The World Health Organization released what is a essentially a ‘most wanted list’ of the 12 families of bacteria that pose the greatest threat to our health. WHO officials hope that this list we will spur research and development of new antibiotics. Many of the bacteria listed are already resistant to multiple antibiotics…Antibiotic needs are divided into three categories: critical, high and medium. The WHO worked with researchers at the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Tübingen, Germany, to compile the list. They evaluated bacteria based on level of drug resistance, ease of transmission and health threat to determine which make the list. Scientists and health workers welcomed the list for bringing attention to the problem and calling on governments to prioritize antibiotic research and development. (Humanosphere http://bit.ly/2mxl1me)
Back to the drawing board…The Board of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria was expected to choose a new executive director from a field of three finalists on Monday but, instead, it decided to restart the search process. “The Board is committed to a process that adheres to the highest possible standards, and is fair, transparent, merit-based, and conducted with due diligence and professionalism,” Norbert Hauser, the chair of the board, said in a statement released Monday. (Devex http://bit.ly/2lPEZbN)
This is Trump’s First Big Test at the UN (UN Dispatch http://bit.ly/2lPoLiQ)
Syria expert Joshua Landis is on Global Dispatches podcast http://bit.ly/2m4GIMX)