Apr 15, 2013
Reports highlight novel NDM-7 enzyme in Germany, France
Two recent studies reported identification of a novel drug-resistant New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase (NDM) enzyme—named NDM-7—in Germany and France. In the first report, in the Journal of Antimicrobial Chemotherapy, scientists describe a multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli strain isolated from the wounds, throat, and rectum of a Yemeni patient at the Frankfurt University Hospital. Sequencing revealed an NDM enzyme that differed from NDM-1 (first identified in 2008 in a patient from New Delhi) by point mutations at positions 388 and 460 corresponding to amino acid substitutions Asp130Asn and Met154Leu, respectively. The authors termed the new variant NDM-7 and said that, given the history of other NDM strains, the variant will likely spread efficiently worldwide.
Apr 5 J Antimicrob Chemother abstract
In the second study, which appeared in PLoS One last week, French researchers reported a similarly multidrug-resistant E coli strain in the urine sample of a patient who had traveled to Mumbai. Analysis revealed the NDM-7 enzyme, which they said differs from NDM-4 by a single amino acid substitution. They said the isolate was resistant to all antibiotics except amikacin, tigecycline, fosfomycin, and chloramphenicol. They also said that controlling the spread of NDM-7 will be difficult.
Apr 12 PLoS One report
WHO reports mostly declining global flu levels
Global seasonal influenza activity appears to have declined in all regions except Eastern Europe, China, and South Korea, where it has stayed level, the World Health Organization (WHO) reported late on Apr 12. The WHO said flu activity has declined in North America and Europe except for Eastern Europe, where elevated levels remain. Likewise, influenza activity has declined throughout temperate Asia except for China and South Korea, which reported recent sustained flu activity. The WHO said few isolates worldwide have exhibited resistance to antiviral drugs, and circulating strains match those in the vaccine.
Apr 12 WHO update
