Antimicrobial resistant superbug warning watch: a newly emerged Klebsiella pneumoniae and Mycoplasma genitalium joining the group
Microbiology and Immunology Department, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt.
* Corresponding author
Letter to the Editor
World Journal of Advanced Research and Reviews, 2019, 02(02), 017–018.
Article DOI: 10.30574/wjarr.2019.2.2.0002
Publication history:
Received on 14 December 2018; revised on 25 February 2019; accepted on 10 June 2019
Abstract:
Dear Sir,
Spreading of drug resistance has become a commonly reported phenomenon. The list of microorganisms that are joining the group of superbugs is continuously increasing [1]. The fast and efficient adaptability mechanism of microbial cells is the essence of their ability to survive unfavorable environmental conditions which may be biological, physical and/or chemical [2].
One of the Gram-negative bacteria that may turn into a harmful organism is known as Klebsiella pneumoniae. K. pneumoniae is a normal intestinal flora in human, but it can cause dangerous infections if it reaches other parts of the body such as lungs, blood, or wounds. The risk of infection from this microbe may increase with people with specific health conditions or troubles ex. cancer, lung diseases, alcoholism, liver problems and kidney failure. This microorganism may turn into a superbug that can resist the most commonly known antibiotics [3]. Recently fatal cases have been reported in hospitals where hyper-virulent and hyper-resistant strains of K. pneumoniae were isolated [4, 5]. Even some strains have been shown to be almost resistant to all antibiotics, others are flesh eating and may cause blindness and meningitis [The wire, https://thewire.in/health/superbug-india, Last accessed on 13/12/2018; Telegraph, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/12/07/dangerous-new-superbug-confi..., Last accessed on 13/12/2018]. The frequency of this trend of resistance and virulence seems to be rising with time globally.
Another warning signal comes for Mycoplasma genitalium (MG), a sexually transmitted disease (STD) that could be a source of hazard as an untreatable disease [6]. While this smallest self-replicating microorganism was discovered in 1981, the seriousness of its impact on the human genitourinary tract has recently brought attention as a public health problem [7]. The developed countries have started to list this underestimated microbe as an emerging issue that should not be overlooked, otherwise drug resistance problem to the first- and second-defense lines antibiotic treatment may be exacerbated during the next decade [Contagion, https://www.contagionlive.com/news/uk-health-officials-aim-to-stop-the-e..., Last accessed on 13/12/2018].
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