Archive for category: Technical Reports

GHANA KEYS INTO AFLASAFE PROJECT WITH GH 02

Aflatoxin in food is a 44-year-old problem in Ghana. Aflatoxin is furtive – a hidden and silent killer. Aflasafe GH02 reduces aflatoxin by up to 100%.

Aflasafe unveiled! Showing off packs of Aflasafe GH02 at its launch in Accra, Ghana are (left to right, above): Dr Ranajit Bandyopadhyay, Principal Scientist (Plant Pathology) and Research Leader of the Africa-wide Aflasafe Initiative at IITA; Dr Seydou Samake, the USDA and USAID Regional Sanitary and Phytosanitary Policy Advisor; Mr Harry Bleppony, Deputy Director of Crop Services at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, representing Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the Minister for Food and Agriculture; Prof Richard T Awuah of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology; and Mr Abdou Konlambigue, Managing Director, Aflasafe Technology Transfer and Commercialisation initiative, IITA.

ACCRA, GHANA, 29TH JUNE 2018 – With the official launch of Aflasafe GH02 in Accra today, Ghana joins the growing list of countries in Africa actively combating aflatoxin in food. Aflasafe GH02 is a product of, from, and for Ghana. An environmentally friendly all-natural solution to the scourge of aflatoxin, Aflasafe GH02 is formulated from four friendly fungi, all from Ghana.

Aflatoxin takes a heavy but hidden toll in Ghana, as elsewhere in Africa where people primarily eat – and depend upon – maize and groundnuts. These two crops, staples on many tables, are also the most vulnerable to aflatoxin contamination. The crunch is that aflatoxin is difficult to detect even when at lethal levels. Measured in parts per billion (ppb), this naturally occurring poison is tasteless, odourless and invisible to the naked eye: one ppb is akin to a single drop of water in an Olympic-size swimming pool.

Despite its invisibility, aflatoxin not a new topic in Ghana: it hogged the headlines in August–September 1998, sparking heated debate on kenkey causing cancer. This shone the spotlight on aflatoxin in food, leading to surveillance studies in maize and groundnuts, and products made from them. Some of these studies revealed levels approaching 4,800 ppb – far above the safety thresholds set by the Ghana Standards Authority of 15 ppb for maize and 20 ppb for groundnuts. These alarming levels clearly demonstrate that a majority of Ghanaians are unknowingly exposed to unsafe aflatoxin levels in the food they eat.

But Ghana is not alone. Aflatoxin is the culprit in at least 30% of liver cancers in Africa. The continent loses hundreds of millions of dollars each year in foregone export opportunities due to aflatoxin contamination.

What is singular about Ghana is how long the problem of aflatoxin in food has been known. “Aflatoxin was discovered in 1960 in the UK and the first published report from Ghana was in 1964,” revealed Prof Richard T Awuah of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), in the keynote address. “Whether or not the product will be successful in Ghana will also depend in part on the publicity and perceptions we Ghanaians give it.” Clarifying that Aflasafe was not a genetically modified organism (GMO), Prof Awuah stressed the crucial role of the government and the media in shaping public perceptions and in creating awareness. He was closely involved in the development of Aflasafe GH02.

“Aflasafe GH02 will be a big relief for Ghana’s food chain,” said Mr Harry Bleppony, Deputy Director of Crop Services at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, representing Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, the Minister for Food and Agriculture.

Representing the Minister for Food and Agriculture, Dr Owusu Afriyie Akoto, Mr Harry Bleppony, the Deputy Director of Crop Services in the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MoFA), clarified that there was no lack of policies on aflatoxin. But he decried the lack of awareness on aflatoxin, particularly at the grassroots, and the need for evidence-based information. “When people see how hard aflatoxin hits them, they will take it seriously. Aflatoxin is a ‘slow poison’ – language that Ghanaians understand well. Aflasafe GH02 will be a big relief for Ghana’s food chain.”

Other senior officials who were also panel discussants included Mr Erasmus Ashun, Director for Agricultural Export Development at the Ghana Export Promotion Authority; Mr Roderick Dadey-Adjei, Head, Agro Products and Biosafety, Food and Drugs Authority; Mr Yusuf Dramani, Agri Supplier Development Agronomist for Nestlé, Central and West Africa; Mrs Janet Botwe, Head of the Food Crops Unit and Desk Officer for Cereals, MOFA; Mr Samuel Sey, Executive Secretary, Mr Masara N’arziki Maize Farmers Association; and Dr Rose Omari, Senior researcher at the Science and Technology Policy Research Institute (STEPRI).

