Tuberculosis bacteria resistant to a common anti TB drug, pathogen that causes nosocomial infections among those identified as most critical
Seven years since it published the last such list, the World Health Organisation has updated the Bacterial Pathogens Priority List (BPPL) featuring 15 families of antibiotic-resistant bacteria grouped into critical, high and medium categories for prioritization.
Included in the list as pathogens of critical priority are Acinetobacter baumannii (common pathogen causing hospital acquired infections) that is resistant to carbapenem and the tuberculosis causing bacteria that is resistant to rifampicin, a common anti TB drug. On the medium priority list are resistant varieties of the typhoid bacteria, gonorrhoea pathogen and a common bacteria that causes throat infections. The last list came out in 2017.
Pathogens become resistant to antibiotics when their exposure to those chemicals is suboptimal – when the exposure is long enough for them to understand how to resist it but too short to actually kill them. It is the commonest consequence of overuse or misuse of antibiotics.
The World Health Organization (WHO) today released its updated Bacterial Priority Pathogens List (BPPL) 2024, featuring 15 families of antibiotic-resistant bacteria grouped into critical, high and medium categories for prioritization. The list provides guidance on the development of new and necessary treatments to stop the spread of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
AMR occurs when bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites no longer respond to medicines, making people sicker and increasing the risk of disease spread, illness and deaths. AMR is driven in large part by the misuse and overuse of antimicrobials. The updated BPPL incorporates new evidence and expert insights to guide research and development (R&D) for new antibiotics and promote international coordination to foster innovation.
“By mapping the global burden of drug-resistant bacteria and assessing their impact on public health, this list is key to guiding investment and grappling with the antibiotics pipeline and access crisis. Since the first Bacterial Priority Pathogens List was released in 2017, the threat of antimicrobial resistance has intensified, eroding the efficacy of numerous antibiotics and putting many of the gains of modern medicine at risk,” said Dr Yukiko Nakatani, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Antimicrobial Resistance ad interim.
The global health body said that gram-negative bacteria resistant to last-resort antibiotics, and Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB bacteria) resistant to the antibiotic rifampicin, present major global threats due to their high burden, and ability to resist treatment and spread resistance to other bacteria.
“Antimicrobial resistance jeopardizes our ability to effectively treat high burden infections, such as tuberculosis, leading to severe illness and increased mortality rates,” said Dr Jérôme Salomon, WHO’s Assistant Director-General for Universal Health Coverage, Communicable and Noncommunicable Diseases.
