Institut Pasteur Korea’s Antibacterial Resistance Laboratory focuses on the discovery of new antibacterial agents that can be used to fight against ‘superbugs’. ‘Superbugs’ is a term to describe bacteria that cannot be killed by most of currently available antibiotics. Infections caused by these antibiotic resistant ‘superbugs’ are, therefore, often life-threatening and extremely difficult to treat. Rapid emergence and spread of ‘superbugs’ are an increasingly serious threat to public health in Korea as well as globally.

In order to discover novel antibacterial agents active against ‘superbugs’, the strategies of our research are 1) to extend knowledge of bacterial physiology and resistant mechanisms, 2) to apply the knowledge for developing new screening systems, and 3) to identify new entities through developed systems.

Research is conducted on the following major pathogenic bacteria: Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Staphylococcus aureus, and Streptococcus pneumonias. The team focuses on:

• Discovery of new antibacterial agents through development of innovative screening systems and identification of novel targets
• Investigation of resistance development mechanism in Gram positive bacteria
• Surveillance of antibiotic resistance in community

The research conducted will provide the basis for future studies that address antibiotic resistance and the discovery of new entities aims to fill the antibiotic development pipeline.