Halloween 2024. Spooky Story time!

An eight word story the author wrote in 2017 for the Queensland Writers Challange.

Just in time for Halloween: A Spooky Storytime!

How One Antibiotic, Once Considered Weak and Puny, Is Helping Superbugs Resist Another.

Antibiotics are like tiny superheroes that fight off harmful bacteria in your body when you’re sick. They work by attacking parts of the bacteria, like their outer shell or the way they make important things they need to survive. But sometimes, bacteria can change and figure out how to escape from the antibiotics, just like a bad guy might escape from a superhero!

Antibiotic resistance, also known as antimicrobial resistance (AMR), happens when bacteria get really smart and figure out how to stop antibiotics from working. It’s like a game of hide-and-seek where the bacteria keep changing their hiding spots so the antibiotics can’t find them anymore. When this happens, doctors have a hard time finding medicines to help people get better.

Superbugs are a type of bacteria that have become really tough and can’t be killed by the usual antibiotics we use. This happens when bacteria learn how to fight back against the medicines that are supposed to stop them. Superbugs can make people very sick; sometimes, even our strongest antibiotics don’t work anymore. This is why it’s super important to only use antibiotics when we really need them, so we don’t help these superbugs get even stronger!

Rifaximin, once considered a low-risk in causing superbugs, is a medication we use in treating liver disease. It works by attaching to a part of bacteria called RNA polymerase. This attachment stops the bacteria from making the RNA which is essential for their growth and survival. Without proper RNA to produce proteins, bacteria struggle to function and reproduce.

Step 1 & 2: Meet our antibiotic Rifaximin (the cowgirl), who latches onto bacteria’s RNA polymerase. This triggers a chain reaction, changing how the bacteria make important proteins (shown by the gears and DNA). It’s like changing the recipe for the bacteria’s outer coat!

In this case the rifaximin causes the bacteria to mutate or change their RNA polymerase which in turn changes their cell surface (membrane). This can make the membranes less flexible, making it harder for daptomycin – an antibiotic that sticks to the cell membrane – to be able to do its job effectively.

This is important because daptomycin is one of the few antibiotics to treat vancomycin-resistant enterococcus (VRE). This contagious infection causes severe reactions in people who are sick in. hospital.

In relation to health it is considered to be a category 5 infection – like how we rate storms or hurricanes we consider the severity, the impact, the rarity and the response.

You can think of this situation as a lock (representing RNA polymerase) that is becoming worn out over time. As the lock deteriorates, keys (representing antibiotics) that are supposed to fit into it may no longer work properly.

Step 3 & 4: Because of these changes, the bacteria’s outer shell becomes different (like this tough-looking bacteria). Now, when we try to use our other antibiotic, Daptomycin, it can’t stick to the bacteria anymore — like trying to stick tape to a non-sticky surface!

When one antibiotic can’t do its job because the target has changed, it can also make it harder for other antibiotics to work. This example shows how complicated the relationships between different treatments are and another way bacteria can develop resistance.

Superbugs are dangerous because if they keep getting stronger, we might not have any medicines to help us when we’re sick. Imagine if you had a really bad infection, but no medicine could make you better! That’s why it’s essential to be careful with antibiotics and only use them when your doctor says you need them.

Of course, there are things that even you can do to help slow down this spread — cleaning and drying your hands properly after playing, going to the bathroom, before eating, or touching and cooking food. Plain soap and warm water are always the best options when washing your hands.

A fun and informative guide to effective handwashing, crucial for preventing the spread of germs.

If at all possible, avoid the use of antibacterial handwashes! They only worsen things and should only be used in special situations after your hands are clean!

So, how do we know our hands are clean? Perhaps you could get your school to do a fun experiment with glowing powder and lotion like in the video below!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q87vy1d2F04

Make sure you and your family and friends get your vaccinations and boosters. They will reduce your risk of getting sick, or if you do get sick — it will not be as severe, and you will recover faster — it also protects everyone around you!

The good news? We can help slow down these superbugs! Just like these kids staying dry by sharing an umbrella, we can protect ourselves and others by washing our hands properly, using antibiotics only when needed, and getting our vaccinations! Image by prostooleh on Freepik

Confirm that you and your family only use antibiotics for bacterial infections, not for a cold and flu. If your doctor or GP does tell you you need them, ensure you take all your antibiotics; do not stop just because you feel better.

Feel free to question your doctor, GP, or veterinarian if they have done a swab and culture if they suspect a bacterial infection and how they dispose of all those old antibiotics.

We certainly don’t want all those antibiotics in the ocean or available to bacteria to learn how to gain superpowers in resistance!

You can also help by telling your friends and family how to be safe and make good choices when it comes to their health, their family and friends, their animals, and our planet!

Turner, A.M., Li, L., Monk, I.R. et al. Rifaximin prophylaxis causes resistance to the last-resort antibiotic daptomycin. Nature (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-024-08095-4