Bibliometric trends of scientific publications on antimicrobial resistance in Escherichia coli in Peru from 2009-2019

Abstract

Antibiotics and microorganisms have coexisted for millions of years. Aseries of microorganisms produce antimicrobials whichcontributetotheirbiologicalsuccess.These microorganisms developed a series of pathways to avoid self-killing, which may be considered as proto-mechanisms of antibioticresistance.Similarly,othermicroorganisms developed specific adaptations to minimize the effect of these substances, allowing their survival while in the vicinity ofantibiotic-producers.Nevertheless,priortothe introduction of antibacterial agents in therapeutic in the 20th century, the presence of antibacterial agents in the different environments was extremely low, with these low levels of antibiotic production having an insignificant impact, limited to the surroundings of producers, and only relevant in very specific circumstances. The introduction of either naturalornature-derivedantibacterialsubstancesor molecules of full-synthetic origin (hereafter collectively named “antimicrobial agents”) into clinical practice in the first half of the 20th century and the subsequent exponential uncontrolleduseinhumans,animalsandagriculture unbalanced the situation, leading to the selection of antimicrobial-resistantmicroorganismsandfavoringthe spread of mobile structures carrying antimicrobial-resistant determinants; with these microorganisms and structures expanding to different environments, including those with a high and clear anthropic pressure, as well as previously unspoilt areas