Carbapenemase-producing enterobacteriaceae (CPE) represent one of the most serious emerging infectious disease threats we currently face. Infections caused by these bacteria are difficult to treat as they are resistant to carbapenems, which are considered ‘last resort’ antibiotics. Solid knowledge of distribution and the extent of presence/absence of resistant organisms on a continental scale has been lacking. Funded by the ECDC, between February and March 2013, national experts from the 28 European Union Member States, Iceland, Norway, the seven EU enlargement countries and Israel were invited to complete a survey to gather information about the spread of CPE, on public health responses and on available national guidance on detection, surveillance, prevention and control. The survey also investigated the laboratory capacity for diagnosis and surveillance at the national level.
Following this survey, a collaborative effort (EuSCAPE) was initiated where all reference laboratory heads identified a number of representative hospitals within each country and over a six-month period the first 5 carbapenemase producing, and first 5 non-carbapenemase producing enterobacteriaceae were collected along with associated metadata (eg resistance phenotypes, mechanism of resistance, age of patient, outcome etc.). The results of this survey will be published shortly.
Agreement to store and WGS isolates from this network has been agreed with all national reference laboratories.
This project will allow the establishment of a solid baseline population structure of major and minor clones of CPE within the European Region. Data will be provided through cGPS within a web application (www.wgsa.net) allowing the interrogation of metadata in a genomic context and forming a solid resource for the public health community.
Comparisons of mobile elements, particularly plasmid exchange in the context of local and international clonal structuring will allow an understanding of the base level population structure alon
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