Category Archives: Antibiotics

An Atlas Of Antibiotic Resistance

Posted on March 4, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

So the CDC released an Antibiotic Resistance Patient Safety Atlas. Details are here, while the interactive site is here. A good introduction can be found here. I didn’t realize D.C. had such a high percentage of CRE infections. By the … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics, CDC, Public Health | 1 Comment

And Now Italy

Posted on January 25, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

Italy has joined the plasmid-borne colistin resistance club (colistin is the last line of defense against carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae–’CRE’–except when it doesn’t work). From ProMED (boldface mine): The mcr-1 gene, which encodes transferable resistance to colistin, has been confirmed in commensal … Continue reading →

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What Does the End of Antibiotic Era Mean?

Posted on January 14, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

Obviously, nothing good. Yet we often hear that the era of antibiotics is nearing its end (I might have even used that phrase). So what does the end of the antibiotic era mean? I don’t think we will have to … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics | 2 Comments

Colistin Resistance Is Now Linked to Carbapenem Resistance: We Failed

Posted on January 9, 2016 by mikethemadbiologist

For those just tuning in, a little over a month ago, the microbiology and public health world was rocked by the discovery of plasmid-borne colistin resistance: First, some background: polymyxins, including polymyxin E also known as colistin, are the last … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics, E. coli, Plasmids, Public Health, We're Really Fucked | 5 Comments

How Much Is That Colistin in the Window?

Posted on December 21, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

Scary Disease Woman (aka ‘Maryn McKenna’) has a great article on buying medical antibiotics in large volume over the counter. You should read the whole thing, but this screenshot is pretty terrifying: Yes, colistin, the last line antibiotic, can be … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics, Fucking Morons | 2 Comments

I Don’t Get This “Phantom Menace” Superbug Rebranding Crap

Posted on December 14, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

Last week, I came across this article that referred to carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae (‘CRE’) as a “phantom menace.” It struck me as odd, since the article claimed CRE is known as a phantom menace, yet I had never heard that phrase … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics, Framing | 1 Comment

Can You Find What’s Wrong With This Article?

Posted on December 2, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

Here’s a hint–there are three errors here (answers below the fold):

Posted in Antibiotics, Fucking Morons, News Media | 2 Comments

Plasmid-Borne Colistin Resistance Has Jumped Species and Maybe Hemispheres

Posted on November 22, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

Friday, I described the discovery of the gene mcr-1, which is a transmissible colistin resistance gene found on a bacterial plasmid (a plasmid is a mini-chromosome that can move from bacterium to bacterium). This is really bad news, since colistin … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics, E. coli, Plasmids, Salmonella, We're Really Fucked | 3 Comments

Last Line of Antimicrobial Defense Is Falling: Colistin Resistance Transmission

Posted on November 20, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

Actually, it’s sort of reached the rout stage. From China (don’t worry, I’ll translate from Science into English; boldface mine): Background: Until now, polymyxin resistance has involved chromosomal mutations but has never been reported via horizontal gene transfer. During a … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics, E. coli, Plasmids, We're Really Fucked | 9 Comments

Influenza and The Misuse of Antibiotics

Posted on October 16, 2015 by mikethemadbiologist

Sometimes I think nothing changes when it comes to the responsible use of antibiotics (boldface mine): Antibiotic prescriptions were given to nearly half of all flu patients, and half of those prescriptions were for broad-spectrum antibiotics… Out of 14,487 patients … Continue reading →

Posted in Antibiotics, Influenza | 2 Comments