July 29, 2016
A weekly roundup of news on drug resistance and other topics in global health.
Wilton Park issues report on One Health approach to AMR and access to effective antibiotics, following a three-day discussion in June. Low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) were represented by leaders in the development and implementation of their national antimicrobial resistance (AMR) action plans, who talked about successes and challenges with leading international experts. CDDEP Director Ramanan Laxminarayan, Associate Director for Policy Hellen Gelband and several Global Antibiotic Resistance Partnership (GARP) partners attended the three-day discussion. The Wilton Park report centers on a One Health approach, which involves the health of humans, animals and the environment, requiring multisectoral action to ensure access to effective drugs and keep antimicrobial resistance in check. [Wilton Park]
CIDRAP launches Antimicrobial Stewardship Project (ASP), providing information on antimicrobial stewardship practice, research, and policy. The new ASP site features the latest stewardship-related news, expert webinars and podcasts, policy updates, and other information related to antimicrobial stewardship. CIDRAP Director, Professor Michael Osterholm, said, “We’ve assembled a panel of 13 internationally renowned advisory experts to work with us. These people have expertise in … antimicrobial stewardship, antimicrobial resistance, clinical and veterinary medicine, clinical pharmacology, and public health.” [CIDRAP ASP]
The human microbiome is a promising source for future antibiotics. Researchers at the University of Tübingen in Germany have discovered an antibiotic commonly found in the human nose capable of inhibiting MRSA, a drug-resistant strain of Staphylococcus aureus. By growing S. aureus alongside other species cultured from human noses, researchers identified S. lugdunensis and the compound it produces—lugdunin—as the main agent acting against S. aureus. All but one of the 187 samples collected in the study contained either S. aureus or S. lugdunensis, indicating that the two species compete with each other. Researchers see the potential for lugdunin to be developed into an antibiotic or probiotic for immunocompromised patients. [STAT, Nature]
State, local health departments granted $67 million to combat antibiotic resistance and other threats to patient safety, from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The funds provided by the CDC will be distributed to all state health departments, six local health departments in major cities, and Puerto Rico. The funds are earmarked for activities related to the CDC’s Antibiotic Resistance Solutions Initiative and the implementation of the National Action Plan for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria, which includes surveillance, prevention, and stewardship. [CDC, Washington Post]
Nearly 60 percent of patients hospitalized for asthma are prescribed antibiotics, according to findings from a large U.S. study, published in a research letter in JAMA Pediatrics. In this study, researchers used medical record data from 577 Premier Alliance hospitals to examine the receipt, type, and timing of antibiotic therapy in patients with asthma in 2013 and 2014. According to these findings, 58 percent of the 51,951 inpatients at the Premier Alliance hospitals with asthma were treated with antibiotics and roughly 40 percent of these patients were prescribed antibiotics on their first day. Current guidelines advise against prescribing antibiotics during exacerbations of asthma in the absence of a concurrent infection, though more research is needed on the use of antibiotics in routine clinical practice. [JAMA Internal Medicine]
CARB-X, a new public-private partnership will stimulate the development of new antibiotics, antimicrobial rapid diagnostics and vaccines. The partnership, whose full title is Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria Biopharmaceutical Accelerator, is a $350 million international collaboration between research and development organizations including the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, AMR Centre, and the Wellcome Trust. CARB-X Executive Director and Boston University professor Kevin Outterson said, “We’re looking for game-changing products that will make dramatic improvements in human health—not incremental change. We’re going to spend this money on the areas of greatest health need, focusing on things that major pharmaceutical companies have abandoned.” [Boston University, CARB-X]
Photo by Janice Haney Carr via the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Public Health Image Library (PHIL)
