Naomi Datta

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Naomi Datta
FRS
EWS06.04 (cropped) Naomi Datta.jpg
Datta in May 1998
Born17 September 1922
Died30 November 2008
Medical career
Research Bacteriology

Naomi Datta, FRS [1] (néeGoddard; 17 September 1922 – 30 November 2008) [2] was a distinguished British geneticist. Working at Hammersmith Hospital in the 1950s and early 1960s, she identified horizontal gene transfer as a source of multi-antibiotic resistance in bacteria. [3]

Contents

Research history

After qualifying in medicine in 1946, Datta joined the Public Health Laboratory Service as a bacteriologist and worked here for ten years. She then worked at the Royal Postgraduate Medical School at Hammersmith Hospital for almost three decades, joining as a lecturer in 1957 and later becoming professor of microbial genetics. It was here that she made a significant breakthrough by demonstrating that antibiotic resistance could be transmitted between bacteria, the first time this had been shown outside Japan. [4]

In 1959 there was a severe outbreak of Salmonella typhimurium phage-type 27 and, as part of her research at Hammersmith Hospital, Datta examined 309 cultures to see if the strain was unaltered after moving through hosts. 25 of the 309 were found to be drug-resistant, eight of which were resistant to Streptomycin which had been used to treat the patients. Notably, Datta observed that earlier cultures of the salmonella typhimurium infection (from the start of the outbreak) were not drug-resistant, so it seemed that the antibiotic resistance had developed over time. [2]

Datta published these findings in 1960, in the paper An outbreak of infection with Salmonella typhimurium in a general hospital, [5] and later in 1962 in the paper Transmissible drug resistance in an epidemic strain of Salmonella typhimurium [6] in the Journal of Hygiene.

In later years she published many important studies on the occurrence and significance of drug resistance plasmids in enterobacterial infections. For example, Dr. Datta co-authored (with Royston C. Clowes, Stanley Cohen, Roy Curtiss III, Stanley Falkow and Richard Novick) a proposal for uniform nomenclature for bacterial plasmids. [7]

She also made distinguished contributions to research on the molecular biology of R factors, and she pioneered the classification of R factors and other plasmids by their incompatibilities. She found that some resistance genes, including those for gentamicin resistance, are located on transposons and are readily transferred between replicons.

Earlier background

Born Naomi Goddard in London, she was educated at St Mary's School, Wantage in Oxfordshire and later at the University of Paris. At the outbreak of World War II, she returned to England to study medicine at University College London (UCL).

She married her husband, Prakash Datta, in 1943, having met him in Leatherhead, Surrey, where she was studying having been evacuated from the capital two years earlier. She qualified as a doctor in 1946 and the following year worked as a junior doctor in various hospitals.

Her first cousin was the distinguished soldier and Acting President of Rhodesia Henry Everard; their grandfather's first cousins were architect Henry Goddard and Mormon pioneer George Goddard.

Later years

Datta retired in 1984 and became emeritus professor of microbial genetics at the University of London. The year after her retirement, in 1985, she was elected to fellowship of the Royal Society. [4]

During her retirement, she continued to pursue academia by first studying a postgraduate course in linguistics (although she was not able to obtain a qualification as she did not possess an undergraduate qualification in an arts subject), and then achieving a master's degree in human evolution in the department of anthropology. At 75, she was the oldest in the group. [2]

Known for her cooking and hospitality, [2] Datta contributed to the Royal Society's anthology on food But the crackling is superb. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Antimicrobial resistance</span> Resistance of microbes to drugs directed against them

Antimicrobial resistance occurs when microbes evolve mechanisms that protect them from antimicrobials, which are drugs used to treat infections. This resistance affects all classes of microbes, including bacteria, viruses, protozoa, and fungi. Together, these adaptations fall under the AMR umbrella, posing significant challenges to healthcare worldwide. Misuse and improper management of antimicrobials are primary drivers of this resistance, though it can also occur naturally through genetic mutations and the spread of resistant genes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beta-lactamase</span> Class of enzymes

Beta-lactamases (β-lactamases) are enzymes produced by bacteria that provide multi-resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics such as penicillins, cephalosporins, cephamycins, monobactams and carbapenems (ertapenem), although carbapenems are relatively resistant to beta-lactamase. Beta-lactamase provides antibiotic resistance by breaking the antibiotics' structure. These antibiotics all have a common element in their molecular structure: a four-atom ring known as a beta-lactam (β-lactam) ring. Through hydrolysis, the enzyme lactamase breaks the β-lactam ring open, deactivating the molecule's antibacterial properties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plasmid</span> Small DNA molecule within a cell

A plasmid is a small, extrachromosomal DNA molecule within a cell that is physically separated from chromosomal DNA and can replicate independently. They are most commonly found as small circular, double-stranded DNA molecules in bacteria; however, plasmids are sometimes present in archaea and eukaryotic organisms. Plasmids often carry useful genes, such as antibiotic resistance and virulence. While chromosomes are large and contain all the essential genetic information for living under normal conditions, plasmids are usually very small and contain additional genes for special circumstances.

<i>Salmonella</i> Genus of bacteria

Salmonella is a genus of rod-shaped, (bacillus) gram-negative bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae. The two known species of Salmonella are Salmonella enterica and Salmonella bongori. S. enterica is the type species and is further divided into six subspecies that include over 2,650 serotypes. Salmonella was named after Daniel Elmer Salmon (1850–1914), an American veterinary surgeon.

