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20.06.2025

Leibniz research alliance INFECTIONS launches podcast series on antibiotic resistance

Up-to-date, science-based and attractively presented: The podcast “Mikroben im Visier” is about resistant pathogens, their distribution and ways to combat them.

Increasingly, pathogens are developing resistance to antibiotics and other antimicrobial agents. The World Health Organization (WHO) describes this silent and serious development as one of the greatest threats to public health. According to a recent study, more than one million people worldwide die every year due to direct consequences of bacterial antimicrobial resistance (AMR). And almost 5 million deaths are associated with bacterial antimicrobial resistance. However, drug-resistant infections also have consequences for agriculture: livestock and plant diseases have become more difficult to treat, farm productivity is declining and food security is under threat.

The problem is complex and far from being fully researched. In the new podcast, microbiologist Dr. Elisabeth Pfrommer and physicist Dr. Christian Nehls take a closer look at pathogenic bacteria, viruses, fungi and other microorganisms, highlight current problems in infection medicine and discuss possible solutions. They will be talking to experts from the Leibniz research alliance INFECTIONS. Researchers from 18 Leibniz Institutes from various scientific disciplines work together in this network to respond to the challenges posed by infectious diseases. The focus of the research and the podcast is on antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The hosts will present the progress of research, the different disciplines and the challenges in a comprehensive and attractive way.

Kontakt

“The major challenges of infections worldwide cannot be overcome by biomedical research and the development of new pharmaceutical agents or vaccines alone,” Professor Ulrich Schaible, spokesperson for the research network, emphasizes. “ We therefore combine expertise from various scientific disciplines to jointly address relevant issues in infection research on antimicrobial resistance.” In addition to biology and medicine, this also includes agriculture, ecology, economics and political science. These different perspectives on the topic of infections with resistant pathogens are also covered in the podcast.

One main topic per episode

In each episode, Elisabeth and Christian tackle a certain issue. For example, they look at the origins of resistance, resistant pathogens in livestock farming or the distribution of resistance genes via air and water. The first episode published today gives an introduction to the topic and provides information on the correct use of antibiotics. " Everyone can contribute a small part to preventing resistance developing. For instance, by taking antibiotics only when they are really needed or not discontinuing them prematurely," Elisabeth Pfrommer explains.

The podcast aims to raise public awareness of the topic of resistance and provide information about it in a short, understandable way. It also aims to present the work of the research alliance and to show how important and exciting interdisciplinary research can be. A European survey on the level of knowledge about antimicrobial resistance conducted in 2022 (Eurobarometer survey) shows just how important education is. According to the study, 50% of Europeans questioned (45% in Germany) believe that antibiotics eliminate viruses and 62% (58% in Germany) believe that antibiotics are an effective treatment for the common cold. Neither is true. “Antibiotics only work against bacteria, and colds or flu-like infections are usually caused by viruses,” Christian Nehls states.

The podcast „Mikroben im Visier. Infektionen verstehen, Resistenzen besiegen!“ is available on all common podcast platforms. Click here for the first episode of the new series.

The hosts

  • Elisabeth Pfrommer is a microbiologist and completed her doctoral thesis in the Leibniz research alliance INFECTIONS. She is currently working at the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin and is particularly interested in the airborne spread of pathogens.
  • Christian Nehls is a physicist who wrote his doctoral thesis at the Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center and has been working there as a scientist since 2015. He is interested in cell and bacterial membranes in the context of infections and is also investigating novel agents against bacteria.

About the Leibniz Research Alliance INFECTIONS

Thanks to improved hygiene and medical progress, infectious diseases have been reduced in recent decades, particularly in industrialized countries. However, increasing antibiotic resistance, newly emerging and sometimes unknown pathogens, climate change and increasing human mobility are increasingly presenting us with new global problems. The Leibniz Research Alliance INFECTIONS was founded 10 years ago to tackle these challenges. Currently, 18 Leibniz Institutes and 3 external partners are working together in this network to develop new strategies and methods for early warning systems, improved management of outbreaks and optimized containment of the spread of pathogens across disciplines.

 
 
 
 

 

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