Rethinking Antibiotics

The specter of widespread drug-resistant bacterial infections is a looming public health crisis and especially pronounced for so-called “Gram-negative” pathogens. In addition, all approved antibiotics also kill the “good” bacteria in our gut, resulting in many deleterious effects on human health. This lecture will describe this problem and what is being done to solve it. Recent advances in fundamental science that has led to the discovery of novel antibiotics, and the development of antibiotics effective against Gram-negative infections that also spare the gut microbiome will be discussed. Speaker Paul J. Hergenrother, Kenneth L. Rinehart Jr. Endowed Chair in Natural Products Chemistry, and Professor of Chemistry, University of Illinois In collaboration with NYUAD Science Division