Methicillin-resistant <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> Bacterium responsible for difficult-to-treat infections in humans

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a group of gram-positive bacteria that are genetically distinct from other strains of Staphylococcus aureus. MRSA is responsible for several difficult-to-treat infections in humans. It caused more than 100,000 deaths worldwide attributable to antimicrobial resistance in 2019.

<i>Klebsiella pneumoniae</i> Species of bacterium

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a Gram-negative, non-motile, encapsulated, lactose-fermenting, facultative anaerobic, rod-shaped bacterium. It appears as a mucoid lactose fermenter on MacConkey agar.

Vancomycin-resistant <i>Staphylococcus aureus</i> Antibiotica resistant bacteria

Vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA) are strains of Staphylococcus aureus that have acquired resistance to the glycopeptide antibiotic vancomycin. Bacteria can acquire resistance genes either by random mutation or through the transfer of DNA from one bacterium to another. Resistance genes interfere with the normal antibiotic function and allow bacteria to grow in the presence of the antibiotic. Resistance in VRSA is conferred by the plasmid-mediated vanA gene and operon. Although VRSA infections are uncommon, VRSA is often resistant to other types of antibiotics and a potential threat to public health because treatment options are limited. VRSA is resistant to many of the standard drugs used to treat S. aureus infections. Furthermore, resistance can be transferred from one bacterium to another.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stanley Norman Cohen</span> American geneticist (born 1935)

Stanley Norman Cohen is an American geneticist and the Kwoh-Ting Li Professor in the Stanford University School of Medicine. Stanley Cohen and Herbert Boyer were the first scientists to transplant genes from one living organism to another, a fundamental discovery for genetical engineering. Thousands of products have been developed on the basis of their work, including human growth hormone and hepatitis B vaccine. According to immunologist Hugh McDevitt, "Cohen's DNA cloning technology has helped biologists in virtually every field". Without it, "the face of biomedicine and biotechnology would look totally different." Boyer cofounded Genentech in 1976 based on their work together, but Cohen was a consultant for Cetus Corporation and declined to join. In 2022, Cohen was found guilty of having committed fraud in misleading investors into a biotechnology company he founded in 2016, and paid $29 million in damages.

Multiple drug resistance (MDR), multidrug resistance or multiresistance is antimicrobial resistance shown by a species of microorganism to at least one antimicrobial drug in three or more antimicrobial categories. Antimicrobial categories are classifications of antimicrobial agents based on their mode of action and specific to target organisms. The MDR types most threatening to public health are MDR bacteria that resist multiple antibiotics; other types include MDR viruses, parasites.

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Vancomycin-resistant <i>Enterococcus</i> Bacterial strains of Enterococcus that are resistant to the antibiotic vancomycin

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Mary Barber was a British pathologist and bacteriologist who studied antibiotic resistance in bacteria. She was one of the pioneers in this field, documenting the phenomenon of penicillin resistance early on.

Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) or carbapenemase-producing Enterobacteriaceae (CPE) are gram-negative bacteria that are resistant to the carbapenem class of antibiotics, considered the drugs of last resort for such infections. They are resistant because they produce an enzyme called a carbapenemase that disables the drug molecule. The resistance can vary from moderate to severe. Enterobacteriaceae are common commensals and infectious agents. Experts fear CRE as the new "superbug". The bacteria can kill up to half of patients who get bloodstream infections. Tom Frieden, former head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has referred to CRE as "nightmare bacteria". Examples of enzymes found in certain types of CRE are KPC and NDM. KPC and NDM are enzymes that break down carbapenems and make them ineffective. Both of these enzymes, as well as the enzyme VIM have also been reported in Pseudomonas.

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References

  1. Barth, Peter Thomas (2023). "Naomi Datta. 17 September 1922 – 30 November 2008". Biographical Memoirs of Fellows of the Royal Society. 74: 123–141. doi: 10.1098/rsbm.2022.0032 . S2CID   254878259.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Haines, Catharine (19 December 2008). "Obituary: Naomi Datta". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 19 October 2012.
  3. Crow, James F.; Dove, William F. (eds) (1995). "Perspectives: Anecdotal, Historical and Critical Commentaries on Genetics" (PDF). Genetics Society of America . Retrieved 19 October 2012.{{cite web}}: |first2= has generic name (help)
  4. 1 2 Haines, Catherine M.C. (2001). International Women in Science . pp.  82–83. ISBN   9781576070901.
  5. Datta, Naomi; Pridie, R. B.; Anderson, E. S. (14 May 2009). "An outbreak of infection with Salmonella typhimurium in a general hospital". Journal of Hygiene. 58 (2): 229–40. doi:10.1017/S0022172400038316. PMC   2134347 . PMID   13814197.
  6. Datta, Naomi (September 1962). "Transmissible drug resistance in an epidemic strain of Salmonella typhimurium". Journal of Hygiene. 60 (3): 301–310. doi:10.1017/s0022172400020416. PMC   2134509 . PMID   14025218.
  7. Richard P. Novick et al., "Uniform Nomenclature for Bacterial Plasmids: A Proposal", Bacteriol. Rev., March 1976, pp. 168–189
  8. Royal Society, ed. (1988). But the crackling is superb. Bristol, England: Hilger. ISBN   0852743017.