Innovation in the Fight Against Infectious Diseases

Abstract

The discovery of antibiotics in 1928 led the world to believe that the fight against infectious diseases was one to be won within a few years. Nowadays, nearly 90 years following the discovery of penicillin, infectious diseases remain one of the main causes of mortality worldwide, with lower respiratory tract infections, diarrhoeal diseases, and tuberculosis ranking among the top 10 causes of death according to the World Health Organization (WHO). In recent years, the advent of antibiotic resistance, the anti-vaccination movement, and humanitarian crises have seen a rise in infectious diseases that were once thought to be nearly eradicated, such as polio, tuberculosis and measles.