Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
To learn more, check out scienceawarenessproject.org
Most medical science moves at super-speed; researchers are constantly developing new medications, techniques, surgeries, you name it. Except for antibiotics: we haven’t gotten a single new type of antibiotic ready to give to patients in over 40 years.
LEARN MORE
**************
To learn more about this topic, start your googling with these keywords:
- Antibiotics: a medicine (such as penicillin or its derivatives) that inhibits the growth of or destroys microorganisms.
- Petri dish: a shallow, circular, transparent dish with a flat lid, used for the culture of microorganisms.
If you liked this week’s video, you might also like:
- The Antibiotic Apocalypse Explained - Kurzgesagt: youtube.com/watch?v=xZbcwi7SfZE
- Antibiotic Resistance is SO COMPLICATED - SciShow : youtube.com/watch?v=pkTalaQsRlw
- Lizah’s favourite blog: https://smallthingsconsidered.blog/
SUPPORT MINUTEEARTH
**************************
If you like what we do, you can help us!:
- Become our patron: patreon.com/MinuteEarth
- Our merch: dftba.com/minuteearth
- Our book: minuteearth.com/books
- Sign up to our newsletter: news.minuteearth.com
- Share this video with your friends and family
- Leave us a comment (we read them!)
CREDITS
*********
Cameron Duke | Script Writer, Narrator and Director
Lizah van der Aart | Storyboard Artist
Sarah Berman | Illustration, Video Editing and Animation
Nathaniel Schroeder | Music
MinuteEarth is produced by Neptune Studios LLC
neptunestudios.info
OUR STAFF
************
Lizah van der Aart • Sarah Berman • Cameron Duke
Arcadi Garcia i Rius • David Goldenberg • Melissa Hayes
Henry Reich • Ever Salazar • Leonardo Souza • Kate Yoshida
OTHER CREDITS
*****************
We are grateful for the support of:
Dr Bernhard Kepplinger, Zakład Mikrobiologii Molekularnej, Wydział Biotechnologii
Dr Katherine Duncan, Biosciences Institute, University of Newcastle
OUR LINKS
************
Youtube | youtube.com/MinuteEarth
TikTok | tiktok.com/@minuteearth
Twitter | twitter.com/MinuteEarth
Instagram | instagram.com/minute_earth
Facebook | facebook.com/Minuteearth
Website | minuteearth.com
Apple Podcasts| podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/minuteearth/id649211176
REFERENCES
**************
Lewis, K. (2020). The Science of Antibiotic Discovery. Cell, 181(1), 29–45. doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.02.056
Jangra, M., Travin, D. Y., Aleksandrova, E. V, Kaur, M., Darwish, L., Koteva, K., … Wright, G. D. (2025). A broad-spectrum lasso peptide antibiotic targeting the bacterial ribosome. Nature, 640(8060), 1022–1030. doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-08723-7
Blin, K., Shaw, S., Kloosterman, A. M., Charlop-Powers, Z., van Wezel, G. P., Medema, M. H., & Weber, T. (2021). antiSMASH 6.0: improving cluster detection and comparison capabilities. Nucleic Acids Research, 49(W1), W29–W35. doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkab335
To learn more, check out scienceawarenessproject.org
Most medical science moves at super-speed; researchers are constantly developing new medications, techniques, surgeries, you name it. Except for antibiotics: we haven’t gotten a single new type of antibiotic ready to give to patients in over 40 years.
LEARN MORE
**************
To learn more about this topic, start your googling with these keywords:
- Antibiotics: a medicine (such as penicillin or its derivatives) that inhibits the growth of or destroys microorganisms.
- Petri dish: a shallow, circular, transparent dish with a flat lid, used for the culture of microorganisms.
If you liked this week’s video, you might also like:
- The Antibiotic Apocalypse Explained - Kurzgesagt: youtube.com/watch?v=xZbcwi7SfZE
- Antibiotic Resistance is SO COMPLICATED - SciShow : youtube.com/watch?v=pkTalaQsRlw
- Lizah’s favourite blog: https://smallthingsconsidered.blog/
SUPPORT MINUTEEARTH
**************************
If you like what we do, you can help us!:
- Become our patron: patreon.com/MinuteEarth
- Our merch: dftba.com/minuteearth
- Our book: minuteearth.com/books
- Sign up to our newsletter: news.minuteearth.com
- Share this video with your friends and family
- Leave us a comment (we read them!)
CREDITS
*********
Cameron Duke | Script Writer, Narrator and Director
Lizah van der Aart | Storyboard Artist
Sarah Berman | Illustration, Video Editing and Animation
Nathaniel Schroeder | Music
MinuteEarth is produced by Neptune Studios LLC
neptunestudios.info
OUR STAFF
************
Lizah van der Aart • Sarah Berman • Cameron Duke
Arcadi Garcia i Rius • David Goldenberg • Melissa Hayes
Henry Reich • Ever Salazar • Leonardo Souza • Kate Yoshida
OTHER CREDITS
*****************
We are grateful for the support of:
Dr Bernhard Kepplinger, Zakład Mikrobiologii Molekularnej, Wydział Biotechnologii
Dr Katherine Duncan, Biosciences Institute, University of Newcastle
OUR LINKS
************
Youtube | youtube.com/MinuteEarth
TikTok | tiktok.com/@minuteearth
Twitter | twitter.com/MinuteEarth
Instagram | instagram.com/minute_earth
Facebook | facebook.com/Minuteearth
Website | minuteearth.com
Apple Podcasts| podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/minuteearth/id649211176
REFERENCES
**************
Lewis, K. (2020). The Science of Antibiotic Discovery. Cell, 181(1), 29–45. doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.02.056
Jangra, M., Travin, D. Y., Aleksandrova, E. V, Kaur, M., Darwish, L., Koteva, K., … Wright, G. D. (2025). A broad-spectrum lasso peptide antibiotic targeting the bacterial ribosome. Nature, 640(8060), 1022–1030. doi.org/10.1038/s41586-025-08723-7
Blin, K., Shaw, S., Kloosterman, A. M., Charlop-Powers, Z., van Wezel, G. P., Medema, M. H., & Weber, T. (2021). antiSMASH 6.0: improving cluster detection and comparison capabilities. Nucleic Acids Research, 49(W1), W29–W35. doi.org/10.1093/nar/gkab335
