Previously unknown antibiotic resistance widespread among bacteria
Streptococcus pneumoniae.The bacterium causes pneumonia, one of the diseases that becomes difficult to treat when bacteria develop resistance to antibiotics. Image: Unsplash
Genes that make bacteria resistant to antibiotics are much more widespread in our environment than was previously realised. A new study, from Chalmers University of Technology and the University of Gothenburg in Sweden, shows that bacteria in almost all environments carry resistance genes, with a risk of them spreading and aggravating the problem of bacterial infections that are untreatable with antibiotics.