How the Pandemic Gave Power to Superbugs: Tufts Dean Weighs In
Antibiotics cannot cure COVID. They don’t help a bit. And yet, new data shows that, during the pandemic, COVID patients were given antibiotics – a lot of antibiotics. That’s bad because the overuse of antibiotics can breed superbugs that are resistant to medications. The impact of this pandemic overuse has lingered even as the pandemic has faded. So how did this unfortunate turn of events come to be? A series of new reports and papers shed light. Globally, about 75% of patients hospitalized with COVID were given antibiotics, despite only 8% having a bacterial coinfection where antibiotics would be medically useful. This comes from new data published in late April that was collected through the World Health Organization’s Global Clinical Platform in 65 countries between January 2020 and March 2023.
Levy CIMAR’s New Research Hub to Tackle Antimicrobial Resistance
In a significant stride toward combating the global threat of antimicrobial resistance, Tufts University has launched the Laboratory for Combinatorial Drug Regimen Design for Resistant and Emerging Pathogens (LCDRD). Made possible by a $5.15 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, the new facility is housed within the Levy CIMAR and located on the 8th floor of Tufts’ Biomedical Research and Public Health Building on its Health Sciences Campus in Boston. The 2,500-square-foot lab is designed to foster collaboration among scientists, clinicians, and engineers from across Tufts University, Tufts Medicine, and national and international partners. Situated adjacent to Tufts’ BSL-3 lab and key research groups, it supports a uniquely interdisciplinary research environment with state-of-the-art investigative and safety amenities.
Exploring The Intersection Of Racism, Antimicrobial Resistance, And Vaccine Equity — UC San Diego’s Jacinda C. Abdul-Mutakabbir PharmD, MPH, AAHIVP
February 29, 2024
Dr. Jacinda Abdul-Mutakabbir explores the intersection of antibiotic resistance and health/vaccine equity, with a specific focus on racial differences observed across racially and ethnically minoritized groups.
CIMAR Joins the Battle Against AMR with Collaborative and Brainstorming Workshop
January 21, 2019
The Tufts Center for Integrated Management of Antimicrobial Resistance (CIMAR) hosted its first event last month to introduce the Center to the local scientific community and to offer a platform for investigators and clinicians to showcase their research and promote collaborations. CIMAR aims to address the rise and spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), and we believe our faculty possess the myriad unique skillsets needed to lead this fight. Roughly 700,000 human deaths are attributable to AMR each year globally, and if trends continue, AMR could contribute to a total of 350 million deaths by 2050.
Engineering Phages as Novel Antimicrobials Targeting Gram-Negative Pathogens – Massachusetts General Hospital’s Bryan Lenneman, Ph.D.
March 30, 2023
MGH Research Fellow Bryan Lenneman, PhD, is interested in utilizing synthetic biology to develop novel therapeutics against diseases associated with dysbiosis of the human gut microbial community.
Tufts Researchers Find Link Between Dog-Human Antibiotic Resistance
For many people, pets are family; just as close to them as the humans in their life. However, a new study suggests that closeness can create a concerning health issue making prescribed medicines less effective. …
IDSA announces Tufts Medical Center Among Recipients of Antimicrobial Stewardship Centers of Excellence Designation
The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) announced today the recipients of its Antimicrobial Stewardship Centers of Excellence (CoE) designation. …
CIMAR Featured in Spotlight on Research and Collaboration
Given an increasingly difficult funding climate, finding the research strengths of the university and focusing resources on those areas is a priority for Tufts. After a year-and-a-half consultative process involving researchers from across the university, five thematic priority areas emerged. …
CIMAR Joins the Battle Against AMR with Collaborative and Brainstorming Workshop
The Tufts Center for Integrated Management of Antimicrobial Resistance (CIMAR) hosted its first event last month to introduce the Center to the local scientific community and to offer a platform for investigators and clinicians to showcase their research and promote collaborations.
Tufts Summer Programs Provide Research Opportunities for Undergraduates
Tufts prides itself on being a distinguished research university, providing students with opportunities to apply what they have learned in the classroom to the real world. …
- CIMAR Outreach Day Provides High Schoolers Rare Educational and Networking OpportunitiesMay 23, 2019
- Tufts Researchers Find Link Between Dog-Human Antibiotic Resistance
- IDSA announces Tufts Medical Center Among Recipients of Antimicrobial Stewardship Centers of Excellence Designation
- CIMAR Featured in Spotlight on Research and Collaboration
- CIMAR Joins the Battle Against AMR with Collaborative and Brainstorming Workshop