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As part of the research alliance Leibniz INFECTIONS, Dr. Megarsa Jaleta conducted research on antibiotic resistance in piglets. In May 2026, he successfully defended his dissertation at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at Freie Universität Berlin. The thesis examined how hygiene measures influence the spread of antibiotic-resistant bacteria in pig farming and how the prevalence of resistance genes varies among piglets and chances as they age.
Members of the research alliance Leibniz INFECTIONS analyzed water and sediment samples from six water bodies in Berlin, Brandenburg, and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, as well as the inflow and outflow of a wastewater treatment plant in Berlin. In urban samples, they found a higher diversity and concentration of genes responsible for resistance to common antibiotics. The inflows and outflows of the wastewater treatment plant were the most heavily contaminated, but resistant bacteria were also found in rural lakes far from cities.
Rising temperatures, extreme weather events, and environmental changes could promote the spread of antimicrobial resistance. A new review article summarizes the current state of research. A causal link has not yet been sufficiently proven, but there is strong evidence to suggest one.
At the new “Leibniz Science Campus: Antimicrobial Resistance Plasticity”, the Research Center Borstel, Leibniz Lung Center is collaborating with Kiel University. The aim is a better understanding of how antibiotic resistance develops in bacteria on a molecular level. Prof. Stefan Niemann from the research alliance Leibniz INFECTIONS will be the future spokesperson for the Science Campus.
On today's World Tuberculosis Day, a new episode of the podcast ‘Mikroben im Visier’ is out. Tuberculosis expert Prof. Christoph Lange provides detailed insights into current research and the challenges of the global fight against TB, and explains why the world’s deadliest infectious disease persists despite modern medicine.