IMB Centre for Superbug Solutions

Research into using a cannabis compound as an antibiotic has been boosted by a government grant to an Australian biotech company to collaborate with an Institute for Molecular Bioscience (IMB) superbugs researcher.

New research has opened a pathway to improved antibiotics after revealing a crucial step in the way bacteria construct their defences.

A compound from cannabis has been found to be active against the bacteria responsible for many serious infections such as golden staph and pneumonia. 

In an Australian-first, UQ researchers will join forces with the Global Antibiotic Research and Development Partnership (GARDP) to tackle the growing problem of drug-resistant infections.

A joint University of Queensland and Queensland Health-led team has completed the first genetic analysis of TB strains circulating on PNG’s Daru Island, a major hotspot for TB outbreaks on Australia’s doorstep.

In the “golden era” of antibiotic drug discovery – 1950 to 1970 – drug companies could afford to be choosy, selecting only the very best candidates for approval.As a result, many potent antibiotics did not make the cut for development and were abandoned. Given the current crisis in antibiotic discovery, the time is right to revisit many of these potentially invaluable molecules in search of antibiotic scaffolds with novel modes of action.

An antibiotic overlooked since its discovery 40 years ago could help develop new drugs against life-threatening infections caused by some of the world’s most dangerous superbugs.