Quat disinfectants that swap nitrogen for phosphorus might stem antimicrobial resistance
February 11, 2022 Extensive use of quaternary ammonium antiseptics during the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the spread of resistance. Researchers propose new chemicals to combat the problem."
Hunting for Medicines Hidden in Plants
November 20, 2021 "New technology is helping to unlock the secrets of the natural world, just as the limits of synthetic remedies are becoming clear"
How plant-based remedies could help save us from superbugs
November 20, 2021 "For centuries, plants and herbs — from peppermint and chamomile to aspirin and opium — have been long known to hold medicinal qualities. Before advances in modern medicine, synthetic drugs, and antibiotics, Indigenous cultures developed an extensive knowledge of plants to cure most common ailments. Although many of those plants are still used today, there are thousands more on the planet which may also hold significant medicinal potential. "
Antibiotic Resistant Diseases and Nature's Next Medicines with Cassandra Quave
October 19, 2021 "Plants are the basis for an array of lifesaving and health-improving medicines we all now take for granted. Ever taken an aspirin? Thank a willow tree for that. What about life-saving medicines for malaria? Some of those are derived from cinchona and wormwood. "
Cassandra Quave’s adventure-filled memoir details challenges and triumphs in her search for anti-infective molecules
October 17, 2021 "In her quest, the ethnobotanist has interviewed traditional healers, snipped shrubs on Mediterranean mountaintops, and fashioned a child’s toy into a laboratory tool"
‘We have barely scratched the surface’ of the medicinal value of plants: Expert
October 12, 2021 "ABC News' Linsey Davis speaks with Dr. Cassandra Quave, author of 'The Plant Hunter: A Scientist's Quest for Nature's Next Medicines' about the future of plant-derived medical treatments. "
‘Plant hunter’ searches for nature’s next medicines
October 1, 2021 "Photo by Kemi Griffin Photography Cassandra Leah Quave, a leading ethnobotanist, shares her travels and discoveries in a new book, 'The Plant Hunter.'"
Researcher Looks to Plants in Search for New Antibiotics
January 11, 2021 "Superbug survivor discusses effort to combat antibiotic-resistant bacteria—and why she’s making her data public."
4 ways scientists are fighting superbugs
August 28, 2019 "Multidrug resistant infections are on the rise and could kill up to 10 million people a year by 2050, the UN warned in an April 2019 report. In response, researchers are working to develop new treatments for superbugs and improve on existing treatments."
Can we kill superbugs before they kill us?
August 27, 2019 "More than 10 million people a year could die from antibiotic-resistant bacteria, warns a United Nations report. Yet scientists hope that recent advances - from reviving ancient cures to enlisting bacteria-slaying viruses - could prevent that dire prediction. "
To Find The Next Antibiotic, Scientists Give Old Drugs A New Purpose
August 12, 2019 "With antibiotic-resistant bacteria on the rise, scientists are urgently trying to find drugs that will work against persistent infections. But coming up with new ones does not have to be the only strategy."
How scientists are repurposing old drugs to combat antibiotic resistance
August 12, 2019 "Scientists may be able to repurpose older drugs, like bithionol, to kill drug-resistant bacteria, suggest the findings of a study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Science."
What made a young man at UGA decide to focus on his future instead of his illness
July 3, 2019 "At 45, Georgia author with cystic fibrosis lives life fully as he fights odds"
Emory research finds that bacteria are more resistant to antibiotics
June 25, 2019 "Antibiotic resistance, or "heteroresistance," is more common than previously believed, according to a recent scientific article from researchers at the Emory Antibiotic Resistance Center, published on Monday, June 17, in Nature Microbiology."
Have scientists found a way to beat antibiotic resistance?
June 19, 2019 "When bacteria become resistant to antibiotic treatments, this poses an important threat to health, as infections become very difficult - and sometimes impossible - to treat. But could a new strategy successfully identify the weak point of superbugs?"
How Certain Antibiotic Combinations Could Defeat Superbugs
June 17, 2019 "A sneaky form of antibiotic resistance called "heteroresistance" is more widespread than previously appreciated, scientists at the Emory Antibiotic Resistance Center report."
Can scientists learn to bypass superbugs' drug resistance?
