Alternatives for the treatment of infections caused by ESKAPE pathogens

What is known and Objective The widespread use of antibiotics as therapeutic agents caused an increase of multidrug resistant bacteria (MDR) appearance. Regarding MDRs, we highlight the Enterococcus faecium, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Acinetobacter baumannii, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Enterobacter spp.., which are the ESKAPE group. Comment New treatment alternatives for infections caused by ESKAPE are under current scientific research. The main suggestions are the use of actinomycetes that produce promising substances with antibiotic activity, the synergistic effect between antimicrobials and peptides, photoinactivation, peptide rich in cationic histidine, association of new antimicrobials; besides the repositioning of drugs already approved for the treatment of other diseases. What is New and Conclusion These selected studies showed that researchers from many countries are focused on the development of effective alternative strategies for the treatment of infections caused by these microorganisms. We present a selection of scientific research demonstrating some of these alternatives for treating ESKAPE pathogens.