Report from the leech's gut: Even trace amounts of antibiotics boost resistant bacteria

(American Society for Microbiology) An international team of researchers recently took a deep dive into the microbiome of blood-sucking medicinal leeches and made a surprising observation: low levels of antibiotics in the animal's environment improved the survival of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in its gut. Those resistant bacteria, in turn, displaced healthy bacteria. The findings, published this week in mBio, could help explain why antibiotic resistant infections have been found in patients who undergo medicinal leech therapy.
Source: EurekAlert! - Medicine and Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: news