scholarly journals Antibiotics Use in Food Animal Production: Escalation of Antimicrobial Resistance: Where Are We Now in Combating AMR?

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 14
Author(s):  
Vanmathy Kasimanickam ◽  
Maadhanki Kasimanickam ◽  
Ramanathan Kasimanickam

The use of antibiotics has been very beneficial to human health, animal wellbeing, and food production, however, there are no alternatives to antimicrobials in treating infectious diseases. Their use can contribute to the development of antimicrobial resistance, but the world has realized the need to combat antimicrobial resistance in recent decades due to the continued escalation of the problem jeopardizing human and veterinary medicine and food and environmental safety. Understanding the AMR and judicious use of antimicrobials are critical, and one health approach involving several sectors and multiple disciplines is important to tackle the problem. National, regional, and global action plans have been instigated to tackle the escalation of AMR. Antimicrobials are frequently used in food animal production. Therefore, food animal producers are important participants to prevent overuse and misuse of antimicrobials. Recent regulations to address the challenges have not been perceived well in animal farming communities. More awareness regarding these action plans and understanding the impact of AMR are needed. A nationwide survey of perceptions of food animal producers regarding AMR mitigation approaches should be conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of the current policies regarding antibiotics use and AMR. These outcomes should be incorporated in future policies and awareness campaigns targeting food animal producers.

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Louise Munkholm ◽  
Olivier Rubin

Abstract Background Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a growing problem worldwide in need of global coordinated action. With the endorsement of the Global Action Plan (GAP) on AMR in 2015, the 194 member states of the World Health Organization committed to integrating the five objectives and corresponding actions of the GAP into national action plans (NAPs) on AMR. The article analyzes patterns of alignment between existing NAPs and the GAP, bringing to the fore new methodologies for exploring the relationship between globally driven health policies and activities at the national level, taking income, geography and governance factors into account. Methods The article investigates the global governance of AMR. Concretely, two proxies are devised to measure vertical and horizontal alignment between the GAP and existing NAPs: (i) a syntactic indicator measuring the degree of verbatim overlap between the GAP and the NAPs; and (ii) a content indicator measuring the extent to which the objectives and corresponding actions outlined in the GAP are addressed in the NAPs. Vertical alignment is measured by the extent to which each NAP overlaps with the GAP. Horizontal alignment is explored by measuring the degree to which NAPs overlap with other NAPs across regions and income groups. In addition, NAP implementation is explored using the Global Database for Antimicrobial Resistance Country Self-Assessment. Findings We find strong evidence of vertical alignment, particularly among low-income countries and lower-middle-income countries but weaker evidence of horizontal alignment within regions. In general, we find the NAPs in our sample to be mostly aligned with the GAP’s five overarching objectives while only moderately aligned with the recommended corresponding actions. Furthermore, we see several cases of what can be termed ‘isomorphic mimicry’, characterized by strong alignment in the policies outlined but much lower levels of alignment in terms of actual implemented policies. Conclusion To strengthen the alignment of national AMR policies, we recommend global governance initiatives based on individualized responsibilities some of which should be legally binding. Our study provides limited evidence of horizontal alignment within regions, which implies that regional governance institutions (e.g., WHO regional offices) should primarily act as mediators between global and local demands to strengthen a global governance regime that minimizes policy fragmentation and mimicry behavior across member states.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 399-408
Author(s):  
Jovica Milovanović ◽  
Ana Jotić ◽  
Zorana Radin ◽  
Ivana Ćirković

