A common ingredient in toothpaste and hand wash could be contributing to antibiotic resistance, according to University of Queensland research.
A study led by Dr Jianhua Guo from UQ’s Advanced Water Management Centre focused on triclosan, a compound used in more than 2000 personal care products.
Dr Guo said while it was well-known the overuse and misuse of antibiotics could create ‘superbugs’, researchers were unaware that other chemicals could also induce antibiotic resistance until now.
“Wastewater from residential areas has similar or even higher levels of antibiotic resistant bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes compared to hospitals, where you would expect greater antibiotic concentrations,” he said.
“We then wondered whether non-antibiotic, antimicrobial (NAAM) chemicals such as triclosan can directly induce antibiotic resistance,” Dr Guo said.
Read more at University of Queensland
Image: This is Dr. Jianhua Guo (left) and Ph.D. student Ji Lu conducting experiments using triclosan. (Credit: The University of Queensland)