The Antibiotic Apocalypse
Several bacterial strains have emerged in China that carry resistance to the “last resort” antibiotic colistin, which is used to treat otherwise resistant bacterial infections. The resistance is conveyed by a gene called mcr-1. In itself this is not a new development. Bacteria have developed resistance to colistin before, but this particular mutation seems to be easily transferable to other strains, sparking worries that we will soon be faced with untreatable bacterial infections caused by pan-resistant bacteria, which is said to throw medical tratment back into the dark ages. A post-antibiotic era.
The increased development of pan-resistant infections is most likely due to overuse of antibiotics in animal livestock. Scientists are recommending the banning of colistin in farming, and recommend that the same antibiotics should not be used in veterinary and human healthcare. This is to prevent or delay the development of human pan-resistant pathogens.