Introduction/Aim: The global COVID-19 pandemic has long been considered an emergency, with the number of cases growing exponentially, despite constant efforts to control the infection. Although the disease is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, most patients are treated with antibiotic therapy. The long-term effects of such broad antibiotics use on antimicrobial resistance are still unknown and are a matter for concern. The aim of this paper is: to determine, based on the available literature, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the use of antibiotics; to determine the global situation regarding antimicrobial resistance; to identify key areas where urgent changes are needed. Methods: A systematic review of the current literature on the use of antibiotics in COVID-19 treatment was conducted. The PubMed and MEDLINE databases were searched for papers published between March 2020 and September 2021. Results: Between 76.8% and 87.8% of patients with COVID-19 were treated with antibiotics. Antibiotics were less frequently prescribed to children, as compared to adults (38.5%, compared to 83.4%). The most commonly administered antibiotics were fluoroquinolones (20.0%), macrolides (18.9%), b-lactam antibiotics (15.0%), and cephalosporins (15.0%). Self-medication with antibiotics to prevent and treat COVID-19 has been identified as one of the important factors contributing to antimicrobial resistance. Conclusion: The impact of COVID-19 on global antimicrobial resistance is still unknown and is likely to be unevenly distributed in the general population. Although various antibiotics have been used to treat patients with COVID-19, their role and the need for their application in the treatment of this infection remains to be determined. For now, there are no reliable data as to whether the use of antibiotics in COVID-19 cases without associated bacterial infections has any effect on the course of the disease and mortality.


Author(s):  
Louise Ackers ◽  
Gavin Ackers-Johnson ◽  
Joanne Welsh ◽  
Daniel Kibombo ◽  
Samuel Opio

AbstractThis chapter describes the threat to global health and security caused by the growing resistance of infectious organisms to antibiotics or antimicrobial resistance (AMR). Growing global connectivity ensures that AMR is a threat to us all wherever we are and with specific impacts on Low- and Middle-Income Countries (LMICs). The chapter outlines international responses to AMR including the Global Action Plan and the impact this has had on one LMIC; Uganda. It then introduces a recent UK funding call focused on improving the management of antibiotics or ‘Antimicrobial Stewardship’.


2002 ◽  
Vol 68 (8) ◽  
pp. 4127-4129 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Møller Aarestrup ◽  
Henrik Hasman ◽  
Lars Bogø Jensen ◽  
Miguel Moreno ◽  
Inmaculada A. Herrero ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT Enterococci from pigs in Denmark, Spain, and Sweden were examined for susceptibility to antimicrobial agents and copper and the presence of selected resistance genes. The greatest levels of resistance were found among isolates from Spain and Denmark compared to those from Sweden, which corresponds to the amounts of antimicrobial agents used in food animal production in those countries. Similar genes were found to encode resistance in the different countries, but the tet(L) and tet(S) genes were more frequently found among isolates from Spain. A recently identified transferable copper resistance gene was found in all copper-resistant isolates from the different countries.


2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. W. Schmidt ◽  
A. Vikram ◽  
K. Thomas ◽  
T. M. Arthur ◽  
M. Weinroth ◽  
...  