June 17, 2019 "When bacteria become resistant to antibiotic treatments, this poses an important threat to health, as infections become very difficult - and sometimes impossible - to treat. But could a new strategy successfully identify the weak point of superbugs? "
Civil War plant guide reveals 3 plants with antibiotic properties
June 10, 2019 "Scientists have found that extracts from plants that people used to treat infections during the Civil War have antimicrobial activity against drug-resistant bacteria."
Active case-finding shows HIV/TB coinfection prevalent in country of Georgia
June 2, 2019 "An active case-finding strategy uncovered a "very high prevalence" of tuberculosis coinfection among newly diagnosed HIV-infected patients in the country of Georgia, according to a recent study."
Plants Used To Treat Civil War Soldiers Work Against Drug-Resistant Bacteria
May 23, 2019 "Contrary to what you might think, microbes ¿ not guns ¿ were the biggest killers of soldiers during the American Civil War (1861-1865)."
How Civil War Plant Remedies Could Improve Modern Medicine
May 23, 2019 "An old medical botanical guide offers new avenues for research."
Civil War-Era Plant Medicines Could Help Fight Drug-Resistant Bacteria, Study Finds
May 23, 2019 "Plant medicines from the Civil War likely saved lives at the time and could help fight stubborn bacteria today, scientists say."
Plants, old book helping Emory scientists search for new drugs
May 23, 2019 "Cassandra Quave studies plants and how people use them as a professor at Emory University. She travels around the world, collecting samples and learning about traditional uses of plants, looking for clues that might lead to new medicines."
Civil War Plant Remedies Actually Fought Off Infections, Study Finds
May 23, 2019 "Researchers tested the antimicrobial properties of three plants mentioned in an 1863 treatment book"
Civil War-Era Battle Remedies Could Be Key To Combating Drug-Resistant Superbugs
May 23, 2019 "As bacteria's have become more resistant to traditional drugs scientist have looked to develop new, more powerful solutions... But a new study shows the answer may be in traditional remedies of the past."
How Plants And A Civil War-Era Book Help Emory Scientists Search For New Drugs
May 22, 2019 "In a study published Wednesday, an Emory University professor looks to plants ¿ and Civil War history -- to search for ways to fight antibiotic-resistant bacteria."
Medicinal Plants Used During the U.S. Civil War Are Surprisingly Good at Fighting Bacteria
May 22, 2019 "With conventional medicines in short supply during the Civil War, the Confederacy turned to plant-based alternatives in desperation. New research suggests some of these remedies were actually quite good at fighting off infections-a finding that could lead to effective new drugs."
Ginkgo Seed Extracts Show Antibacterial Activity on Skin Pathogens
April 18, 2019 "Extracts from the seeds of the Ginkgo biloba tree show antibacterial activity on pathogens that can cause skin infections such as acne, psoriasis, dermatitis and eczema, a study at Emory University finds."
Hard to detect antibiotic resistance an understated clinical problem
February 12, 2019 "Heteroresistance means that while the majority of bacteria in the sample are susceptible to antibiotics, there is also a minor (less than 1%) antibiotic-resistant subpopulation that can grow despite treatment with antibiotics."
Incoming AAAS Leshner Fellows Focus on Human Augmentation
February 11, 2019 "The 2019-20 Fellows Will Engage Diverse Audiences About Exoskeletons, Gene Therapy and Brain Stimulation, Among Other Topics"
Clinical Trial Testing Fecal Microbiota Transplant for Recurrent Diarrheal Disease Begins
January 14, 2019 "A research consortium recently began enrolling patients in a clinical trial examining whether fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) by enema-putting stool from a healthy donor in the colon of a recipient-is safe and can prevent recurrent Clostridium difficile-associated disease (CDAD), a potentially life-threatening diarrheal illness. Investigators aim to enroll 162 volunteer participants 18 years or older who have had two or more episodes of CDAD within the previous six months."
Drs. Kempker and Rouphael named IDSA Fellows
August 28, 2018 "The Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA) recognizes the distinguished physicians and scientists from the United States and around the world who were elected this year to be Fellows of IDSA."
