About this Research Topic

Background

It is predicted that antimicrobial resistance will be a leading cause of death by 2050 if no action is taken against it. Studies suggest that by this time, more people will die of antimicrobial resistance than cancer. The major cause of concern right now is that no novel antibiotics have emerged in the market for some time and infection causing bacteria have begun to develop mechanisms to withstand antibiotics, contributing to the growing potential for antimicrobial resistance which would see the human population heading towards a global health crisis. To fight antimicrobial resistance scientists and policymakers are finding ways to fight back against this threat.

Antibiotic therapy can be replaced with Bacteriocins, Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs), and Bacteriophage therapies along with Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs), CRISPR-Cas constructs, and transition metal complexes for a good antimicrobial agent. Use of metagenomics can also be carried out in combating antibiotic resistance problems.

Moreover, the transition metal complexes which have long been used in the treatment of cancer such as carboplatin, cisplatin are the mainstay in metal based anticancer compounds and can be used in the treatment of antimicrobial resistance. Many antibiotics such as Bleomycin (BCM), Bacitracin, and Streptogramin (sn) require metal ions for proper action. The coordinated metal ions in these antibiotics play a vital role in the determination of the structure and functioning of these antibiotics. Metal chelates have useful applications in therapeutic applications. Antibiotics containing metals can interact with proteins, lipids DNA, and RNA which makes them bioactive. The metal ions form coordination bonds with the antibiotics which helps them determine their structure and function.

In this Research Topic we welcome original research, review articles, systematic reviews, mini reviews, and perspectives, that take an in-depth look at advances in novel drug design in regards to combating antimicrobial resistance. Article that uses bioinformatics and high throughput sequencing are highly welcomed. The use of plant extracts, whole genome sequencing (high throughput sequencing methods) are welcomed. Herbal and traditional medicines are used widely in the world for the treatment of diseases and for the treatment of antimicrobial resistance. They can also be used with pharmaceuticals that are chemically defined, and these infusions are combined to have high therapeutic value compared to conventional medicine. These combinations should be studied and research in this area is an important area. Studies focusing on the herb and drug interaction (Pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic interaction, toxicology interaction) are highly welcomed. In-silico docking studies without experimental validation is not acceptable.

All the manuscripts submitted to the collection will need to fully comply with the Four Pillars of Best Practice in Ethnopharmacology (you can freely download the full version here).

Keywords: Antimicrobial resistance, Drug-designing, High-Throughput sequencing, bioinformatics

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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