Look out for these packs! All-natural Aflasafe GH02 is mostly sorghum by weight (over 99%), coated in friendly Ghanaian fungi that crowd out the aflatoxin producers. The sorghum keeps them going while they are getting established, and maize starch keeps them glued to the grain. Finally, blue dye distinguishes it from the sorghum we eat, and gives Aflasafe its distinctive bright colour.

Applied whilst the crops are still in the field, Aflasafe‘s four friendly fungi displace the aflatoxin-producing moulds in the field by simply first occupying and ‘colonising’ the space these poison-producers would otherwise occupy. Aflasafe was developed by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), in collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture – Agricultural Research Service (USDA–ARS) and KNUST.

When properly used, Aflasafe prevents crop infection and contamination, reducing aflatoxins by between 80% and 100% in maize, groundnuts and sorghum. With just 4 kilos of Aflasafe, a farmer can effectively protect an entire acre of maize, groundnuts or sorghum, and thereby meet stringent international and domestic aflatoxin standards. The result is more income for farmers, and better consumer health for all.

It has been a diligent journey to Aflasafe GH02 in both laboratory and field. In 2015 and 2016, the product was independently evaluated in more than 100 maize and groundnut fields in several districts in the Ashanti, Brong-Ahafo, Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions.

“Whether or not the product will be successful in Ghana will also depend in part on the publicity and perceptions we Ghanaians give it,” said Prof Richard T Awuah of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, stressing the crucial role of the government and the media in shaping public perceptions and in creating awareness of aflatoxin. He is pictured here (left) at the launch of Aflasafe GH02, with Mr Abdou Konlambigue, Managing Director, Aflasafe Technology Transfer and Commercialisation initiative, IITA.

The results? All the crops from Aflasafe-treated fields were aflatoxin-safe, with an extremely low range falling between zero and 15 ppb. This stood in stark contrast with crops from non-treated fields, whose aflatoxin content ranged between 8 and 939 ppb. The Aflasafe-treated crops met the standards of both local and international premium markets. Large-scale use throughout Ghana would see farmers produce aflatoxin-safe food, and thereby see all Ghanaians win, given the attendant benefits on health and potential wealth.

Approved by Ghana’s Environmental Protection Agency earlier this year, Aflasafe GH02 is now available in the country distributed by Macrofertil.

Currently, Aflasafe GH02 is being manufactured at IITA headquarters at Ibadan, Nigeria, from where it is imported into Ghana. “We are discussing with companies interested in local manufacture in Ghana,” revealed Mr Abdou Konlambigue, Managing Director of IITA’s Aflasafe Technology Transfer and Commercialisation initiative (ATTC). Aflasafe is also available in five other countries in Africa to date.

 

Media inquiries: Njeri Okono, Communications Specialist, Aflasafe Technology Transfer and Commercialisation initiative (ATTC)

LINKS

 

About ATTC: The Aflasafe Technology Transfer and Commercialisation initiative (ATTC) implemented by IITA, identifies strategic options for partnership with private companies or government entities, executes those partnerships, and helps ensure the distinct Aflasafe products reach millions of farmers. The initiative will contribute to improved food safety and increased income for smallholder African farmers through using Aflasafe. ATTC’s target is to cover half-a-million smallholder hectares with Aflasafe in 11 countries where Aflasafe is − or is likely to soon be − a nationally registered product. These are Nigeria, Kenya, Senegal, The Gambia, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. ATTC’s activities are geared to increase Aflasafe’s availability and accessibility, and to improve access to lucrative aflatoxin-conscious markets for maize and groundnuts. Download ATTC brochure

About KNUST: The Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) aspires to be globally recognised as the premier centre of excellence in Africa for teaching in science and technology for development, producing high-calibre graduates with knowledge and expertise to support the industrial and socio-economic development of Ghana and Africa. Its aim is to advance knowledge in science and technology for sustainable development in Africa. KNUST provides an environment for teaching, research and entrepreneurship training in science and technology for the industrial and socio-economic development of Ghana, Africa and other nations. KNUST also offers community service, is open to all the people of Ghana and positioned to attract scholars, industrialists and entrepreneurs from Africa and the rest of the international community.

