Determining the Antibiotic Resistance of Bacterial Pathogens in Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Abstract

Sexually transmitted diseases (STD) are among the most common infections worldwide. These bacterial infections have spread predominantly in the developing/underdeveloped countries, the most common being syphilis, gonorrhea and those induced by Chlamydia trachomatis, Ureaplasma urealyticum or Mycoplasma spp. Due to extensive usage of antibiotics in the recent past, these bacteria developed resistance to those commonly used for treatment, such resistant strains becoming a public health problem in a number of countries. It is well documented that bacterial STD agents are difficult to detect using standard culture media because these methods require special conditions and adequate nutrients. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing is, therefore, difficult to obtain in such cases. In recent years, genetic tests have been frequently employed in STD diagnosis. The study of genes that induce resistance to antibiotics using DNA isolated from these bacteria may prove to be a viable alternative. Genetic methods enable the DNA extraction from different biological samples, and both the presence of the bacteria and their resistance to one or more antibiotics can be determined from a single DNA sample. By studying the genes that induce antibiotic resistance and the plasmids that transfer such genes, the mechanism that leads to antibiotic resistance can be elucidated.

An in silico analysis of rpoB mutations to affect Chlamydia trachomatis sensitivity to rifamycin

“…However, the bacteria can acquire resistant to different antibiotics family via a range of mechanisms. The main causes of resistance to antibiotics are: the abusive usage of antibiotics, the spread of resistant strains, or the spread of genes bearing information able to induce resistance [55].…”