Science at UM [S02-ep23]: From Antibiotic Resistance to Satellite Assembly
This week on "Science at UM," Stéphanie Bedhomme, a researcher at the Center for Functional and Evolutionary Ecology, talks to us about the distribution of antibiotic resistance genes. In the second segment, Romain Briand assembles a satellite at the University Space Center. Finally, Agnès Pesenti, head of science outreach, announces the next Science Bar.
It was over ten years ago, yet I remember it as if it were yesterday. That day, my doctor told me that the antibiotic I had been taking to treat chronic pyelonephritis was no longer working. Being allergic to penicillin, my treatment options were significantly limited, causing—as I could see on my doctor’s face—a concern that needed to be taken seriously. My situation was eventually resolved when it turned out that I had never actually been allergic to penicillin, but the question remained: what would happen if antibiotics stopped working? Could I have died from pneumonia, a urinary tract infection, or even a simple dental infection?
Today, antibiotic resistance is estimated to cause approximately 12,500 deaths in France and 33,000 in Europe. According to the French National Authority for Health, it could become the leading cause of death worldwide by 2050, with more than 10 million deaths per year, if no action is taken by then. Incidentally, despite a slight decline over the past decade, France remains one of the largest consumers of antibiotics. Could this excessive consumption play a role in the development of resistance? Are we more affected than our European, African, or American neighbors? Are there other factors that could explain the rise in this resistance? That is our topic for today.
A study published in the journal eLifeprovides new insights into the global distribution of resistance genes to a class of antibiotics and offers some avenues for controlling this phenomenon, which could trigger the most alarming health crisis of the coming decades. Stéphanie Bedhomme, a researcher at CEFE (the Center for Functional and Evolutionary Ecology) and one of the two authors of this paper titled“Ecology, rather than antibiotic consumption, is the main predictor of the global distribution of aminoglycoside-modifying enzymes.”
See also:
CNRS Press Release: Understanding the Factors Driving the Spread of Antibiotic Resistance to Better Curb It
In the second half of the program, we’ll take you inside the clean room at the Montpellier University Space Center. Wearing a lab coat and a hairnet, Romain Briand, an engineer and head of AIT (Assembly, Integration, and Testing), will tell us a little more about how a satellite is assembled. Finally, Agnès Pesenti, head of science outreach, will join us to discuss the latest Science Bar event, which will take place on May 25 at 8:30 p.m. at the Dôme.
At UM Science, you’ve got the program—let’s get started!
Co-production: Divergence FM / University of Montpellier
Host: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Interview: Lucie Lecherbonnier / Aline Périault
Reporting and editing: Lucie Lecherbonnier
Director: Naomi Charmetan
Tune in to the show “A l’UM la science” on Divergence FM 93.9
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