Source=https://aflasafe.com/2018/06/29/ghana-guns-for-gold-in-food-safety-goal-using-aflasafe-gh02-to-fight-aflatoxin-in-food/

 

DF 9/2018

ROUNDUP or any OTHER WEEDKILLER…SAFE or UNSAFE ?

Can Roundup, a popular weed killer incite cancer ? Is it possible in spite claims to the contrary ?

A man claimed he’s dying of cancer. Now, he’s the first patient to go to trial to argue Roundup made him sick
Monsanto says Roundup is safe and can't be linked to individual cancer cases.
(CNN) — On bad days, Dewayne Johnson is too crippled to speak. Lesions often cover as much as 80% of his body.
Doctors have said they didn’t expect him to live to see this day. But Monday marks a milestone: Johnson, 46, is the first of hundreds of cancer patients to see his case against agrochemical giant Monsanto go to trial.
Johnson, a former school groundskeeper, regularly used Roundup and claims it gave him cancer. Johnson, a former school groundskeeper, regularly used Roundup and claims it gave him cancer.
CNN reported last year that more than 800 patients were suing Monsanto, claiming its popular weed killer, Roundup, gave them cancer.
Since then, hundreds more non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma patients have made similar claims, Johnson’s attorney, Timothy Litzenburg, said. He now represents “more than 2,000 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma sufferers who used Roundup extensively,” he said.
Johnson, a father of two in California’s Bay Area, applied Roundup weed killer 20 to 30 times per year while working as a pest manager for a county school system, his attorney said.
Johnson’s case is the first to go to trial because, his doctors claim in court filings, he is nearing death. And in California, dying plaintiffs can be granted expedited trials.
And there’s a lot riding on this case, which could set a legal precedent for thousands of cases to follow.
Report on Roundup ingredient in dispute
The big questions at stake are whether Roundup can cause cancer and, if so, whether Monsanto failed to warn consumers about the product’s cancer risk.
In March 2015, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) said the key ingredient in Roundup, glyphosate, is “probably carcinogenic to humans.”
“For the herbicide glyphosate, there was limited evidence of carcinogenicity in humans for non-Hodgkin lymphoma,” the report states.
“The evidence in humans is from studies of exposures, mostly agricultural, in the USA, Canada, and Sweden published since 2001. In addition, there is convincing evidence that glyphosate also can cause cancer in laboratory animals.”
But Monsanto long has maintained that Roundup does not cause cancer, and that the IARC report is greatly outnumbered by studies saying glyphosate is safe.
“More than 800 scientific studies, the U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), the National Institutes of Health and regulators around the world have concluded that glyphosate is safe for use and does not cause cancer,” Scott Partridge, Monsanto’s vice president of strategy, said in a statement.
“We have empathy for anyone suffering from cancer, but the scientific evidence clearly shows that glyphosate was not the cause. We look forward to presenting this evidence to the court.”
Monsanto spokeswoman Charla Lord said regulatory authorities help ensure Roundup is safe.
“The safety of each labeled use of a pesticide formulation must be evaluated and approved by regulatory authorities before it is authorized for sale,” she has said.
The National Pesticide Information Center — a cooperative between Oregon State University and the EPA — said studies on cancer rates in humans “have provided conflicting results on whether the use of glyphosate containing products is associated with cancer.”
Many more cases to follow
Johnson’s case — and hundreds of similar cases against Monsanto — have been filed in various state courts, Litzenburg said. Many other cases have been filed in federal multidistrict litigation, or MDL.
Johnson had lesions on most of his body, a doctor said. Johnson had lesions on most of his body, a doctor said.
MDL is a procedure similar to class-action, in that it consolidates pre-trial proceedings for the sake of efficiency. But unlike a class-action lawsuit, each case within an MDL gets its own trial — with its own outcome.
In other words, one MDL plaintiff might get a large settlement, while another plaintiff might get nothing.
It’s not clear when future state or MDL trials will begin. One advantage of filing in state court — as Johnson did — instead of through MDL is that state courts might produce an outcome faster.
And in Johnson’s case, time is critical.
“Mr. Johnson is angry and is the most safety-oriented person I know,” his attorney said. “Right now, he is the bravest dude in America. Whatever happens with the trial and his health, his sons get to know that.”
CNN’s Theresa Waldrop contributed to this report.
View on CNN

Source=
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/06/17/us/monsanto-roundup-dewayne-johnson-trial/index.html

DF

FAO hosts E-Conference on Sustainable Food Security

:[GFAR-CSO-NGO-constituency] E-conference by FAO’s ‘Small Farms, Small Food Businesses and Sustainable Food Security’ project
sfoodfeedf/Inbox
GFAR-CSO-NGO-constituency <gfar-cso-ngo-constituency@googlegroups.com>
To:GFAR-CSO-NGO-constituency
15 Mar at 13:55

Dear all,

We would like to draw your attention to an interesting project, run by FAO, one of the Partners in GFAR. FAO’s Research and Extension Unit has been involved in the EU-funded Horizon 2020 research project on “Small Farms, Small Food Businesses and Sustainable Food Security”, commonly known as SALSA.

