Why is the level of antibiotic resistance so high in Ukrainian hospitals? What domestic antibiotic developments currently exist? Senior Researcher at the Institute of Molecular Biology and Genetics of the NAS of Ukraine, Candidate of Biological Sciences Olena Moshynets answered these and other questions in an interview with the online publication "Glavkom".
Regarding domestic scientific developments in combating antibiotic resistance, Olena Moshynets notes that she and her colleagues already have such a development. Its essence lies in the fact that a combination of two fairly inexpensive antibiotics was developed: one macrolide – azithromycin, and one beta-lactam – meropenem. It was found that azithromycin can effectively destroy biofilms and enhance the immune response in patients with gram-negative antibiotic-resistant and virulent infections. But the main point is that azithromycin is capable of restoring sensitivity to some beta-lactam antibiotics, in particular, meropenem. Of course, the team of scientists understands the mechanism of this sensitivity restoration, but nevertheless continues the research.