What is a Superbug?
Superbug (superbug) does not specifically refer to one kind of bacteria, but generally refers to those bacteria that are resistant to multiple antibiotics, and its exact name should be "multi-drug resistant bacteria". These bacteria can have a strong resistance to antibiotics and can escape the danger of being killed. The super bacteria that currently attract special attention are: methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), multi-drug resistant pneumococcus (MDRSP), vancomycin enterococcus (VRE), multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR- TB), multidrug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MRAB), and newly discovered E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae carrying the NDM-1 gene. Because most antibiotics do not work on them, super bacteria have caused great harm to human health.
Basic Information
- Chinese name
- Super bacteria
- Foreign name
- superbug
- Explanation
- Resistant to almost all antibiotics
- Clinical manifestation
- Abscesses and pustules
- ability
- Resistance to antibiotics
- On behalf of
- NDM-1
- Features
- Drug resistance
Causes of super bacteria
- Genetic mutations are the root cause of super bacteria. The development of bacterial resistance is the result of widespread clinical use of antibiotics, and the abuse of antibiotics hastened this process. The abuse of antibiotics destroys the contradiction between the antibacterial drugs in a balanced state and the resistance of bacteria. The bacteria with drug resistance also acquire the ability to resist different antibacterial drugs through continuous evolution and mutation. This ability is contradictory. The struggle is constantly intensified, and bacteria gradually change from single-resistant to multi-resistant or even pan-resistant, and eventually become resistant super bacteria.
Common species of super bacteria
- Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus
- Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus is the most well-known of the superbugs. It is acquired by hospitals or communities. It is now extremely common and can cause skin, lung, blood, and joint infections.
- 2. Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus
- Enterococcus infection, as a major pathogen causing nosocomial infections, has caused widespread concern in the medical community. The National Hospital Infectious Surveillance and Control System in the United States ranked it as the second largest pathogen in hospital infections.
- 3. E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae carrying the NDM-1 gene
- NDM-1, called New Delhi Metal--lactamase-1, is a drug resistance gene carried by super bacteria. It can neutralize -lactam antibiotics and make bacteria resistant to almost all antibiotics. NDM-1 super bacteria have: extremely strong drug resistance, which greatly increases the difficulty of treating infections caused by it; "infectious" common drug-resistant bacteria cannot "transmit" drug resistance genes to other bacteria However, the NDM-1 gene can be transferred between different bacteria, transmitting resistance. NDM-1 has been found mainly in Klebsiella pneumoniae and E. coli. These two kinds of bacteria are very common bacteria, which do not cause disease under normal circumstances. When they obtained the NDM-1 gene, they turned into almost indestructible super bacteria.
Super bacteria resistance mechanism
- 1. Bacteria produce inactivated or inactivated enzymes, destroying the structure of antibiotics and rendering them inactive.
- 2. Change the structure and quantity of target protein of antibiotics, so that bacteria are no longer sensitive to antibiotics.
- 3. The bacterial cell membrane permeability changes, so that antibiotics cannot enter the bacterial body.
- 4. Bacterial active drug efflux pump function, expelling antibiotics from bacteria.
- 5. The formation of bacterial biofilms reduces the effect of antibiotics.
Super Bacteria Treatment
- In response to the epidemic trend of super bacteria, it is urgent to develop new antibiotics or new treatments. The development cycle of new antibiotics is long, and the development of bacterial resistance is much faster than that of new drugs. Vaccination has played an important role in controlling the infection and epidemic of serious pathogenic bacteria in the history of human health. Specific vaccines will control the spread and infection of super bacteria from the source.
Super Bacteria Prevention
- Superbugs are different from SARS and H1N1 influenza, which were once prevalent on a large scale. SARS and H1N1 influenza are infectious diseases caused by viruses and can be transmitted between humans, humans, and animals. Super bacteria cause a bacterial infection, not an infectious disease, and generally occur in hospitals. Although it is highly resistant, it is not pathogenic. WHO recommends washing hands frequently as a precautionary measure.