Resisting Antimicrobial Resistance: Lessons from Fungus Farming Ants

Ayush Pathak; Steve Kett; Massimiliano Marvasi

doi:10.1016/j.tree.2019.08.007

Resisting Antimicrobial Resistance: Lessons from Fungus Farming Ants

Trends Ecol Evol. 2019 Nov;34(11):974-976. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2019.08.007. Epub 2019 Sep 26.

Authors

Ayush Pathak¹, Steve Kett², Massimiliano Marvasi³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK.
² Department of Natural Sciences, Middlesex University London, London, UK.
³ Department of Biology, University of Florence, Florence, Italy. Electronic address: massimiliano.marvasi@unifi.it.

PMID: 31564381
DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2019.08.007

Abstract

Attine ants use antimicrobials produced by commensal bacteria to inhibit parasites on their fungal gardens. However, in this agricultural system, antimicrobial use does not lead to overwhelming resistance, as is typical in clinical settings. Mixtures of continually evolving antimicrobial variants could support these dynamics.

MeSH terms

Agriculture
Animals
Anti-Bacterial Agents
Ants*
Drug Resistance, Bacterial
Fungi
Phylogeny
Symbiosis

Substances

Anti-Bacterial Agents