Initial situation/scientific issue

Effective antimicrobials are a cornerstone of modern medicine and a key factor for health at all stages of life. However, decades of inappropriate use, a decline in pharmaceutical development and other socio-economic factors have resulted in a large proportion of the most important pathogenic microorganisms being resistant to many of the antimicrobials currently available. The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared antimicrobial resistance (AMR) to be one of the top 10 greatest threats to human public health. The European Commission's Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) has listed AMR as one of the three life-threatening priorities. A recent study on the global AMR burden predicts a sharp increase in deaths with 39 million deaths by 2053, emphasising the need for immediate action.

Project description/methodology

The European Partnership on One Health Antimicrobial Resistance (EUP OH AMR) will contribute to the objectives of the EU Action Plan on AMR to tackle the critical societal challenge of AMR and reduce the AMR burden by:
- Using an interdisciplinary One Health approach to focus and coordinate AMR research and innovation
- Improving knowledge of the mechanisms of AMR, its development and transmission pathways, the socio-economic drivers of AMR and the barriers to its prevention
- Develop innovative solutions to prevent, detect, monitor, mitigate and treat drug-resistant infections and facilitate the adoption of such solutions by industry, policy makers and society

Outcomes

The project objectives are to be achieved by supporting research and innovation (R&I) to understand, prevent and combat AMR by increasing and coordinating investment, facilitating the use and re-use of available data, strengthening AMR R&I capacity and promoting the uptake of research results by industry, society and policy makers. The partnership promotes increased interaction between regulators, scientists and end users.