The Problem Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is anticipated to become a leading cause of death worldwide within the next decade. Addressing AMR requires a multi-sectoral One-Health approach, which includes human, animal, and environmental reservoirs. The Approach Dr. Liguori and her undergraduate students are working on a study to: Collect water samples from environments local to the Lehigh Valley and abroad. Assess the use of lab technologies designed for low-resource field applications and compare their usability and result quality to best practice methods in the U.S. Conduct qualitative surveys with residents on knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and practices surrounding AMR and antibiotics. Short Term Impact Train 3-6 undergraduate students per year in sterile methods, bacterial culture, and antibiotic susceptibility testing. Conduct literature reviews and synthesize metadata. Quantify background levels of AMR organisms, such as E. coli, in surface waters. Community/Culture: Identify gaps in knowledge amongst students in the Lehigh Valley and design outreach interventions to address them. Policy: Advocate for regulations that limit the uses of antibiotics and reduce environmental discharge of effluents with the potential to exacerbate AMR. Education: Train undergraduate students at Lehigh in laboratory skills, research methods, literature review, and science communications. When Pollution Meets Pathogens: Environmental Drivers of Antimicrobial Resistance “Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) is a rapidly growing threat to human health and the environment—we must coordinate on multisectoral approaches to stop the spread now.” Krista Liguori , PhD Longer Term Impact Contribute to the knowledge base on the variability of background levels of AMR found circulating in surface waters in the U.S. Improve residents’ understandings of antibiotic use and AMR as a public health and environmental problem. Societal Impact Funding for this research will support efforts to train undergraduate students at Lehigh in laboratory skills, research methods, literature review, and more. Additionally, this study will help identify gaps in knowledge amongst the Lehigh Valley. This work has societal benefits in the following areas: For more information visit https://health.lehigh.edu/research-partners or email INRSRCH@lehigh.edu 21
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