making it difficult for quinolones
to destroy them. Somehow, this
change was not full proof, so
bacteria started using another
mechanism to get protection
from this deadly class. Bacteria started throwing the molecules of quinolones out of the cell. This mechanism is known as efflux. But we have developed some new members that can still show activity in the presence of these mechanisms as well. Therefore, quinolones such as levofloxacin are still in use against Gram-negative pathogens. But in recent years, a new mechanism is emerging against quinolone, which is known as plasmid- mediated quinolone resistance (PMQR). Plasmids are extra genetic material present in bacteria and offer some unusual features for survival under harsh conditions. In India, this
mechanism is less studied as there are less reports of such cases. Besides, it is observed that these all mechanisms are simultaneously present in bacteria and the resistance shown
to quinolones is the combined effect of all such mechanisms. Therefore, it is very difficult to spot PMQR. This mechanism is not present in all, but if it is present, it becomes almost impossible to treat the infection caused by this pathogen. On top of this, it has been observed that this plasmid has an additional feature of providing resistance to other classes of antibiotics as well. Therefore, my research has become further important. I have studied this mechanism and reported some plasmids from bacteria isolated from
Indian patients.
As mentioned earlier, if it is possible
to identify the presence of this extra genetic material, it will further narrow down the treatment choice and possibly save many lives. I would like to further study and optimize the method I used to find the presence of this plasmid. I am sure my research work will help physicians to save lives.
I cannot resist myself to mention the famous quote from Nobel Prize–winning novel, The old man and the sea, which, I feel, is applicable to the ever-going battle between bacteria and humans ...
The only way out to treat them is antibiotics. There are many species and genera of clinically important pathogenic bacteria. They all are not untreatable. Scientists and physicians have identified six different families of such resistant bacteria and named them ‘ESKAPE’.
‘Man can be destroyed but cannot be defeated...!’