Superbugs have an arsenal of defences – but we've found a new way around them

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Researchers have not discovered new antibiotics in decades. But our new research, published today in Nature Microbiology, has found a way to give a second wind to the antibiotics we do have.

It involves the use of viruses that kill bacteria.

The problem

Hospitals are scary, and the longer you remain in them, the greater your risk. Among these risks, hospital-acquired infections are probably the biggest. Each year in Australia, 180,000 patients suffer infections that prolong their hospital stays, increase costs, and, sadly, increase the risk of death.

It sounds absurd – hospitals are supposed to be the cleanest of places. But bacteria are everywhere, and can adapt to the harshest of environments. In hospitals, our increased use of disinfectants and antibiotics has forced these bacteria to evolve to survive. These survivors are called “superbugs”, with an arsenal of tools to resist antibiotics. Superbugs prey on the most vulnerable patients, such as those in intensive care units.