New research network unites Oxford University’s global fight against antimicrobial resistance

I am delighted to launch the Oxford AMR Network to unite innovative and cross-disciplinary research to support Oxford’s work to tackle one of the greatest threats of our time.

Professor Craig MacLean, Department of Biology and Chair of the Oxford AMR Network

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) threatens the foundation of modern medicine and is described by the  World Health Organization as one of the top global public health and development threats. It occurs when bacteria and other disease-causing microbes gain the ability to resist the action of treatments designed to kill them.

AMR has led to at least one million deaths each year since 1990 and is expected to cause another 39 million deaths between now and 2050. AMR is directly related to 16 of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals, with severe negative implications for poverty, gender inequality, animal welfare, the environment, and food security.

In response to this far-reaching threat, the newly established Oxford AMR Network harnesses the University of Oxford’s considerable expertise in life sciences, medical and social sciences, and humanities to tackle this challenge through multiple approaches.

There are over 200 researchers working to tackle AMR across Oxford. Their work spans new drug discovery and antibiotic stewardship, to development of diagnostic tools and AMR surveillance and epidemiology.

Funded and hosted by the Ineos Oxford Institute for antimicrobial research (IOI), the network will mobilise Oxford University’s expertise in AMR to facilitate new collaborations and generate novel research to find solutions. A new database will list researchers across the university whose wide-ranging expertise exemplifies the vast array of world-leading research from Oxford teams, including overseas units in the MORU Tropical Health Network and the Oxford University Clinical Research Unit OUCRU).

Professor Craig MacLean, Department of Biology and Chair of the Oxford AMR Network, said, ‘Oxford University has a long history of advancing AMR research - from the first trials of “wonder drug” penicillin and pioneering advances in X-Ray crystallography by Dorothy Crawfoot Hodgkins in the 1940s, to groundbreaking research today. I am delighted to launch the Oxford AMR Network to unite innovative and cross-disciplinary research to support Oxford’s work to tackle one of the greatest threats of our time.’

AMR is affecting all sections of society across the world from human and animal health to food availability and economic stability. It is not a threat that can be solved by working alone. Oxford is ideally positioned to tackle this challenge because of the breadth of expertise across the university and its longstanding partnerships across the world.

Sir Stewart Cole, Executive Chair of the Ineos Oxford Institute for antimicrobial research (IOI)

AMR research in the Oxford can be grouped into six major cross-cutting themes. These are:

1)      Antimicrobial drug discovery and development: No new classes of antibiotics have been discovered since the 1980s. Researchers at the University of Oxford are trialling new combinations of AMR-proof antibiotics, besides alternative therapies including probiotics, phage therapy, and vaccine development.   

2)      Bacterial pathogenesis, genetics and evolution: Oxford scientists are studying the genetic basis of resistance and developing bacterial genome databases to understand resistance evolution and spread.

3)      Diagnostics: In many countries, tests used to identify bacterial infections are carried out in laboratories and typically take 2-3 days. Scientists at the University of Oxford are developing rapid diagnostic tests that will enable health professionals to administer the right drug at the right time and only when needed.

4)      Health interventions and antimicrobial usage: Oxford scientists are developing new interventions to reduce inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics (for instance, to treat viral infections) – a practice which promotes AMR to develop.

5)      Social dimensions of AMR: Researchers in this theme investigate how social factors impact AMR. They explore ethical, political and economic factors, public perceptions, drug regulations and more to understand the broader context of AMR in societies around the world.  

6)      Surveillance and epidemiology: Oxford scientists are using qualitative and quantitative data to map and understand the way drug-resistant infections are spreading and their impact across the globe. Such data can help inform national health policies and responses to health emergencies, and enable robust global surveillance systems to provide early warnings of emerging threats and help identify long–term trends.

If you are an Oxford University researcher, join the Oxford AMR Network researcher database here.

You can learn more about the network on the IOI website here.