[Genetics and genomics for the study of bacterial resistance]

Bacterial resistance is a public health problem causing high rates of morbidity and mortality in hospital settings. To the extent that different antibiotics are used, bacteria resistant to multiple drugs are selected. The development of new molecular genomic and proteomic tools such as real-time PCR, DNA pyrosequencing, mass spectrometry, DNA microarrays, and bioinformatics allow for more in-depth knowledge about the physiology and structure of bacteria and mechanisms involved in antibiotic resistance. These studies identify new targets for drugs and design specific antibiotics to provide more accurate treatments to combat infections caused by bacteria. Using these techniques, it will also be possible to rapidly identify genes that confer resistance to antibiotics, and to identify complex genetic structures, such as integrons that are involved in the spread of genes that confer multidrug-resistance.