This project will run an “e-conference” from March 19 – April 9, which is an email based consultation. After two years of research, SALSA now solicits for the participants’ help to identify key knowledge gaps, as well as to share examples that will contribute to build the SALSA empirical base. Using this e-conference, the SALSA team also wants to catalyse and foster an ongoing dialogue with relevant stakeholders.

 

The participation in the e-conference is free, and participants are free to contribute as much as they want, in their own time (as contributions are submitted and distributed by e-mail).

To register, simply send an email to AIS@fao.org, specifying:

  • Your email address to be registered on the list.
  • Full name, organisation, institute or company you work for, and your position (or simply note “private” if you want to participate on their own behalf).
 

The aims of SALSA align directly with the aims of actions within GFAR’s Key Focus Area: Communities determining their own needs. Assessing the research and innovation needs of Family and Small Farmers towards a food and nutrition secure future is a GFAR Collective Action contributing to the International Decade on Family Farming and Sustainable Development Goal 2. Partners in GFAR also work to empower small scale farmers and rural women to run thriving, sustainable agri-businesses that generate employment and new income.

 

We would hereby encourage you to participate in this e-conference and kindly request you to forward this mail to colleagues in your institute or organisation and distribute it within your networks.

 

A summary of the SALSA e-conference announcement, you can find here: http://bit.ly/SALSAeconf  

The full background document and elaborate coverage of the discussion topics can be found here: http://bit.ly/SALSA-back ground 

 

Thank you!

GFAR Secretariat

BEAN EXPORT TO EU BEGINS…

BALKANS AND MYCOTOXINS 2017

High levels of Aflatoxin B1 and Fumonisin B1 & B2 mycotoxins detected in corn samples in 2017!

The aim of the present study was to screen corn samples received from Balkans region during August to November 2017. The samples were analysed by UHPLC-based multi-mycotoxin method for the determination and quantitation of all regulated in feed (EU Directive 2002/32/EC, 2006/576/EC and 2013/165/EU) by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry.

A total of 113 samples were received for analysis at PATENT CO., Mišicevo, Serbia. Out of these 53 % samples were found contaminated with mycotoxins and 28% of these contaminated samples were found to contain more than one mycotoxins. Aflatoxin B1 (AB1), Fumonisin B1 (FB1), Fumonisin B2 (FB2) and HT-2 were detected in 13%, 44%, 24% and 8% samples. This survey concludes that the corn harvested in 2017 has high levels of Aflatoxin B1, Fumonisin B1, Fumonisin B2 in Balkans region.

Adsorption and desorption of Citrinin by MINAZEL PLUS

Citrinin is a nephrotoxic mycotoxin produced by several fungal strains belonging to the genera Penicillium, Aspergillus and Monascus. It contaminates various commodities of plant origin, cereals, and is usually found together with another nephrotoxic mycotoxin, Ochratoxin A. Toxicity concerns for Citrinin mostly appear to be aimed toward poultry affecting kidney of these species.

Adsorption and desorption of Citrinin by MINAZEL PLUS at pH 3.0 and 6.5 using LC-MS/MS:

Source=https://en.engormix.com/MA-mycotoxins/news/mycotoxins-survey-2017-patent-t23860/p0.htm?utm_source=campaign&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=0-1-0

18 December, 2017

NEW AFLATOXIN -PRODUCING SPECIES INCREASES FOOD SAFETY SCARE !!!

The discovery of a new species == Aspergillus  korhogoensis has been reported in the West African nation Cote D’Ivoire. In the report by many researchers comprising nationals of USA, France, Cote D Ivoire and Nigeria, The new species  also confirmed  to produce aflatoxin , a mycotoxin common on grains and other crops  particularly in store on has further raised the scare on food safety in Sub saharan African.

