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A super bug and a super cure

by Gyanvitaranam

   Even as a new Chinese dragon in the form of a super bug threatens the world with total resistance to antibiotics, the cloud of despair has shown a silver lining     ---a miracle cure originating right from the human immune system. 

 No, it is not media hype or an empty threat of a super power. It is cold reality reported by Chinese doctors. They have found a super bug, which defies even the most powerful antibiotic called colistin, often used as a last resort to treat serious infections.

   The doctors located the deadly bacteria in patients as well as in livestock in China. They revealed disturbing statistics: one-fifth of the animals tested and 15 per cent of raw meat samples and 16 patients have got the bacteria against which there is no cure. What is particularly alarming is that the identified culprit, known as MCR-1 gene, is a new mutation that can easily swap its code with other bacterial strains. The gene,....

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