FMT Proves to Be Effective and Acceptable Treatment for rCDI
August 7, 2018 "Fecal microbiota transplantation (FMT) is a widely accepted, safe, and effective treatment for recurrent Clostridium difficile infection (rCDI) that has made its way into the latest Infectious Diseases Society of America guidelines. But does the cure endure? A recent study in Clinical Infectious Diseases by Mamo et al evaluated the durability and long-term outcomes associated with FMT."
Dr. Dunham wins ASBMB Young Investigator Award
June 28, 2018 "The American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology this week named a dozen scientists the winners of its annual awards. The winners were nominated by colleagues and other leaders in their fields for making significant contributions to biochemistry and molecular biology and the training of emerging scientists."
Reports highlight Klebsiella superbug, other CRE concerns
June 11, 2018 "Two teams of scientists at the annual meeting of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM) are reporting worrisome findings involving multidrug-resistant bacteria in healthcare settings."
First 'Triple Threat' Strain of Klebsiella pneumoniae Found in the United States
June 9, 2018 "An extremely virulent (hypermucoviscous) strain of Klebsiella pneumoniae (K pneumoniae) that is resistant to carbapenem and colistin has been isolated for the first time from a patient in the United States."
New Class of Drugs Kills MRSA in Mice
March 28, 2018 "Scientists have discovered a new class of antibiotics that can kill methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) in mice."
The Medicine Woman: Emory Researcher Takes Up Fight Against Superbugs
March 28, 2018 "Cassandra Quave, an ethnobotanist, pursues a cure for infections, especially those that are resistant to common antibiotic treatments. She focuses on natural remedies that traditional healers have used for hundreds of years."
Lawmakers must act on limiting antibiotic use in food animals
March 19, 2018 "The reauthorization of the Animal Drug User Fee Act, which is quickly making its way through Congress, gives lawmakers a chance to address the growing threat of superbugs caused, in part, by open-ended use of antibiotics important to human medicine."
Deadly superbug just got scarier-it can mysteriously thwart last-resort drug
March 9, 2018 "It's the first time researchers have seen colistin-heteroresistant germs in the US."
Sepsis-causing bacteria is resistant to the last-resort antibiotic, sparking fresh fears of a crisis that could make simple infections deadly
March 7, 2018 "Researchers from Emory University found Klebsiella pneumoniae, a bacterium that leads to blood poisoning, as well as urinary-tract infections, no longer responds to the drug colistin."
Common 'Superbug' Found to Disguise Resistance to Potent Antibiotic
March 6, 2018 "New study finds little-known resistance by a dangerous bacteria to a last-resort antibiotic, part of a worrisome trend."
Two Atlanta Patients' Urine Shows Bacteria Resistant to 'Last-line' Drug
March 6, 2018 "A team of scientists at Emory University¿s Antibiotic Resistance Center have isolated tiny bacteria in patients that have colisin resistance - a first in America."
Berry extract instead of antibiotics
January 4, 2018 "Deutschlandfunk Kultur discusses the promise of Dr. Cassandra Quave's berry extract as an alternative antibiotic therapy."
Six Grand Ideas to Fight the End of Antibiotics
October 9, 2017 "Overuse of antibiotics has led them to becoming less and less effective to treat us when we're sick - leaving scientists scrambling for a fix. Here are some of the best ideas to tackle one of the 21st Century's biggest challenges."
Bright Future for the Feces Cure
August 31, 2017 "Transplanting healthy human feces became a breakthrough treatment for C. diff infection. Now researchers ask-can it do more?"
NIAID supports clinical testing of anti-cancer drug for TB
August 15, 2017 "The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases has awarded a three-year $5 million grant to an international team of investigators to test the anti-cancer drug imatinib as a repurposed treatment for tuberculosis. The study will take place at Emory University in Atlanta, and in South Africa at the Aurum Institute's Tembisa Clinical Research Center in South Africa."
Dr. Wuest wins ACS Infectious Diseases Young Investigator Award
August 14, 2017 "As winners of the 2017 ACS Infectious Diseases Young Investigator Awards, Wuest will receive a plaque, an award of $1,000, and up to $500 in travel reimbursement to attend the 2017 ACS Fall National Meeting in Washington, D.C., and present at an ACS Division of Biological Chemistry symposium."
