AI vs superbugs: A £45 Million Fight Against Resistance
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
Drug-resistant infections, commonly referred to as superbugs, have escalated into a growing global healthcare threat, often called ‘the silent pandemic’. Global data projects that antimicrobial resistance (AMR) could kill 39 million people by 2050. Superbugs are already thought to be directly responsible for around one million deaths annually worldwide.
In response to this crisis, UK scientists have launched a major initiative leveraging AI vs superbugs to tackle antibiotic resistance. This project represents a collaboration between the Fleming Initiative—named after penicillin discoverer Alexander Fleming—and the pharmaceutical company GSK.
The partnership involves a substantial £45 million (€51 million) investment, described as the single biggest investment in a UK antibiotic project known. Approximately 50 researchers will dedicate three years to this AI-powered project, working across six fields of research. The primary goal is to expedite the discovery of novel antibiotics and deliver new ways of combating these serious threats.
The AI tool will specifically target a challenging group of infections known as Gram-negative bacteria, which includes widespread bugs such as E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. These bacteria are particularly difficult to treat because they possess an extra outer layer, allowing them to block antibiotics from entering or rapidly pump out those that penetrate the bacterial defenses.
Researchers plan to convert years of manual laboratory work into simple, rapid computational predictions. By performing experiments with molecules and feeding the resulting data into the AI, the tool will learn what chemical structures are required for an antibiotic to persist inside a Gram-negative bacterium. The goal is to guide scientists on how to modify potential antibiotics to bypass the organism's defenses.
Furthermore, AI will be employed to predict how superbugs emerge and spread, essentially acting like a "weather forecast" for resistance. The project extends beyond bacteria, also aiming to use AI to tackle the rise of deadly fungal infections, such as Aspergillus mould.
Experts involved in the project emphasize the urgency of the matter. Tim Orchard, who helps run the Fleming Initiative, noted that drug-resistant infections pose a growing risk and are increasingly difficult to treat. Tony Wood, GSK’s chief scientific officer, affirmed that AI will open new avenues for discovery, helping the scientific community anticipate and outpace the development of resistance that superbugs form against medicines.
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AI vs superbugs
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