With the presence of superbugs that have become resistant to antibiotics, there is a threat that some diseases might no longer be curable. However, a recent discovery has brought some hope to scientists.

A new study revealed that the multidrug-resistant (MDR) Klebsiella pneumoniae and Escherichia coli strains' susceptibility to antibiotics could finally be restored. The study was conducted by researchers at the University of Copenhagen and Ross University School have already found an answer to this.

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Klebsiella pneumonia causes severe lung and bloodstream infections recorded all over the world. When it is not treated, the effect on the patient could be fatal.

"Our discovery shows that resistant superbugs are not invincible. They have an 'Achilles heel' and now we know how to defeat them," Prof. Luca Guardabassi, DVM, Ph.D., from The Department of Veterinary Clinical and Animal Sciences at Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at Copenhagen University and director of One Health Center for Zoonoses and Tropical Veterinary Medicine at Ross, said.

The study was published in "Scientific Reports" by Nature Publishing Group and "Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy" by the American Society for Microbiology. It was explained that the inactivation of one of the antibiotic resistance genes, dedA, "made colistin-resistant MDR K. pneumoniae completely sensitive to this antibiotic."

The study further noted that by "combining antibiotics with 'helper' drugs that reverse antibiotic resistance," antibiotic-resistant superbugs could be defeated.

In the meantime, the World Health Organization (WHO) has called on scientists, drug manufacturers, and governments to help them with their objective of fighting the 12 bacteria, or the so-called superbug.

Based on the records of the United Nations (UN), there are 12 superbugs at present that pose harm to human health. These include those that cause blood, lung and brain infections, food poisoning, and the sexually-transmitted disease gonorrhea.