UTSA students tackle antibiotic resistance through soil research

MAY 9, 2025 -As part of a UTSA microbiology course, students like Nishat Shama, a molecular microbiology and immunology major, have collected local soil samples to search for microorganisms that could lead to the discovery of new antibiotics.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes antimicrobial resistance as "one of the world's most urgent public health problems." It occurs as pathogens develop defense mechanisms against common antibiotic medications.

According to the World Health Organization, the process is driven by misuse and overuse of antibiotic drugs. Meanwhile, the development of new, more effective antibiotics has not kept pace with rising resistance levels, leaving a growing number of bacterial infections untreatable.

The UTSA undergraduate course, part of the Place-Based Soil Data Interpretation and Research in Texas (PBS-DIRT) project and supported by a $395,000 USDA grant, gives students a hands-on approach to fighting the global antibiotic resistance crisis.