On August 11, 2010 (July 2, 2010 lunar calendar), a new type of superbug was discovered in South Asia. On August 11, 2010, British and Indian researchers reported on Wednesday that some patients who traveled to India for surgery and other treatments were infected with a new type of superbug. The bacteria, which are resistant to almost all antibiotics, are spreading from South Asia to the UK and possibly around the world. The superbug, known as NDM-1, was first identified last year by Timothy Walsh of Cardiff University in the UK. He found two strains of bacteria in a Swedish patient who had been hospitalized in India. The researchers say the superbug spans different bacterial species, making many patients infected in hospitals more drug-resistant. NDM-1 bacteria are resistant even to carbapenem antibiotics, which are often considered a last resort for emergency treatment of drug-resistant conditions. Several cases of infection have been reported in South Asia and the UK. Researchers are working to determine the prevalence of NDM-1 bacteria in these patients. Most NDM-1 superbugs are found in E. coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. The bacteria are resistant to antibiotics other than tigecycline and colistin. In some patients, even these two antibiotics do not work. Crucially, the NDM-1 superbug appears as a structure of DNA, known as a plastid. It can replicate and move freely in the bacteria, giving the bacterium an amazing potential to spread and mutate, the researchers said. "Air travel and migration allow this superbug to spread rapidly between different countries and continents," the researchers said. "Most of these countries where the bacteria already exist have not been detected." On October 28, 2010, there were three cases of superbug infection in mainland China, including two seven-month-old babies in Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region and another 83-year-old man with lung cancer in Fujian. Two newborns have recovered and been discharged from hospital, but the 83-year-old man has died. Comments: Because the development of new antibiotics is relatively slow, dealing with superbugs has become a problem facing modern medicine.