At least 10 people have been sickened by E coli in an outbreak tied to raw milk cheese, and a Salmonella outbreak linked to charcuterie meats has grown to 70 cases.
With the pipeline for new antibiotics weak and underfunded, vaccines are seen as a potential tool for preventing the infections that drive antibiotic use and resistance.
The experimental vaccine is currently being evaluated in a phase 3 clinical trial in patients aged 60 years and older.
The study found that E coli from people and meat products sold at markets in Cambodia contained resistance genes and mobile resistance elements that were strikingly similar.
The vast majority of patients had community-onset invasive E coli (94%) and required hospitalization (97%), with 32% of patients needing ICU treatment.
Using long-read sequencing, the group found that 15% of E coli O157:H7 fecal samples harbored AMR genes.
Patient interviews suggest ground beef bought from the same grocery chain, and an investigation into the source is underway.
Both infants were sick in the summer of 2022, and their households had received raw milk from the same cow-sharing arrangement.
Analysis of E coli from human infections and packaged meat suggested 8% of the clinical isolates originated in meat.
Low- and middle-income countries continue to import significant amounts of the last-resort antibiotic for growth promotion and disease prevention in food-producing animals.
