Can CRISPR/CAS Help Fight Multidrug Resistance (MDR) Bacterial Infections?

Antimicrobial resistance has spread rapidly over the world as a result of the overuse and abuse of antibiotics in both humans and animals. The global health and safety of humans is threatened by a serious crisis of antibiotic resistance. To control infections caused by multidrug-resistant (MDR) bacteria, new strategies are urgently needed. One promising approach is to use CRISPR-Cas, a gene-editing tool that can target and disrupt the genes that confer drug resistance to microbes or directly kill the pathogens. However, the low delivery efficiency of CRISPR-Cas reagents in vivo limits its further application. Nanotechnology can help overcome this limitation by providing customized nanoparticle delivery systems for CRISPR-Cas components. By combining CRISPR-Cas and nanotechnology, new possibilities for treating MDR bacterial infections can be explored.