Switching strategy for mitigation against bacterial resistance

The control of drug resistant infections has become difficult as there are little to no new drugs being discovered. Using control engineering approaches, we develop strategies aimed at minimizing the appearance of drug-resistant pathogens within the host. With a mathematical model based on a two-strain bacterial population, a switching strategy can be found to ensure the stability of the eradication equilibrium based on the use of a Lyapunov function. Our numerical simulations support the use of this switching strategy for mitigation against bacterial resistance.