Drug-resistant superbug highlights need for new antibiotics

A new superbug equipped with a gene that renders the current generation of antibiotics useless has begun to spread around the globe. The bacteria--which is armed with the NDM-1 gene--has been found in close to 200 patients in south Asia as well as the UK, raising the prospect that it will soon appear in other countries as well. MRSA has already raised fears about drug-resistant bacteria, spurring a lineup of biotech companies to start work on a new generation of bacteria-fighters. But...