Developing a microbiome-friendly antibiotic | Ryan Teo
Antibiotics are our best line of defence against harmful bacterial infections, and have ushered in an era of significant improvements in living standards since their discovery. But the human body also hosts a myriad of friendly bacteria which play a huge role in maintaining our health — and antibiotics don’t discriminate against friend or foe.
This is where Ryan Teo’s (2018 MChem Chemistry, DPhil Interdisciplinary Biosciences DTP) research comes in. One of the functions of our microbiome is to offer natural protection against the invasion of harmful bacteria, a phenomenon known as colonisation resistance. Through his Royal Commission Industrial Fellowship, he is working on a project to develop gut-friendly antibiotics that focus on targeting harmful bacteria while sparing the beneficial ones in our body.
Not only does this protect the vital functions of our gut microbiome, including regulating the immune system and aiding digestion, it allows the drugs and our natural defences to work together to prevent harmful bacteria from growing. This reduces the chances of pathogens becoming resistant, and tackles the looming threat of antimicrobial resistance, which the WHO estimates could lead to 10 million deaths per year by 2050.
Commenting on his Royal Commission Industrial Fellowship, Ryan writes: “I'm excited to be working on a project that has such tangible real-world implications. This fellowship is a unique opportunity to learn from both academic and industry experts, and to develop a novel approach to tackle antimicrobial resistance.”
Ryan is based at the INEOS Oxford Institute for antimicrobial research, where he is supervised by Christopher Schofield (Professor of Chemistry), Kevin Foster (Professor of Microbiology), and Jim Dawson (Non-Executive Director at INEOS).
The Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851 Industrial Fellowships are awarded to graduates with the potential to make an outstanding contribution to industry, leading to a patent, product or process improvement, and a postgraduate award.
