British scientists have found a new gene that allows any bacteria to become a superbug, and are warning that it is widespread in India and could soon appear world-wide. The gene, which can be swapped between different bacteria to make them resistant to most drugs, has so far been identified in 37 people who returned to the UK after undergoing surgery in India or Pakistan.
The resistant gene has also been detected in Australia, Canada, the US, the Netherlands and Sweden. The researchers say since many Americans and Europeans travel to India and Pakistan for elective procedures like cosmetic surgery, it was likely the superbug gene would spread world-wide.
In an article published online Wednesday in the journal Lancet Infectious Diseases, doctors reported finding a new gene, called NDM-1. The gene alters bacteria, making them resistant to nearly all known antibiotics. It has been seen largely in E. coli bacteria, the most common cause of urinary tract infections, and on DNA structures that can be easily copied and passed onto other types of bacteria.
The researchers said the superbug gene appeared to be already circulating widely in India, where the health system is much less likely to identify its presence or have adequate antibiotics to treat patients. "The potential of NDM-1 to be a world-wide public health problem is great, and co-ordinated international surveillance is needed," the authors wrote. Still, the numbers of people who have been identified with the superbug gene remains very small.
"We are potentially at the beginning of another wave of antibiotic resistance, though we still have the power to stop it," said Christopher Thomas, a professor of molecular genetics at the University of Birmingham who was not linked to the study. Thomas said better surveillance and infection control procedures might halt the gene's spread. Thomas said while people checking into British hospitals were unlikely to encounter the superbug gene, they should remain vigilant about standard hygiene measures like properly washing their hands.
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