ObjectivesThe occurrences of human bacterial infections complicated by antimicrobial resistance (AMR) have increased in recent decades. Concerns have been raised that food-animal production practices that incorporate antimicrobials contribute significantly to human AMR exposures since food-animal production accounts for approximately 81% of U.S. antimicrobial consumption by mass. Although empirical studies comparing AMR levels in meat products, including ground beef, are scant ground beef products with Raised without Antibiotics (RWA) label claims are perceived to harbor less AMR than “conventional” (CONV) products with no label claims regarding antimicrobial use. The objective of this research was to determine AMR levels in retail ground beef with and without an RWA label claims.Materials and MethodsRetail ground beef samples were obtained from 6 U.S. cities. Samples were obtained on the following dates: 9/18/2017, 10/30/2017, 11/27/2017. 1/29/2018. 3/5/2018, and 6/11/2018. A total of 599 samples were obtained. Samples with a “Raised without Antibiotics” or USDA Organic claim (N = 299) were assigned to the RWA production system. Samples lacking a “Raised without Antibiotics” claim (N = 300) were assigned to the CONV production system. Each sample was cultured for the detection of five antimicrobial resistant bacteria (ARB). Genomic DNA was isolated from each sample and qPCR was used to determine the abundance of ten antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs). The impacts of production system and city on ARB detection were assessed by the Likelihood-ratio chi-squared test. The impacts of production system and city on ARG abundance was assessed by two-way ANOVA.ResultsTetracycline-resistant Escherichia coli (CONV = 46.3%; RWA = 34.4%) and erythromycin-resistant Enterococcus (CONV = 48.0%; RWA = 37.5%) were more frequently (P < 0.01) detected in CONV. Detection of third generation cephalosporin-resistant E. coli (CONV = 5.7%; RWA = 1.0%), vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (CONV = 0.0%; RWA = 0.0%) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CONV = 1.3%; RWA = 0.7%) did not differ (P = 1.00). The blaCTX-M ARG was more abundant in CONV (2.4 vs. 2.1 log copies/gram, P = 0.01) but the tet(A) (2.4 vs. 2.5 log copies/gram, P = 0.02) and tet(M) (3.6 vs. 3.9 log copies/gram, P < 0.01) ARGs were more abundant in RWA. aadA1, blaCMY-2, mecA, erm(B), and tet(B) abundances did not differ significantly (Fig. 5) (P > 0.05). Abundances of aac (6’)-Ie-aph (2”)-Ia and blaKPC-2 were not analyzed since they were quantified in less than 5% of the samples.ConclusionU.S. retail CONV and RWA ground beef harbor generally similar levels of AMR since only 5 of 15 AMR measurements were statistically different between production systems. Three AMR measurements were higher in CONV, while 2 AMR measurements were higher in RWA. These results are in general agreement with a recently published study authored by our group that examined antimicrobial resistance in CONV and RWA ground beef obtained from U.S. foodservice suppliers (Vikram et al., J. Food Prot. 81:2007–2018. 2018.). Together these studies suggest that antimicrobial use during U.S. cattle production has minimal to no impact on human exposure to AMR via ground beef.Figure 5.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. e0246571
Author(s):  
Dawn M. Hull ◽  
Erin Harrell ◽  
Arnoud H. M. van Vliet ◽  
Maria Correa ◽  
Siddhartha Thakur

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention identifies antimicrobial resistant (AMR) Campylobacter as a serious threat to U.S. public health due to high community burden, increased transmissibility, and limited treatability. The National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) plays an important role in surveillance of AMR bacterial pathogens in humans, food animals and retail meats. This study investigated C. coli and C. jejuni from live food animals, poultry carcasses at production, and retail meat in North Carolina between January 2018-December 2019. Whole genome sequencing and bioinformatics were used for phenotypic and genotypic characterization to compare AMR profiles, virulence factors associated with Guillain-Barré Syndrome (GBS) (neuABC and cst-II or cst-III), and phylogenic linkage between 541 Campylobacter isolates (C. coli n = 343, C. jejuni n = 198). Overall, 90.4% (489/541) Campylobacter isolates tested positive for AMR genes, while 43% (233/541) carried resistance genes for three or more antibiotic classes and were classified molecularly multidrug resistant. AMR gene frequencies were highest against tetracyclines (64.3%), beta-lactams (63.6%), aminoglycosides (38.6%), macrolides (34.8%), quinolones (24.4%), lincosamides (13.5%), and streptothricins (5%). A total of 57.6% (114/198) C. jejuni carried GBS virulence factors, while three C. coli carried the C. jejuni-like lipooligosaccharide locus, neuABC and cst-II. Further evidence of C. coli and C. jejuni interspecies genomic exchange was observed in identical multilocus sequence typing, shared sequence type (ST) 7818 clonal complex 828, and identical species-indicator genes mapA, ceuE, and hipO. There was a significant increase in novel STs from 2018 to 2019 (2 in 2018 and 21 in 2019, p<0.002), illustrating variable Campylobacter genomes within food animal production. Introgression between C. coli and C. jejuni may aid pathogen adaption, lead to higher AMR and increase Campylobacter persistence in food processing. Future studies should further characterize interspecies gene transfer and evolutionary trends in food animal production to track evolving risks to public health.


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