New Delhi

An analysis published in Public Health journal The Lancet Planetary Health has found a strong association between climate change and rising antibiotic resistance in salmonella bacteria, with researchers estimating a 10 per cent global increase in antimicrobial resistance genes linked to changing climate conditions.

The study showed that 82 per cent of the countries analysed recorded increases in antibiotic resistance genes in salmonella, a bacteria responsible for illnesses such as food poisoning and typhoid fever.

According to the findings, the sharpest climate-related increases in resistance were seen in the Middle East and North Africa, followed by South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

Researchers, including scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said the rise in antimicrobial resistance (AMR) was influenced not only by increasing temperatures but also by changing rainfall patterns.

They noted that environmental shifts appear to accelerate the ability of bacteria to adapt to antibiotics.

The analysis examined more than 4.8 lakh salmonella genome samples collected from 139 countries and regions between 1940 and 2023.

It found that the global average abundance of antimicrobial resistance genes in salmonella had risen by 38 per cent over the study period.

“Climate change is associated with a 10 per cent global rise in the abundance of salmonella ARGs (antimicrobial resistance genes), with increases observed in 82 of 100 countries,” the authors wrote.

Scientists have long warned that worsening climate change, including rising temperatures and extreme weather events, could contribute to greater spread of infectious diseases and increased use of antibiotics, thereby fuelling antimicrobial resistance.

The study also projected how resistance genes in salmonella could evolve by 2100 under different climate emission scenarios.

Researchers found that if countries successfully meet low-emission climate goals while improving responsible antibiotic use, resistance gene levels could be reduced by 24 per cent compared to the highest-emission scenario.

The authors stressed the need to incorporate climate change considerations into global strategies aimed at monitoring and combating antimicrobial resistance.

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They added that stronger climate action, responsible antibiotic usage and improved disease surveillance across humans, animals and the environment would be crucial to limiting the future spread of AMR.