Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Local sources: Civilians, including children and women, were injured in the al-Maqous neighborhood of Sweida, in Syria, as a result of ongoing clashes
Israeli media outlet: Security incident reported in the Gaza Strip
Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson: No new date or venue has been set for the meeting between Araghchi and Witkoff, and no negotiations will take place until the outcome is guaranteed
Palestinian platforms: Settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque complex under the protection of the occupation police
Palestinian platforms: The IOF detonated a booby-trapped robot east of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City
Syrian Defense: We call on all parties in Sweida to cooperate with security forces and exercise restraint
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese Army is continuing its investigations and will later announce any information that does not affect the confidentiality of the investigation
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: It has not yet been determined whether the detainees belong to ISIS or another organization
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Around 10 people of different nationalities, including Lebanese nationals, were detained
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese army arrested a number of people in the Matn area of Mount Lebanon with possession it has not disclosed

Antibiotics in farming harming human immune systems

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Agencies
  • 25 Apr 2023 09:13
4 Min Read

According to a study, antibiotics used to increase animal growth generate germs that are more resistant to our body's natural defenses.

  • x
  • Antibiotics in farming harming human immune systems
    An electron microscope image of E.Coli bacteria. (Reuters)

Scientists have cautioned that the widespread use of antibiotics in agriculture has resulted in the creation of germs that are more resilient to the human immune system.

The research implies that the rise of E.coli strains that are more likely to elude the human immune system's first line of defense was caused by the antibiotic colistin, which was used for decades as a growth promoter on pig and poultry farms in China.

Despite the fact that colistin is already prohibited in China and many other nations as a livestock food additive, the research raises concerns about a fresh and serious hazard posed by the abuse of antibiotics.

Read more: Albicidin, ‘new weapon’ in antibiotic war against bacteria: Scientists

Prof. Craig MacLean, who oversaw the research at the University of Oxford, said that colistin might be considerably more harmful than antibiotic resistance, and emphasized the peril of using antimicrobials in agriculture carelessly. MacLean believes that in order to make hens bigger, we unintentionally compromised our own immune systems.

The discoveries may also have important ramifications for the creation of novel antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), a class of antibiotics that includes colistin and which the researchers believe may offer a special danger of undermining innate immunity.

The majority of living things make AMPs as part of their innate immune response, which is their first line of defense against infection. Colistin is based on a bacterial AMP, which germs employ to protect themselves against rivals, but it has certain chemical properties with other AMPs made by the human immune system.

Related News

War-damaged infrastructure restored, Syrian Agriculture Minister says

French farmers attack, destroy two Romanian meat trucks

Since the 1980s, when colistin was widely used in cattle, colistin-resistant E.coli bacteria have been on the rise. This has led to significant limits on the drug's usage in agriculture. However, the most recent research indicates that the same genes may also make it easier for infections to avoid AMPs, which are essential to our own immune response.

The researchers discovered that MCR-1-positive E. coli had at least two times the resistance to being killed by human serum. When compared to bacteria that lacked the gene, the resistance to human and animal AMPs rose by an average of 62%. The research, which was written up in the journal eLife, also revealed that the resistant E.coli was twice as likely to infect and kill moth larvae when compared to the control E.coli strain.

According to MacLean, it is impossible to predict the effects this would have in the real world. And since China outlawed the use of colistin as a growth promoter, the predominance of these strains of E.coli has sharply decreased, indicating that these genes may have additional "fitness disadvantages" for the pathogens. The results, however, draw attention to a crucial danger that hasn't been fully taken into account.

Deadly superbugs

The risk, according to MacLean, is that if bacteria develop resistance to [AMP-based treatments], they may also develop resistance to a key component of the human immune system.

While MacLean and colleagues do not advocate for halting the development of these medications, they do argue that very rigorous risk evaluations of the chance of resistance developing and any potential repercussions are necessary. There might be some extremely substantial negative effects for AMPs, he noted.

According to Dr. Jessica Blair from Birmingham University, “Antimicrobial peptides, including colistin, have been heralded as a potential part of the solution to the rise of multidrug-resistant infections. This study, however, suggests that resistance to these antimicrobials may have unintended consequences on the ability of pathogens to cause infection and survive within the host.”

Dr. George Tegos of the Mohawk Valley Health System in New York stated that general conclusions regarding the possible hazards of AMPs could not be taken from a single research, but added that the results "raise concerns that are reasonable and make sense".

This new study demonstrates that colistin resistance is likely far more hazardous than previously believed, according to Coiln Nunan, a consultant for the Alliance to Save Our Antibiotics who was not involved in the study. The British government's continued opposition to the EU's prohibition on the widespread use of antibiotics for prophylactic purposes in intensive livestock farming is also noteworthy.

  • antibiotics
  • farming
  • immune system

Most Read

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Major ambush in Gaza kills 6 Israeli troops, injures dozens

Major ambush in Gaza kills 5 Israeli troops, injures 14

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Israeli soldiers are seen in Beit Hanoun ahead of an operation by the al-Qassam Brigades, undated (Al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)

'Israel' on blast as media exposes report discrepancies in Gaza ambush

  • Palestine
  • 8 Jul 2025
Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

  • Politics
  • 9 Jul 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
The Freedom Flotilla ship Handala as it departs for Gaza, where it aims to break the maritime blockade at a port in Syracuse, Sicily in southern Italy on July 13, 2025. (AFP)
Palestine

Freedom Flotilla's Handala departs Sicily in bid to break Gaza siege

The container ship CMA CGM Laperouse, left, docks at the Georgia Ports Authority's Port of Savannah, Sept. 29, 2021, in Savannah, Ga (AP)
Politics

US shipbuilding woes deepen as tariffs, outdated policies backfire

Gaza war raises ethical questions for ex-Obama, Biden officials
Politics

Mercenary firm tied to Gaza war crimes hires Obama-Biden PR operatives

'Israel' targets children in Gaza collecting water
Palestine

'Israel' strikes Gaza kids fetching water, blames it on 'malfunction'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS