Abstract
Every year, we face infectious outbreaks produced by harmful microorganisms commonly called superbugs. Often, there is not enough time to find new treatments to cure infected patients. On average, it takes a decade to develop a promising new drug to the point where it can be used on patients! Also, many of the compounds that we identify in the laboratory as promising anti-infectives are not useful for treating patients, mainly because they have unexpected, unsafe side effects. However, researchers have already found thousands of drugs that can safely be used to treat specific diseases. These compounds are approved to be used on patients for particular illnesses, but many of them have not been tested to treat any other diseases. Some of these drugs could be repurposed to treat infections caused by new superbugs. In this article, we summarize some exciting strategies used to find new anti-infectives by drug repurposing.
Highlights
Antibiotics were discovered in by Alexander Fleming [ ]
S. aureus bacteria may survive inside the cells of infected people, even if the bacteria are susceptible to the antibiotics used to treat the patients
Old and new superbugs can completely stop our lives in a matter of days
Summary
Antibiotics were discovered in by Alexander Fleming [ ]. Harmful bacteria are still causing many deaths, because it takes time to find an e ective cure or a new vaccine These bacteria, as well as other dangerous microorganisms like viruses that appear rather suddenly and are di cult to treat, are often called superbugs. Scientists and medical doctors all around the world have started a race against the clock to find new ways of protecting and treating people who are at high risk of developing a dangerous disease caused by the virus called SARS-CoV-. This is a new strain of coronavirus that apparently jumped from animals to humans in late November. This group includes the elderly, people with liver or kidney disease, or people who have poor immunity, diabetes, obesity, chronic respiratory diseases, such as asthma, or serious heart conditions
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