Antimicrobials are medicines used to treat infections. They include antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals and antiparasitics. Over time, microbes can change to become resistant to these medicines; this is known as anti-microbial resistance (AMR). AMR makes infections difficult to treat. Improved understanding of host/pathogen genetics and dynamics will enable the rapid detection and improved therapy for AMR and mutating viruses.

Sheffield has already been designated a High Consequence Infectious Diseases Facility and we aim to further establish a combined academic/NHS translational Pathogen Sequencing Laboratory (PSL). This will provide a pipeline for innovative clinical diagnostics, integrating sequencing into real-time infection control within the NHS, alongside rapid AMR detection. We are primarily focussed on the early diagnosis of infections in immunocompromised hosts, notably in haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) recipients. We will use the PSL to examine links between antimicrobial prophylaxis and AMR in immunocompromised patients and explore the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on antibiotic stewardship and AMR evolution. The PSL will enable rapid responses to local infection outbreaks or future epidemic/pandemic situations.

We combine pathogen sequencing with our world-leading expertise in bacterial structure/dynamics to elucidate the basis of antibiotic resistance and to develop new classes of antibiotics. Our researchers are experts in Staphylococcus aureus biology, an AMR pathogen that exacerbates atopic dermatitis and bronchiectasis, and are working to develop a controlled human infection model to improve the understanding of host-pathogen interactions and mucosal/systemic immunity. This will also enable the testing of novel therapeutics and vaccines.