World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week, celebrated from 18 to 24 November, highlights the urgent need to understand and address one of the most critical public health challenges of our time. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites no longer respond to antimicrobial agents. As a result, antibiotics and other treatments become ineffective, making infections increasingly difficult or even impossible to treat, and increasing the risk of disease spread, severe illness and death.
The World AMR Awareness Week (WAAW), one of WHO’s official global health campaigns mandated by the World Health Assembly, aims to raise awareness, strengthen understanding of AMR, and promote coordinated action to curb the emergence and spread of drug-resistant pathogens. The theme for WAAW 2025, “Act Now: Protect Our Present, Secure Our Future,” underscores the urgent need for bold, united efforts to address AMR—an issue already impacting human health, food systems, the environment and economies worldwide.
At GHTM | Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade NOVA de Lisboa (IHMT NOVA), several teams have been working in close collaboration—both across research groups and with international partners — to advance impactful research in this field. This year, GHTM highlights three particularly relevant areas of investigation: bacterial efflux mechanisms, the development of efflux inhibitors, and antimicrobial resistance in bacteria isolated from companion animals.
Members of the THOP-GHTM Research Group, including Isabel Couto, Sofia Santos Costa and Liliana Rodrigues, together with PhD students Carolina Ferreira, Marta Leal, Mariana Andrade, Inês Pereira and Catarina Morais, have been investigating the bacterial effluxome and its role in antimicrobial resistance. Their work contributes to identifying molecular targets and deepening our understanding of the mechanisms that render many antibiotics ineffective. In parallel, the team has been exploring the potential of efflux inhibitors as complementary therapeutic strategies, assessing their effectiveness and the challenges associated with their development.
Another noteworthy component of their research focuses on AMR in bacteria affecting companion animals — a field of growing importance given the close daily contact between humans and animals. This line of work recently earned international recognition: Catarina Morais received the award for the second-best oral presentation at the 10th International Symposium on Antimicrobial Resistance in Animals and the Environment (ARAE2025).
To mark WAAW 2025, GHTM | IHMT NOVA reaffirms its commitment to research excellence, training the next generation of specialists, and promoting scientific literacy in health. The collaborative efforts of its research teams strengthen the global response to one of today’s most pressing public health challenges.