title: The Prehistory of Antibiotic Resistance.
abstract: Antibiotic resistance is a global problem that is reaching crisis levels. The global collection of resistance genes in clinical and environmental samples is the antibiotic "resistome," and is subject to the selective pressure of human activity. The origin of many modern resistance genes in pathogens is likely environmental bacteria, including antibiotic producing organisms that have existed for millennia. Recent work has uncovered resistance in ancient permafrost, isolated caves, and in human specimens preserved for hundreds of years. Together with bioinformatic analyses on modern-day sequences, these studies predict an ancient origin of resistance that long precedes the use of antibiotics in the clinic. Understanding the history of antibiotic resistance is important in predicting its future evolution.
authors.affiliation: M.G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research, Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4K1, Canada.
authors.forename: Julie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Perry
authors.affiliation: M.G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research, Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4K1, Canada.
authors.forename: Nicholas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Waglechner
authors.affiliation: M.G. DeGroote Institute for Infectious Disease Research, Department of Biochemistry and Biomedical Sciences, DeGroote School of Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario L8S 4K1, Canada.
authors.forename: Gerard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wright
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000266:history* / Q000494:pharmacology; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D049674:History, 21st Century; D049690:History, Ancient; D006801:Humans
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents