What will a future of continued antibiotic resistance look like? How can human activities prevent the rise of ‘superbugs’?

This is a question that Professor Laura Bowater, an editor from FEMS Microbiology Letters highlights in her new book, The Microbes Fight Back: Antibiotic Resistance. 

Antibiotics are becoming more and more ineffective against common diseases, and this book takes a look at the history and future uncertainties of antibiotics. Professor Laura Bowater describes how antibiotics are made, how bacteria mutate and develop antibiotic resistance, and the need for universal cooperation in order to tackle this global health challenge.

If you want to read more about this issue, you can buy the book here.

A fascinating and fantastic account of the history, science and most crucially the future of antibiotics. Whether you prescribe them or merely use them, this is an indispensable read.

Dr Chris van Tulleken – BBC Science presenter and MRC Research Fellow, University College London