AAAS Leshner fellow aligns science with public service
June 30, 2017 "Karen Levy, PhD, associate professor in the Department of Environmental Health at Emory University's Rollins School of Public Health, reflects on her path to a career in research and public service, as well as the important role communications can play in advancing science. Levy is a AAAS Leshner Leadership Institute fellow. "
How Can We Stop Antibiotic Resistance
June 8, 2017 "It's been dubbed "the end of modern medicine". BBC Future asked experts to explain how we might avoid the worst effects of antibiotic resistance ¿ a grand challenge of our age. "
Snuffing the next epidemic: Carnegie grant to fund Emory research
April 26, 2017 "Emory University law and global health professor Polly J. Price, may have a hand in stopping future outbreaks of deadly plagues such as Ebola. Price is one of 35 recipients of a 2017 Andrew Carnegie fellowship and will receive up to $200,000 toward researching and writing a book about how governments confront the challenge of contagious diseases."
Dr. Cassandra Quave's search for new antibiotics from medicinal plants is highlighted on the National Geographic Channel
March 13, 2017 "Microscopic armies have waged war on humanity for thousands of years. Medicine is our great weapon to fight back against invisible, unthinkable death."
NIH-Funded Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group Details Progress, Challenges
March 9, 2017 "CRACKLE study (which includes Dr. Jesse Jacob), focused on carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella, highlighted by NIAID"
Infectious disease researchers selected as 2017-2018 AAAS Leshner Leadership Institute Public Engagement Fellows
February 17, 2017 "Karen Levy, PhD, MPH, associate professor of Environmental Health at the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University, was recently selected by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) as a 2017-2018 Public Engagement Fellow. Levy is one of 15 infectious disease researchers in the second cohort of the AAAS Alan I. Leshner Leadership Institute for Public Engagement with Science."
New Way to Fight Superbugs Found in Noxious Weed
February 15, 2017 "The invasive Brazilian peppertree contains a substance that keeps drug-resistant bacteria from producing their deadly toxins."
Could this common weed help fight deadly superbugs?
February 13, 2017 "The red berries of the Brazilian peppertree - a weed commonly found in Florida - contains an extract that could disarm a deadly superbug, according to new research."
Brazilian peppertree packs power to knock out antibiotic-resistant bacteria
February 10, 2017 "The red berries of the Brazilian peppertree - a weedy, invasive species common in Florida - contain an extract with the power to disarm dangerous antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria, scientists at Emory University have discovered."
Common weed could help fight deadly superbug, study finds
February 10, 2017 "The red berries of a weed found in the southern United States contain an compound that can disarm a deadly superbug, according to research published Friday."
'Noxious Weed' May Provide New Way to Fight Superbugs
February 10, 2017 "A noxious weed that plagues homeowners across Florida may hold the secret to a new way to fight some antibiotic-resistant superbugs, researchers reported Friday."
Humble red berry could be the answer to deadly superbugs
February 10, 2017 "he rise of deadly superbugs which are resistant to antibiotics could be thwarted by a humble and widely available red berry, scientists have said."
Plant magic: Scientists return to roots to fight superbugs
November 29, 2016 "With drug-resistant strains of bacteria jeopardizing the lives of hundreds of thousands of people and few new treatments on the horizon, scientists are looking to nature for answers. "
CDC awards Emory grant to study antibiotic resistance transmission, medication safety
October 12, 2016 "The Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave Emory University more than $360,000 to fund two research projects."
The Plant-Based Solution To Antibiotic Resistance
September 20, 2016 "With resistance to antibiotics rising, ancient remedies are getting a second look. Could plant-based drugs save us?"
Could Ancient Remedies Hold the Answer to the Looming Antibiotics Crisis?
September 14, 2016 "One researcher thinks the drugs of the future might come from the past: botanical treatments long overlooked by Western medicine."
Deadly Superbugs Can Masquerade as Ordinary Bacteria
June 22, 2016 "The clinical microbiology laboratory at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta processes more than 800 patient specimens every day. Samples of urine or stool arrive in stacks of petri dishes, sometimes by pneumatic tube straight from operating rooms. Most of the microbes the lab's technicians investigate are familiar creatures that can be dealt with by modern medicine. But in the fall of 2013, something puzzling appeared."
