Abstract

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE BREAKERS; A REVIEW

Kavya Raveendran*, Silpa Vijayan, Sruthy B. Kurup and Reshma B. V.

Abstract

Antimicrobial resistance is the ability of a microbe to resist the effects of medication that once could successfully treat the microbe. Resistance to available antibiotics in pathogenic bacteria is currently a global challenge since the number of strains that are resistant to multiple types of antibiotics has increased dramatically each year and has spread worldwide. Infections of antibiotic-resistant pathogens pose an ever-increasing threat to mankind. To unlock this problem, the use of an ‘antibiotic adjuvant’ in combination with an antibiotic is now being exploited. This approach enable to prolong the lifespan of these life-saving drugs. This review provides an overview of the antibiotic adjuvants mainly the breakers of resistance, the basis of their operation and the remaining issues to be tackled in this field.

Keywords: Resistance breakers, ESKAPE pathogens, Antibiotic potentiators, Beta- Lactamase inhibitors, Efflux pump inhibitors, Permeabilizers.