Antibiotics

Peptides derived from the antimicrobial peptides secreted by frogs could function as microbicides to limit HIV transmission, while sparing protective vaginal bacteria. Read More

The new factor, an enzyme involved in host-pathogen interactions, may be a viable target for treating staph infections. Read More

Patients who take a cholesterol-lowering statin drug while taking the antibiotic daptomycin have increased risk of developing muscle weakness or a more severe form of muscle damage. Read More

A combination of two antibiotics is often prescribed to treat community-acquired pneumonia in children, but a JAMA Pediatrics study is now showing that using just one of the two has the same benefit to patients in most cases. Read More

New mechanistic details about the DNA-unwinding activity of antibacterial protein targets could lead to the design of better antibiotic medicines. Read More

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) are leading a multicenter clinical trial to evaluate whether a shorter course of antibiotics — five days instead of 10 — is effective at treating community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) in children who show improvement after the first few days of taking antibiotics. Read More

Relying on a core team of physicians and pharmacists, the Vanderbilt Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (VASP) is seeking to ensure optimum use of antibiotics and other antimicrobial drugs at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC). Read More

New structural findings reveal how "gatekeeper" proteins participate in the secretion systems bacteria use to infect host cells. Read More

Certain antibiotics increase the risk of a congenital heart disorder called patency of the ductus arteriosis. Read More

Children hospitalized for pneumonia have similar outcomes, including length of stay and costs, regardless of whether they are treated with “big gun” antibiotics such as ceftriaxone or cefotaxime or more narrowly focused antibiotics such as ampicillin or penicillin. Read More

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered a rare, but important risk posed by the antibiotic azithromycin, commonly called a “Z-pack.” The study found a 2.5-fold higher risk of death from cardiac arrhythmia in the first five days of taking azithromycin when compared with another common antibiotic or no antibiotics at all. Read More

A new study shows ophthalmologic antibiotics promote antimicrobial resistance, prompting a call from Vanderbilt Eye Institute physicians to be more judicial in administering the drugs. Read More