June 21, 2012
A roundup of news on drug resistance and other topics in global health.
The National Institutes of Health s Human Microbiome project has released a new survey of the large and diverse array of bacteria found in a group of nearly 250 healthy adults. [Scientific American]
A new study by the Food and Drug Administration published in Pediatrics shows that the number of antibiotic prescriptions written for minors in the US declined 7% between 2002-2010. [USA Today]
Researchers from three universities surveyed 19 different surfaces in hotels rooms to find which contained the most bacteria. [The Atlantic]
The magazine Consumer Reports has published a new report entitled Meat on Drugs: The Overuse of Antibiotics in Food Animals and What Supermarkets and Consumers Can Do to Stop It. The report is part of a larger campaign by the Consumers Union called Meat Without Drugs: Stop the Superbugs. [Wired]
A new study in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy reports that repeated exposure to triclosan can inhibit virulence in Staphylococcus aureus. [Infection Control Today]
Amidst reports of the spread of a new strain of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteria in Gaza City, the region s Health Ministry denied the spread. [The Times of Israel]
A review published in PLoS Medicine found that private sector healthcare in low- and middle-income countries is no more efficient or effective than public services. [Medical Xpress]
In an article for Forbes, Dave Chase asserts that healthcare providers that demonstrate the behavior of small town businesses will thrive. [Forbes]
New research in The Journal of Biological Chemistry sheds new light on potential uses of bacteriocins (substances bacteria create to kill other forms of bacteria) as antimicrobial agents. [Futurity]
By applying the private sector practice of buying insurance, which guarantees payment so production can start earlier, to the distribution of large quantities of mosquito nets, thousands of malaria cases and deaths have been averted. [HuffPo]
According to a new study published in Nature, scientists have discovered a method to sequence genomes of Plasmodium falciparum – the most common and deadliest form of malaria. [NPR]
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