This question has only one answer: YES! The research and development of new antibiotics was a priority for most pharmaceutical companies in the last decades of the past century, as infectious diseases were among the top conditions affecting a vast majority of patients. However, in the last 20 years, many pharmaceutical companies closed their labs devoted to antibiotic research, for two main reasons.  First, there was the (incorrect) perception that the available antibiotics were sufficient to cover the present and future needs. Second, research on a new antibiotic frequently has no economic return because the selection of resistant strains limits the use of the new antibiotic.

Today, we are in desperate need of new antibiotics, as many bacteria are resistant to the available ones. We will devote to the issue of Antibiotic Resistance a series of articles from the most recent literature. Today, we will start this series with a recent publication, which reviews the history of some antibiotic discoveries and comments on the need to reactivate research on this important therapeutic area. You can read the full text by clicking on the link below:

https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2020.535668/full

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  • The material in these reviews is from various public open access sources, meant for educational and informational purposes only
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