Kadiogo: Paul Soder© successfully defended his doctoral thesis at Joseph Ki-Zerbo University in Ouagadougou on Tuesday before an international jury. Following his presentation, he was awarded a doctorate in microbiology and food safety with highest honors. Titled “Antibacterial Potential of Combining Essential Oils and Antibiotics on Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Involved in Foodborne Illnesses,” Dr. Paul Soder©’s research addresses one of the major global public health concerns: bacterial resistance to antibiotics.
According to Burkina Information Agency, the main objective of this study was to evaluate the ability of essential oils from medicinal plants to enhance the action of antibiotics against pathogenic bacteria that have become resistant to conventional treatments. For the newly minted doctor, the results obtained offer hope in the fight against antibiotic resistance. “Bacterial resistance to antibiotics is now a real threat to public health. Through this study, we have shown that it is possible to use certain local medicinal plants in combination with antibiotics to restore the sensitivity of certain bacteria to these antibiotics,” he explained.
Dr. Paul Soder© expressed his delight at the culmination of several years of research and the favorable assessment of his work by the jury. The thesis supervisor, Professor Marius Somda, praised the scientific quality of the work presented and the relevance of the topic. “This theme is highly topical because it focuses on finding solutions to antibiotic resistance, which constitutes a major public health problem,” he stated.
According to Professor Somda, the research focused primarily on two well-known medicinal plants widely used in traditional Burkinabe medicine: Laggera aurita and Hyptis suaveolens. He emphasized that the results obtained could contribute to the development of new therapeutic strategies based on the utilization of local natural resources. He also advocated for the document to be widely disseminated to decision-makers and stakeholders in the health sector, particularly the Ministry of Health, to allow for better use of the study’s findings.
This defense demonstrates the contribution of Burkinabe scientific research to the search for innovative solutions to improve the health of populations and strengthen food safety.