Dr. Lonnie King

Antibiotic-resistant genes pass between bacteria

Solving the problem of increasing antibiotic-resistant organisms will require stakeholders to move beyond the blame game and collaborate

It’s a microscopic problem with huge repercussions, repercussions that could end a way of life humans have enjoyed for seven decades. Experts say that antibiotic resistance is on the rise, including resistance to antibiotics important to human health. “It is indeed a crisis, the evolution of antibiotic resistance is occurring at an alarming rate, outpacing

Dr. Leigh Rosengren, a veterinary epidemiologist, urges producers to guard against antimicrobial resistance.

Superbugs in hospitals may also be on farms

Producers urged to practise antibiotic stewardship

Imagine a situation in which meat containing antibiotic-resistant bacteria ends up on the dinner plate of a consumer, who in turn ends up in the hospital with an infection which may not be treatable. That’s the kind of nightmare scenario Dr. Leigh Rosengren envisions when she warns livestock producers about the risk of antimicrobial resistance


A worker collecting cucumbers inside a greenhouse in La Mojonera, southeastern Spain, June 2, 2011. An outbreak of antibiotic-resistant E. coli contaminated vegetables in Europe that year, killing 17 and sickening more than 1,500 in 10 European countries. Antibiotic-resistant bugs are linked to overuse of antibiotics in human medicine and agriculture.   Photo: Francisco Bonilla, Reuters

Producers slowly becoming aware of antimicrobial resistance

Their misuse has the power to render the most powerful tools in modern medicine impotent, yet in Manitoba there is more regulation around the sale of pesticides than antimicrobials used in livestock production. Mounting evidence points to an increase in antimicrobial-resistant diseases worldwide, and a research paper published recently in The Lancet calls for greater

Antimicrobial resistance monitoring on the way for broiler operations

A rise in antimicrobial resistance has prompted officials to start monitoring chicken operations in four provinces. The Canadian Integrated Program for Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance (CIPARS) will begin monitoring broiler chicken operations early this year, the Public Health Agency of Canada said in a statement. The expanded surveillance project will gather data from farms in Ontario,


Prescription only

Last week was recognized in the U.S. as “Get Smart About Antibiotics Week,” and two coalitions came forward with statements about the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance. While they delivered the same message — protecting antibiotics is a shared responsibility — they were notably different in tone. First was an announcement that the U.S. Centers

Research looks for antibiotic alternatives

Plant-based peptides could offer alternatives to antibiotics currently used in livestock production, if research at Prairie Plant Systems pans out. The Saskatoon-based company is examining the possible applications of peptides possessing antibacterial properties. “It’s pretty preliminary research, but the idea behind it is to see if it’s possible to have feed amendments that could prevent


No One In Charge Of Antibiotic Issue

A2002 Health Canada report mapped out a plan for veterinary medicines that would have solved many of the current controversies about antibiotic resistance in meat products, says John Prescott, a professor at the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph. “This was an absolutely outstanding report which involved considerable work and effort from many people across the

Fda Advises Against Drugs In Livestock Feed

An American health regulator has moved a step closer toward recommending a ban on the non-therapeutic use of antibiotics in livestock feed. The U. S. Food and Drug Agency last week issued a “draft guidance” to reduce the risk of antimicrobial resistance in veterinary drugs used in raising food-producing animals. The document, released for public