Japan: outbreak of antibiotic-resistant mycoplasma bacteria due to ?mutation?, especially in Fukushima, Gunma, and Tochigi prefectures

[Gert van der Hoek]

Factsheet Mycoplasma bacteria

Japan TV: Outbreak of antibiotic-resistant mycoplasma bacteria due to “mutation”, especially in Fukushima, Gunma, Tochigi — 500 cases in a week

Sept. 20, 2012

Japan: Outbreak of antibiotic-resistant strain of Mycoplasma reported, especially in Fukushima, Gunma and Tochigi Prefectures. 80% affected are children under age 14. 501 cases were reported in the week of September 3.

Specialists say the bacteria underwent mutation to become antibiotic resistant.

ENENews

NIH




Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria From the Fukushima Nuclear Accident?, Neurobiologist Dr. Douglas Fields, Jan. 9, 2011:

Bacteria are notorious for developing resistance to antibiotics through rapid mutation and natural selection. Radiation is a sure way to stimulate mutations. Could the radiation that will be contaminating the environment surrounding the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant for hundreds of years produce bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics?

ENENews

 

[alert]

Re: Japan: outbreak of antibiotic-resistant mycoplasma bacteria due to ?mutation?, especially in Fukushima

Re: Japan: outbreak of antibiotic-resistant mycoplasma bacteria due to ?mutation?, especially in Fukushima

Well, I have an issue with the concept that what happened at the Fukushima Daiichi plant could have anything to do with mutations in bacteria or viruses. Radiation is frequently used as a disinfectant to kill bacteria or viruses; that's why the US irradiated a significant portion of its mail in response to the anthrax attacks of 2001.

Several internet sites at the time of the accident released similar alarms about H5N1 mutations in the wake of the radioactive release. Those fears have not played out.

There is something suspicious and inconsistent about that last article's dating. Initially, it is dated January 9, 2012, but then later changes the date to January 9, 2011. The accident did not occur until March 2011.

If there is a mutation in Mycoplasma in Fukushima, it likely has little to do with the nuclear accident. Notably, the other two prefectures mentioned, Gunma and Tochigi, are not adjacent to Fukushima, and recevied little or no radioactive release.

 

[Emily]

Re: Japan: outbreak of antibiotic-resistant mycoplasma bacteria due to ?mutation?, especially in Fukushima, Gunma, and Tochigi prefectures

Those are good questions, Alert. I can't even verify an expert is saying that a resistant mutant has been found. A Twitter tweet is the source of that statement and they refer to this video. :

<object width="560" height="315"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/oDrKzc-j7NI?version=3&hl=en_US"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/oDrKzc-j7NI?version=3&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="560" height="315" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed></object>

The text at the youtube page translates to:
Mainly in children, an infection of "mycoplasma pneumonia" has been increasing at a pace of worst. Treatment does not work and so far, the danger is growing further.

Unfortunately I can't translate the video.

This article is also referenced and there is a mycoplasma surge, just as the graph shows, but I didn't see anything about a mutation there, (per a Google translation).
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20120918/k10015102041000.html

Fukushima Diary has a post here about the outbreak and he does not mention a specific mutation being found. (He had actually already reported the mycoplasma case increase in July.) He reports that Chlamydial pneumonia cases are also at a 10 yr high and has a link to an IDSC graph on that.

Regarding the Guma and Tochigi, they are close to Fukushima and did receive fallout, whether that is relevant to the mycoplasma outbreak, I don't know.

From a Google search:
Import Alert 99-33
www.accessdata.fda.gov › ... › Import Alerts › Imports Alerts by Number
Jul 25, 2012 – The following prefectures are in the closest proximity to the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant: Fukushima, Gunma Ibaraki, and Tochigi

There was food contamination in both areas:
http://www.japanfocus.org/-Martin_J_-Frid/3722

I looked at the date discrepancy issue and I think that's just due to a typo in a ENENEWS post. When you go to the article referenced as from 1/9/2011, it actually is an article published on 1/9/2012. However it discusses research that did not suggest that the bacteria studied, (only 4 non-mycoplasma strains were studied and the experiment couldn't totally simulate real-life exposures),would mutate into a more resistant form. Actually they got the opposite result:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-douglas-fields/antibiotic-resistant-bact_b_1176687.html

Antibiotic Resistant Bacteria From the Fukushima Nuclear Accident?
Posted: 01/09/12 11:44 AM ET
Dr. Douglas Fields
Neurobiologist; Author, The Other Brain
[snip]
Shigeyuki Nakanishi and colleagues examined the potential effect of gamma radiation equivalent to levels in the environment surrounding the Fukushima plant to determine if doses equivalent to exposure for 1, 10, and 100 years could alter antibiotic resistance of several types of bacteria. The results showed that none of these doses of gamma radiation increased resistance to 14 different antibiotics. In fact, two bacteria, E. coli and Pseudomonas aeruginosa, became slightly more susceptible to antibiotics after gamma ray exposure.

The researchers conclude that there is no evidence to support concern that the Fukushima disaster may have bred antibiotic resistant bacteria. But, the scientists point out in their article; they were forced to treat the bacteria with a one-time exposure of radiation. How bacteria might respond to the actual situation of sub-lethal exposure to radiation surrounding the power plant for years on end is not known. Time will tell.

I don't think there is much comfort, though, in bacteria mutating into a less fit form of life after that one dose radiation exposure. If humans become less fit and easier to kill, too, then maybe their immune systems are finding it harder to fight off infections.

Whatever the reason, they do seem to be having a problem so I hope a way of treating the children's infections is found soon.