Antibiotic research on bacteria. Pharmacologist inspects a culture of pathogenic bacteria, during the development of new antibiotic drugs. The petri dish being held is dotted with bacterial colonies. The search for new antibiotic drugs is urgent because bacteria causing traditional human diseases are becoming resistant to all known anti- biotics. This drug study conducted at Microcide Pharmaceuticals, USA, aims to understand the genetic regulation of bacterial infections. By studying how bacteria infect and spread through the body, new drugs can be developed. It is hoped that these new drugs will be effective against antibiotic-resistant strains of bacteria.