Christine Dunham selected as an Investigator in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund
June 13, 2016 "Research grant to ten U.S. professors will boost fundamental understanding of how infectious disease works."
Survival by reversible resistance
May 26, 2016 "Antibiotic therapy is a cornerstone of contemporary medicine. Resistance testing is the gold standard for selecting antibiotics, but in some cases they are surprisingly ineffective. A study now shows that pathogens can form a subset of cells which survive, and even continue to grow in the face of antibiotics."
Populations drifting apart
May 16, 2016 "The continued emergence of antibiotic-resistant pathogens is a major global health concern, and colistin is one of the last-line antibiotics to treat infections caused by bacteria that are resistant to most or all other antibiotics."
Superbugs pretend to be vulnerable to medication
May 10, 2016 "Scientists have found that drug-resistant bacteria can fool medicos into believing they are vulnerable to medication, opening a dangerous new front in the battle against superbugs."
Colistin-resistant bacteria may elude detection
May 9, 2016 "Colistin-susceptible Enterobacter cloacae can harbor resistant bacterial colonies that are missed by diagnostic testing, increase in number when exposed to colistin, and cause lethal infections, according to a study today in Nature Microbiology."
Dr. McGowan gives the Garrod Lecture at BSAC
March 16, 2016 "The role of the healthcare epidemiologist in antimicrobial chemotherapy - a view from the USA"
Persistence toxin promotes antibiotic resistance
October 27, 2015 "Emory scientists led by Christine Dunham, PhD are investigating how HigB functions, with the goal of better understanding how the antibiotic-tolerant "persister cell" state is regulated."
Team led by Emory ARC faculty awarded CDC Prevention Epicenter
October 5, 2015 "Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention gave Emory University a three-year, $2.2 million grant to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, including Ebola, in health-care facilities."
Scientists discover chestnut that can stop MRSA
August 22, 2015 "SWEET chestnut tree leaves contain chemicals that can tame the MRSA superbug, research has shown."
McCain and Congress should lead fight against drug-resistant TB
April 14, 2015 "Just below the media radar in early April, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) pressed Department of Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson to prevent the release from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody of an immigration detainee diagnosed with drug-resistant tuberculosis. McCain did so on behalf of Pinal County, Ariz., which faced staggering medical costs to treat the patient and to prevent further spread of a dreaded and difficult to treat disease."
Super bacteria lurk in the home
March 25, 2015 "Drug-resistant bacteria may hide out in homes for many years before causing disease."
MRSA can linger in homes, spreading among its inhabitants
March 10, 2015 "Drug-resistant bacteria may hide out in homes for many years before causing disease."
NIH selects Emory pathologist for Early Independence Award
October 9, 2014 "The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has honored Sean Stowell, MD, PhD, assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, with the NIH Director's Early Independence Award."
Sean Stowell awarded Career Award for Medical Scientist from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund
June 15, 2014 "The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has honored Sean Stowell, MD, PhD, assistant professor of pathology and laboratory medicine at Emory University School of Medicine, with the NIH Director's Early Independence Award."
Antibiotic resistance enzyme caught in the act
April 7, 2014 "Resistance to an entire class of antibiotics - aminoglycosides -- has the potential to spread to many types of bacteria, according to new biochemistry research."
An unusual transplant, an unusual donor
January 21, 2014 "As he walks into the Emory University School of Medicine lobby, Dr. Ryan McCormick is dressed from head to toe in blue scrubs, medical ID badge swinging, with a bag slung over his shoulder. He looks as if he belongs in an operating room or a trauma bay in the emergency department. In fact, he probably has not seen a patient all day, but that doesn't mean he hasn't saved lives. This young resident not only diagnoses infections, he plays a direct role in curing them."
David Weiss selected as an Investigator in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Diseases by the Burroughs Wellcome Fund
June 13, 2013 "The Burroughs Wellcome Fund is pleased to announce the recipients of the 2013 Investigators in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease. The five-year $500,000 award provides support to assistant professor-level researchers conducting innovative investigation in infectious disease."
Not "glamorous": Doc is universal donor for fecal transplants
May 11, 2013 "An Emory University medical resident has taken the notion of donation to a whole new level, agreeing to provide stool samples for multiple patients who need life-saving procedures called fecal transplants."