Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE

A long history of β-lactams for MRSA

Since the emergence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus 60 years ago, scientists have been trying to engineer β-lactam antibiotics to restore drug susceptibility. Genomic data now shows that clavulanic acid (a β-lactamase inhibitor) can restore susceptibility in many strains, but only if they carry key mutations.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Rent or buy this article

Prices vary by article type

from$1.95

to$39.95

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Fig. 1: Evolution of penicillin–clavulanic acid susceptibility.

References

  1. Kourtis, A. P. et al. MMWR-Morbid. Mortal. W. 68, 214–219 (2019).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Harrison, E. M. et al. Nat. Microbiol. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-019-0471-0 (2019).

  3. Cantoni, L., Wenger, A., Glauser, M. P. & Bille, J. J. Infect. Dis. 159, 989–993 (1989).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Nicolas, M. H., Kitzis, M. D. & Karim, A. Med. Maladies Infect. 23, 82–94 (1993).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Andreoni, M., Raillard, P., Concia, E. & Wang, Y. Curr. Ther. Res. Clin. E. 50, 386–395 (1991).

    Google Scholar 

  6. Chambers, H. F., Sachdeva, M. & Kennedy, S. J. Infect. Dis. 162, 705–710 (1990).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Chambers, H. F., Kartalija, M. & Sande, M. J. Infect. Dis. 171, 897–902 (1995).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Fergus Hamilton.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hamilton, F., MacGowan, A. A long history of β-lactams for MRSA. Nat Microbiol 4, 1604–1605 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-019-0561-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41564-019-0561-z

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing