Combatting antibiotic resistance: challenges and emerging therapeutic strategies

The discovery of antibiotics marked a crucial milestone in medical history, widely credited for its pivotal role in saving countless lives. However, the escalating resistance of microbes to traditional antimicrobial drugs (antibiotics) now jeopardizes the effectiveness of these life-saving drugs. The World Health Organization adopted a Global Action Plan (GAP) in 2015, recognizing the looming threat to human health posed by antimicrobial resistance (AMR). As of 2019, 4.95 million global deaths are attributed to AMR, with 1.27 million deaths recorded in that year alone. In this review, a thorough literature survey was conducted in PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science using keywords related to AMR, antibiotic action, the mechanisms of AMR, and treatment of AMR. There was a primary focus on alternative therapies and innovative medicinal advancements, such as bacteriophage therapy, antimicrobial peptides, probiotics, and synthetic inhibitors for ppGpp nucleotide messengers as potential treatment options to reduce our dependence on antibiotics. These innovative strategies broaden the currently limited scope of treatments against the emerging resistant strains of microorganisms.