The paper was published today in  the current edition of the scientific  journal——-TOXINS   2017, 9, 353; doi:10.3390/toxins9110353

 

For further readings , please go to

Mycotoxins and Adsorbing Agent on antibiotic bioavailability in Pigs

To minimize exposure to mycotoxins, a variety of physical, chemical and biological methods has been developed in order to eliminate fungi and their mycotoxins from foods and feeds…. Adsorbing agents can affect the bioavalability of common antibiotics in pigs as reported in the following article

by Goossens  et al

For more

visit  www.engormix.com

IN TANZANIA, SUNFLOWER SEEDS ALSO CONTAIN AFLATOXIN !!!!

Sunflower seeds are frequently contaminated with aflatoxins. This has been shown by researchers from Michigan State University (MSU) in the US.

Aflatoxins, toxins produced by Aspergillus moulds commonly infect corn, peanuts, pistachios and almonds. The US study (done in Tanzania) is one of the first studies to associate aflatoxin contamination with sunflower seeds. Samples of sunflower seeds (n = 90) and cakes (n = 92) were collected across 2 years, and analysed for total aflatoxin concentrations using a direct competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA).

For seed samples collected June-August 2014, the highest aflatoxin concentrations were from Dodoma (1.7–280.6 ng/g), Singida (1.4–261.8 ng/g), and Babati-Manyara (1.8–162.0 ng/g). The highest concentrations for cakes were from Mbeya (2.8–97.7 ng/g), Dodoma (1.9–88.2 ng/g), and Singida (2.0–34.3 ng/g). For seed samples collected August-October 2015, the highest concentrations were from Morogoro (2.8–662.7 ng/g), Singida (1.6–217.6 ng/g) and Mbeya (1.4–174.2 ng/g). The highest concentrations for cakes were from Morogoro (2.7–536.0 ng/g), Dodoma (1.4–598.4 ng/g) and Singida (3.2–52.8 ng/g).

Juma Mmongoyo, a former MSU food science doctoral student and lead author of the study, analysed aflatoxin levels of seeds and cakes in 7 regions of Tanzania in 2014 and 2015. Nearly 60% of seed samples and 80% of cake samples were contaminated with aflatoxins. “These high aflatoxin levels, in a commodity frequently consumed by the Tanzanian population, indicate that local authorities must implement interventions to prevent and control aflatoxin contamination along the sunflower commodity value chain, to enhance food and feed safety in Tanzania,” said Gale Strasburg, MSU food science and human nutrition professor and one of the study’s co-authors.

Smallholder farmers in Tanzania grow sunflowers for the seeds, which are then sold to local millers who press the seeds for oil and sell it to local consumers for cooking. The remaining cakes are used as animal feed.

The study has been published in PLOS ONE.

Source: ScienceDaily

http://www.allaboutfeed.net/Raw-Materials/Articles/2017/5/Sunflower-seeds-often-contain-aflatoxins-138093E/?intcmp=related-content

Sept 2017

FUMZYME , HERE TO FIGHT FUMONISIN IN LIVESTOCK

The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a positive Scientific Opinion on the safety and efficacy of a mycotoxin biotransforming enzyme from Biomin for the application in poultry feed.

EFSA acknowledged the efficacy of the enzyme (FUMzyme®) in safely degrading fumonisins to non-toxic compounds in the gastrointestinal tract of poultry, as demonstrated in numerous feeding trials, stating that the product has the capacity to degrade fumonisins in feed, at concentrations below the Guidance limits operating in the EU in chickens and turkeys for fattening and laying hens at the minimum recommended dose of 15 U/kg complete feed.

Protecting flocks

Recent Biomin Mycotoxin Survey results of 3065 samples taken in the first half of 2016 indicate that fumonisins were detected in 80% of maize, 27% of wheat, 66% of finished feed and 40% of soybean meal samples. “We know that fumonisins impair the health and performance of poultry,” explains Ursula Hofstetter, Director Competence Center Mycotoxins at Biomin. Recent research revealed that the ingestion of fumonisins at levels below the EU recommended value (20 parts per million) can affect the expression of proteins related to pro- and anti-inflammatory responses in the intestinal tract of broilers. Levels of 20 ppm of fumonisins induce a higher excretion of Eimeria, the parasites responsible for coccidiosis. “In large-scale farms, this may promote parasite transmission between birds due to the high density of the animals,” she explained.

