Scientists use AI to discover antibiotic for ‘very difficult to treat’ bacteria – CTV
May 25, 2023
With the use of artificial intelligence, scientists in Canada and the United States have discovered an antibiotic that could be used to fight a deadly, drug-resistant pathogen — and they hope to employ a similar process to discover treatments for other challenging bacteria.
In a study published in the journal Nature Chemical Biology Thursday, the researchers at McMaster University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology shared their promising findings about the new antibacterial treatment, which they named abaucin.
Jon Stokes, a lead author of the research paper, said the antibiotic could be used to fight Acinetobacter baumannii, which the World Health Organization has identified as one of the world’s most dangerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
“In my opinion, it is public enemy No. 1 for antibiotic resistance — it’s very difficult to treat,” said Stokes, who is an assistant professor in the department of biochemistry and biomedical sciences at McMaster.
