LONDON, June 13, 2013- The G8 Science Ministers met in London on Wednesday as part of the UK’s G8 Presidency, where they focused on antibiotic resistance as a global danger.
“There is a growing realisation that the overuse of antibiotics and a failure to invest in new treatments could leave us without many of the tools that doctors take for granted today,” said Paul Nurse, President of the Royal Society, ahead of the meeting.
In a statement published on Thursday, the science ministers said they decided to act on developing the scientific input necessary to reduce antimicrobial resistance.
“At the meeting we focused on antimicrobial drug resistance as a major health security challenge of the 21st century,” they stated.
Additional activities will include curbing the misuse of antibiotics for “human, veterinary and aquaculture use,” supporting targeted research to understand the development of resistance, and developing diagnostics to better inform antimicrobial drug usage.
The ministers also stated support for international cooperation and sharing of surveillance data to improve global understanding of the spread of antimicrobial drugs resistance.
The G8 Science Ministers include: David Willetts, Minister for Universities and Science UK; Dmitry Livanov, Minister of Education and Science of the Russian Federation; Georg Schütte, State Secretary for Education and Research, Germany; Yuko Harayama, Executive member, Council for Science and Technology Policy, Japan; Maria Chiara Carrozza, Minister of Education, University and Research, Italy; Gary Goodyear, Minister of State for Science & Technology, Canada: Geneviève Fioraso, Minister for Higher Education and Research, France; Patricia Falcone, Associate Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, USA; Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, European Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science.
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