Biotransformation

The enzyme was originally isolated from the fumonisin degrading soil bacterium Sphingopyxis sp. MTA 144 and identified as fumonisin esterase by the Biomin Research Center. The purified-enzyme biotransforms fumonisins specifically and irreversibly into non-toxic metabolites. “Biotransformation is the most cutting-edge strategy to detoxify mycotoxins,” said Ms Hofstetter. Biotransformation works by transforming non-adsorbable mycotoxins into harmless substances without any side effects for livestock. “It’s the future of mycotoxin risk management,” she added.

Biomarkers

Demonstrating the effectiveness of the enzyme involved evidence using the serum sphinganine/sphingosine ratio, a key biomarker that indicates fumonisin exposure in animals. “This ratio was significantly reduced by the addition of the enzyme at the minimum proposed dose when added to diets contaminated with fumonisins,” according to the EFSA opinion.

Source=http://www.allaboutfeed.net/Mycotoxins/Articles/2016/11/Positive-EFSA-opinion-for-Fumzyme-2921861W/

Sept 2017

NEW WHO LIST OF RESISTANT BACTERIA THAT NEED URGENT INTERVENTION

WHO Publishes List of Bacteria That Need New Antibiotics

WHO priority pathogens list for R&D of new antibiotics

Priority 1: CRITICAL

  • Acinetobacter baumannii, carbapenem-resistant
  • Pseudomonas aeruginosa, carbapenem-resistant
  • Enterobacteriaceae, carbapenem-resistant, ESBL-producing

Priority 2: HIGH

  • Enterococcus faecium, vancomycin-resistant
  • Staphylococcus aureus, methicillin-resistant, vancomycin-intermediate and resistant
  • Helicobacter pylori, clarithromycin-resistant
  • Campylobacter spp., fluoroquinolone-resistant
  • Salmonellae, fluoroquinolone-resistant
  • Neisseria gonorrhoeae, cephalosporin-resistant, fluoroquinolone-resistant

Priority 3: MEDIUM

  • Streptococcus pneumoniae, penicillin-non-susceptible
  • Haemophilus influenzae, ampicillin-resistant
  • Shigella spp., fluoroquinolone-resistant

The World Health Organization (WHO) has published its first ever list of antibiotic-resistant bacteria that pose the greatest threat to human health and which urgently need new types of antibiotics. These bacteria are resistant to some last-resort antibiotics.

Petri Dish

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), antibiotic-resistant bacteria kill 23,000 Americans every year. And antibiotic resistant bacteria are present in every country on earth.

The list highlights gram-negative bacteria that are resistant to multiple antibiotics. These pathogens are constantly evolving to resist new drugs, and they can pass genetic material to other bacteria so they can become drug resistant too.

Dr. Marie-Paule Kieny, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Health Systems and Innovation said in a statement, “This list is a new tool to ensure R&D responds to urgent public health needs. Antibiotic resistance is growing, and we are fast running out of treatment options. If we leave it to market forces alone, the new antibiotics we most urgently need are not going to be developed in time.”

The list is divided into three categories according to the urgency of need to new drugs: Critical, high, and medium priority. The most critical group includes Enterobacteriaceae, which includes Klebsiella and E. coli. Those pathogens can cause severe and often deadly bloodstream infections. Those bacteria have developed resistance to third generation cephalosporins and carbapenems, which are the best available antibiotics for treating multi-drug resistant bacteria.

The second category tier includes Staphylococcus aureus, Helicobacter pylori, fluoroquinolone-resistant Campylobacter, and fluoroquinolone-resistant Salmonella. The third tier includes fluoroquinolone-resistant Shigella bacteria. All of those bacteria are familiar to those in the food safety industry.

WHO hopes that this list will spur governments to advance policies that incentive basic science and advanced R&D by publicly funded agencies such as the FDA and CDC, and by the private sector. Professor Evalina Tacconelli, head of the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Tübingen said, “new antibiotics targeting this priority list of pathogens will help to reduce deaths due to resistant infections around the world. Waiting any longer will cause further public health problems and dramatically impact patient care.”

WHO ended its news release by stating that while more research and development is vital, it can’t solve the problem alone. We must prevent infections by these pathogenic bacteria, and use antibiotics in both humans and animals appropriately. And when new antibiotics are developed, they must be used rationally and not overprescribed

Source=https://foodpoisoningbulletin.com/2017/who-publishes-list-of-bacteria-that-need-new-antibiotics/

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