In one worrisome finding, MCR-1 was found in chicken E coli alongside other resistance genes.
Health officials in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) reported two new MERS-CoV cases, the country's first since last June, Emirates News Agency (WAM) reported today.
Taiwan officials today reported a new H7N9 avian flu case on the mainland, while Hong Kong's Centre for Health Protection (CHP) provided details on eight recent cases in Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces.
The new, worrisome MCR-1 resistance gene has been detected in 6 more nations.
Canada can now be added to the growing list of countries that have detected MCR-1, the recently identified worrisome gene that disables the last-line antibiotic colistin, after it was detected in a patient and in ground beef sold in 2010, the Toronto Star reported today.
After being identified for the first time in China in November, the gene has now been confirmed in samples from at least 11 countries.
The worrisome MCR-1 resistance gene has spread to distant regions, even Africa, rather quickly.
Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Health (MOH) today reported a MERS-CoV case, the country's first in 15 days. The case, from Buraidah, is likely linked to another recent case from the same location. The latest patient is a healthcare worker who contracted the virus in a healthcare setting.
Researchers have identified an Escherichia coli strain in pigs, pork, and humans in China that is resistant to colistin—a critical last-line antibiotic—and the gene that causes the resistance is readily transferred to other bacteria, posing an epidemic threat, according to a new study in The Lancet Infectious Diseases.