Pathogens resistant to antimicrobials (AMR) – invisible but real threat

On 20–21 November, the UN House supported by the Moscow Office of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) together with Rospotrebnadzor’s Central Research Institute of Epidemiology hosted the 3rd meeting of the Regional Laboratory Network on Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR) in Food and Agriculture in EECCA Countries (a subregion which includes Eastern Europe, Western and Central Asia).

The two-day meeting was part of the World Antimicrobial Resistance Awareness Week (WAAW).

The international community has recognized countering the spread of AMR as a priority. Every conference at all levels discusses the need to act in order to contain this threat – from health professionals and veterinarians to ministers and politicians, said Vasily Akimkin, head of Rospotrebnadzor’s Central Research Institute of Epidemiology, member of RAS.

Vasily Akimkin recalled that in September 2024, the High-Level Panel on AMR convened during the 79th session of the UN General Assembly adopted a declaration “emphasizing the need for global, regional and national efforts to combat AMR within the One Health approach and accepting commitments to take specific measures against AMR in all sectors.”

The 4th Global High-Level Ministerial Conference on AMR that took place last week in Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) stressed the need to build laboratory capacity for better AMR surveillance, including through enhanced laboratory facilities and knowledge of personnel for timely and accurate diagnostics of pathogens and their antimicrobial susceptibility.

Pursuant to the Global Plan of Action and the National Plan of Action on AMR, the Central Research Institute of Epidemiology leads joint efforts on monitoring resistant pathogens at national and international levels with partner countries in the EECCA region, said Vasily Akimkin.

The Russian Federation implements national monitoring within the One Health concept based on two reference centres of Rospotrebnadzor, which monitor AMR in health and food safety sectors, explained the academic.

CRIE has served as platform for the National programme on systemic molecular and genetic epidemiological surveillance of genetic variants of microorganisms circulating in Russia that are resistant to antimicrobials.

CRIE staff together with FAO experts provided training on standardized antimicrobial susceptibility testing methods to specialists from Armenia, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Additionally, CRIE organizes training for specialists from partner countries in EECCA on molecular diagnostics in bacteria and AMR genetic marker identification. Over seven years, CRIE trained more than 300 specialists.

Another key objective in curbing the spread of AMR is increasing awareness and improving understanding of this phenomenon not only among health community, but also among the public, said Vasily Akimkin in conclusion. Effective communication, education and advocacy are the very major objectives of the WAAW.

The WAAW, celebrated every year between 18-24 November, is a global campaign aiming to encourage health workers, veterinarians, environmentalists, agronomists, farmers, policymakers, youth, civil society, mass media and the public in their fight against the emergence and spread of pathogens resistant to medicines, noted Oleg Kobiakov, Director of FAO's Moscow Office.

Junxia Song and Francesca Latronico, experts from FAO Headquarters in Rome, and representatives of other international organizations participating in the Quadripartite collaboration on One Health – World Health Organization (WHO), World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) – introduced new global initiatives against the spread of AMR.

Tatiana Kolpakova, the lead expert at WHO Moscow Office and public health specialist, spoke of the support provided by WHO Regional Office for Europe to Member States.

The list includes, inter alia: facilitating implementation of the Road Map and the National Action Plan (NAPs) on AMR; promoting enabling behaviours using the Tailoring Antimicrobial Resistance Programmes (TAP) tool; improving infection prevention and control and water, sanitation and hygiene measures; promoting antimicrobial stewardship; optimizing surveillance of antimicrobial consumption; raising community awareness of AMR in partnership with civil society and other stakeholders; promoting the One Health approach and multisectoral coordination; improving quality, biosafety and cost-efficiency of laboratory services.

In 2022 alone, 1.15 million human deaths in total were caused by bacterial AMR, noted Dr Marina Sokolova, Science, Finance and Administration Officer at the WOAH Regional Representation for Europe. By 2050, if no measures are taken, the impact of AMR on livestock production may lead to the decrease of global GDP by 40 billion USD per year.

Among WOAH Member States, 20% still use antimicrobials as growth promoters, noted the expert. Only a few countries have introduced legislative and regulatory measures to eradicate this practice.

Vladimir Moshkalo, Head of the UNEP Office in Russia, delivered a video message to the participants on the importance of integrating the environmental sector in the fight against AMR.

Daniel Beltran-Alcrudo and Dora Kovacs, FAO’s leading experts who came to Moscow from the FAO Regional Office in Budapest with the purpose of participating in the meeting, moderated two sessions, in particular the one on current trends in epidemiological surveillance and monitoring of AMR in food and agriculture worldwide.

Dora Kovacs presented the achievements of the project Reducing the Advance of AMR in Food and Agriculture.

Agnes Agunos from the FAO Headquarters delivered a presentation on the International FAO AMR Monitoring (InFARM) system, and Melba Reantaso, expert of FAO's Fisheries and Aquaculture Division, reported on modern innovations in epidemiological surveillance of AMR in aquaculture.

Johanne Ellis-Iversen, special advisor of the Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries of Denmark, highlighted the work conducted in Denmark to reduce AMR  in veterinary medicine and agriculture.

During the second day of the expert meeting with in-person and online participation, national experts presented country reports their work on AMR in livestock production: Arman Gevorgyan from Armenia; Ekaterina Fedorenko from Belarus; Gulzhan Maxutova and Temirkhan Elshibaev from Kazakhstan; Aygul Djumakhanova from Kyrgyzstan; Nina Kulikova from Russia; Markhabo Kayumova from Tajikistan; and Gerelmaa Ulziibat from Mongolia.

Igor Manzeniuk and Maria Morozova from the CRIE, who moderated the session, presented information on the work of the Regional Laboratory Network on AMR in food and agriculture in EECCA countries in 2024.

The final session on laboratory monitoring of AMR in food and agriculture featured reports of CRIE staff: summary data on the study of AMR in food in the countries of the EECСA region in 2018-2023 (Nina Kulikova) and the role of sequencing in epidemiological surveillance of AMR of microorganisms isolated from food and agriculture (Yulia Mikhailova).

The last presentation covered  the use of antibacterial drugs in animal husbandry, and the monitoring of resistance in pathogens of socially significant foodborne toxic infections. It was delivered by Olga Ivanova, expert of the Russian State Centre for animal feed and drug standardization and quality (VGNKI).

The 4th meeting of the Network will take place in November 2025 in the capital city of one of the member countries.

Presentations of the participants are available here.

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BACKGROUND

Drug-resistant microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites, can emerge and spread among humans, animals and plants, and in the environment. They don't recognize borders and pose a threat to everyone and everywhere.

The spread of AMR to humans and animals is possible through direct contact with each other, via contaminated water or food, and via the environment.

The growing scale and unsustainable patterns of antimicrobial use in various sectors, alongside other factors, such as climate change, create favourable conditions for the development of drug resistance in microbes.

Since AMR is a cross-cutting issue, measures taken with a One Health approach involving a whole range of sectors are needed in order to resolve it. This integrated approach recognizes close links between human, domestic and wild animals’ health, and plant and environmental health, including ecosystems.