The community of ESCMID Study Groups (SGs) is dedicated to facilitating activities that push the boundaries of innovation in their respective fields. SGs are dynamic hubs of collaboration and innovation. Here you can see the list of open research projects where SGs are looking for collaborators. Learn more about the projects and get in contact to participate.
A new fund, called FAILSAFE (Fungal AMR Innovations for Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Solutions and Access For Everyone), has being launched by the University of Exeter’s MRC Centre for Medical Mycology, in partnership with the UK Department of Health and Social Care’s Global AMR Innovation Fund (GAMRIF). The FAILSAFE aims to combat antifungal resistance and enhance health in LMICs and provides grant opportunities. To get in touch with the FAILSAFE team, visit www.cmm-failsafe.com/contact/.
Antimicrobial resistance surveillance of invasive Bacteroides fragilis in 2024 (ReSuBacfrag 2024)
Aim: To collect data of antimicrobial susceptibility for invasive B. fragilis from CM laboratories in 2024
Don't have the EUCAST disc diffusion AST method implemented in your laboratory? Participation is also possible by providing B. fragilis isolates (instead of providing AST data).
Even if B. fragilis is the most frequently isolated anaerobic bacterium from blood cultures, it is known to be rare compared to other BSI pathogens, so every little contribution counts! We are very much looking forward to send you the full study protocol (1 1/2 pages), hoping to welcome you soon as an additional study participant (with over 60 laboratories from over 25 countries as of May 2025, and still up and counting - the more participants, the more reliable the data basis of the surveillance to close the current gap of data availability in literature): Ulrik.Stenz.Justesen(at)rsyd.dk
ESGMAC initiated the first global prospective surveillance study of M. pneumoniae by our international collaborative network: The ESGMAC MAPS study. The study is aimed to collected detection data from across the globe and identify where and when M. pneumoniae infections make a re-emergence following its absence during the COVID-19 pandemic. You can find a detailed outline of the project in the pdf below. If you are interested in contributing to this ongoing surveillance project, or would like to find out more, please contact either Patrick Meyer Sauteur (Patrick.MeyerSauteur(at)kispi.uzh.ch ) or Mike Beeton (mbeeton(at)cardiffmet.ac.uk).
MigeS-BioPhage is a project supported by ESGB that aims at developing minimum information guidelines and standards for testing the susceptibility of biofilms to phages. This is aligned with the need for reliable and standardized methods to characterize the interaction of phages with bacterial biofilms. The work will progress in a chronological order by first defining the minimum information guidelines for assessing biofilm susceptibility using microtiter plates to different bacterial and bacteriophage species; then optimizing methodologies, followed by intra and inter-laboratory testing. The consortium involves CEB-UMinho, Hospital Universitario de A Coruña and LEPABE-UPorto. Interested persons can contact us at: jazeredo(at)deb.uminho.pt
Antimicrobial resistance surveillance of invasive Bacteroides fragilis in 2024 (ReSuBacfrag 2024)
Aim:
Even if B. fragilis is the most frequently isolated anaerobic bacterium from blood, it is known to be rare compared to other BSI pathogens, so every little contribution counts!
We are very much looking forward to send you the full study protocol (1 1/2 pages), hoping to welcome you soon as an additional study participant (with over 60 laboratories from over 25 countries as of May 2025, and still up and counting - the more participants, the more reliable the data basis of the surveillance to close the current gap of data availability in literature): Ulrik.Stenz.Justesen(at)rsyd.dk
ESGEM, in partnership with EUCAST, is launching a new working group on AMR (ESGEM-AMR), to develop standards for interpreting AMR genotypes. In line with EUCAST guidance for interpreting lab phenotypes into clinical categories of S/I/R, we want to define the "AMR rules" for interpreting genotypes as wildtype/nonwildtype and S/I/R.
If you know a lot about AMR mechanisms in a bacterial pathogen, consider joining us to share your expertise and develop AMR rules for interpreting resistance-related genotypes in your favourite bug/s. All are welcome, you do not need to be an ESGEM member.
An overview of the concept, with example data structures and code, is available at http://bit.ly/AMRrules and an introduction is given in these slides presented at the ESGEM general meeting at ESCMID Global 2024.
If you are interested in joining this global effort, please register for the working group here.
Impact of infective endocarditis on frailty and quality of life among the elderly population, PI Nuria Fernández-Hidalgo and Laura Escolà-Vergé.
This is a prospective observational study in which all patients with definite infective endocarditis aged ≥ 70 years diagnosed during a period of 1 year (May 2024 – May 2025) will be included.
The objectives of the study are:
A comprehensive geriatric evaluation and quality of life assessment will be performed at 4 points in time: retrospectively 1 month before the onset of symptoms (baseline status), at the time of hospital admission for infective endocarditis, at 3 months and at 1 year after diagnosis (this assessment can be performed by telephone).
If you would like to participate, please send an email to lescol(at)santpau.cat. Thank you!