Report shows steep declines in antibiotic use on British poultry farms
A report this week from the British Poultry Council (BPC) shows steep reductions in antibiotic use in recent years.
According to the BPC's 2020 Antibiotic Stewardship Report, total antibiotic use on farms raising chickens, ducks, and turkeys fell by 76% from 2012 through 2019, and the use of critically important antibiotics—those also used in human medicine—declined by 97.3%. In 2019, the sector used 19.7 tons of antibiotics, which accounts for 9.3% of the total antibiotics licensed for use in food-producing animals in the United Kingdom.
The report noted that while 2019 saw a slight increase in antibiotic use due to disease challenges, the sector remains below industry-specified targets.
"The British poultry meat sector stands committed to upholding the UK’s position at the forefront of international efforts to keep antibiotics effective for future generations and tackling antimicrobial resistance," BPC Chief Executive Richard Griffiths said in a press release. "UK poultry meat producers have stopped all preventative treatments and the highest priority antibiotics that are critically important for humans are used only as a 'last resort' for chickens and turkeys."
Sep 8 BPC 2020 Antibiotic Stewardship Report
Sep 8 BPC press release
FDA grants orphan drug status for antibiotic peptide
Biotechnology platform company Peptilogics, of Pittsburgh, announced this week that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation for PLG0206, an antibiotic peptide, for the treatment of prosthetic joint infections (PJIs).
PLG0206 is a broad-spectrum cationic antibiotic peptide with a novel mechanism of action that kills bacterial cells by targeting and disrupting the bacterial membrane. It has demonstrated activity against pathogens identified as critical, urgent, or high-priority targets by the World Health Organization and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and addresses the biofilms and persistent pathogens that make PJIs difficult to treat.
Under the Orphan Drug Act, the FDA can grant Orphan Drug Designation to a drug or biological product that treats a rare disease or condition that affects fewer than 200,000 people in the United States, provided the drug and the disease or condition meet certain criteria. Orphan designation qualifies the sponsor of the drug for certain incentives, including a partial tax credit for clinical trial expenditure, waived user fees, and eligibility for 7 years of marketing exclusivity.
"PLG0206 is the first novel anti-infective to be granted Orphan Drug Designation, confirmation that we are advancing a meaningful therapy that can address an unmet medical need, beginning with PJI," Peptilogics Founder and CEO Jonathan Steckbeck, PhD, said in a press release.
Sep 9 Peptilogics press release
Five more sick in DRC's latest Ebola outbreak; total at 118 cases
A spurt of 5 new cases were reported in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) Equateur province outbreak, boosting the total to 118, the World Health Organization (WHO) African regional office said in an update on Twitter today.
No new deaths were reported, keeping the fatality count at 48.
The outbreak is the country's 11th involving Ebola and is occurring in the same area where the DRC's ninth outbreak took place in 2018, sickening 54 people and leading to 33 deaths.
Health officials are concerned about the new outbreak, as outbreak responders also grapple with COVID-19 amid scarce resources. In addition, illnesses are occurring across a broad area, some difficult to access, and some patients with confirmed infections have remained in the community, posing a high risk of further spread.
Sep 11 WHO African regional office tweet
Five countries report more polio cases
Five countries reported more polio cases over the last week, two in the Middle East and three in Africa, according to the latest weekly update from the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI).
In the Middle East, Afghanistan and Pakistan reported more wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases. Afghanistan reported 4 cases, 2 each in Kandahar and Zabul provinces, raising its total for the year to 44 cases. Pakistan reported 3 more WPV1 cases, 1 in Balochistan province and 2 in Punjab province, lifting its number for 2020 to 68.
The three African countries all reported more circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) cases. Chad had 3 more cases, 2 in Logone Oriental province and 1 in Tandjile province, lifting its total for the year to 63 from two different outbreaks.
The DRC reported 15 more cases, including 13 in Equateur province where an Ebola outbreak is under way (see item above) and 1 each in Kinshasa and Mai Ndombe provinces, putting the country's 2020 total at 41. And finally, Sudan reported 8 more cVDPV2 cases in five different provinces, increasing its total for the year to 21. The GPEI said all are linked to the virus circulating in Chad.
Sep 10 GPEI update
H5N1, H5N6 avian flu outbreaks reported in Vietnamese poultry
Vietnam today reported avian flu outbreaks in poultry in two provinces involving two different highly pathogenic strains, H5N1 and H5N6, according to notifications to the World Organization for Animal Health (OIE).
The H5N1 outbreak began on Aug 26 in village birds in Tra Vinh province, located in the south. The virus killed 100 of 300 susceptible birds, and the survivors were destroyed to curb the spread of the virus. So far, the source of the virus isn't known. Vietnam reported its last H5N1 outbreak in June.
Meanwhile, Vietnamese animal health officials said H5N6 struck village birds in Hai Phong province in the north. The outbreak began on Aug 21, killing 350 of 6,171 birds. The remaining ones were culled as part of the outbreak response. The country reported its last H5N6 outbreak in July.
Sep 11 OIE report on H5N1 in Vietnam
Sep 11 OIE report on H5N6 in Vietnam