NDM-1[1] is an enzyme that makes bacteriaresistant to a broad range of beta-lactam antibiotics. These include the antibiotics of the carbapenem family, which are a mainstay for the treatment of antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. The gene for NDM-1 is one member of a large gene family that encodes beta-lactamaseenzymes called carbapenemases. Bacteria that produce carbapenemases are often referred to in the news media as "superbugs" because infections caused by them are difficult to treat. Such bacteria are usually sensitive only to polymyxins and tigecycline.[2]
NDM-1 was first detected in 2008 in a culture plate of Klebsiella pneumoniae isolated from a Swedish patient of Indian origin. It was later detected in bacteria in India, Pakistan, the United Kingdom,[3] the United States,[4] Canada,[5] Japan,[6] Egypt,[7] and Iraq.[8]
^Indian Network for Surveillance of Antimicrobial Resistance (INSAR) group (webappendix) (November 2010). "New Delhi metallo-β-lactamase 1". The Lancet Infectious Diseases. 10 (11): 749–750. doi:10.1016/S1473-3099(10)70239-5. PMID21029984.