News outlets report on a study published Monday in Nature Genetics showing a drug-resistant typhoid strain is widespread in Asia and Africa.

Agence France-Presse: Drug-resistant typhoid now ‘epidemic’ in Africa
“Drug-resistant typhoid has become an invisible epidemic in Africa, scientists said on Monday after an unprecedented probe into the disease…” (Le Roux, 5/11).

HealthDay News/U.S. News & World Report: Antibiotic-Resistant Typhoid Spreading Across Asia, Africa
“An antibiotic-resistant strain of the bacteria that causes typhoid fever has spread to many countries and reached epidemic levels in Africa, a new study warns…” (Thompson, 5/11).

Nature: Hidden African typhoid epidemic traced to drug-resistant bacteria
“…To trace the source of these infections, a team led by Vanessa Wong, an infectious disease specialist at the Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute in Hinxton, U.K., sequenced the genomes of more than 1,800 S. Typhi samples from 63 countries. A culprit quickly emerged: an S. Typhi strain known as H58 comprised 47 percent of the researchers’ samples, and showed widespread resistance to a number of antibiotics…” (Reardon, 5/11).

Reuters: Drug-resistant ‘superbug’ strain of typhoid spreads worldwide
“An antibiotic-resistant ‘superbug’ strain of typhoid fever has spread globally, driven by a single family of the bacteria, called H58, according to the findings of a large international study. The research, involving some 74 scientists in almost two dozen countries, is one of the most comprehensive sets of genetic data on a human infectious agent and paints a worrying scene of an ‘ever-increasing public health threat,’ they said…” (Kelland, 5/11).

Science: Drug-resistant typhoid fever becoming an epidemic in Africa and Asia
“…According to the researchers, a clone of the bacterium that’s frequently multidrug resistant, called H58, is rolling across Asia and Africa. Its spread is likely to increase the cost of treatments and lead to more complications, they warn…” (Kupferschmidt, 5/11).