Webinar "Crossroads of antibiotic resistance: environment, animals and humans"

Before the COVID-19 pandemics, the World Health Organization considered Antimicrobial Resistance a leading global public health issue. While in health-care units antimicrobial resistance endangers lives, well-being and the success of medical interventions, the environmental contamination with resistant microorganisms, in particular antibiotic resistant bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes, globally disseminated. In urban areas, wastewater treatment plants are the major barriers to protect the environment and the human health from these emerging contaminants, although are not prepared to reduce resistance to safe levels. Food-animals are also reported as important hosts of antibiotic resistant bacteria. This diffuse occurrence of antibiotic resistant bacteria leads to a wide spectrum of contamination that crosses humans, animals and the environment, being uncertain which are the most critical reservoirs and paths of dissemination.

The One-Health concept relying on the continuum humans, animals and the environment, assumes the interdependence of human-health on the broad context of human-environment interfaces.

This seminar brings together antibiotic resistance experts, working in distinct fields of the One-Health continuum, who will discuss the implications of the multiple intersections between environment, animals and humans and the consequences in terms of antibiotic resistance dissemination.

Programme here