E. coli News and Research

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E. coli or Escherichia coli is the name of a type of bacteria that lives in your intestines. Most types of E. coli are harmless. However, some types can make you sick and cause diarrhea. One type causes travelers' diarrhea. The worst type of E. coli causes bloody diarrhea, and can sometimes cause kidney failure and even death. These problems are most likely to occur in children and in adults with weak immune systems. You can get E. coli infections by eating foods containing the bacteria. To help avoid food poisoning and prevent infection, handle food safely. Cook meat well, wash fruits and vegetables before eating or cooking them, and avoid unpasteurized milk and juices. You can also get the infection by swallowing water in a swimming pool contaminated with human waste. Most cases of E. coli infection get better without treatment in 5 to 10 days.

Public Health Wales uses Luminex's xTAG GPP for outbreak investigations during Olympic events

Luminex Corporation announced today that Public Health Wales is using Luminex's CE marked xTAG Gastrointestinal Pathogen Panel (GPP) for outbreak investigation activities during Olympic and Paralympic training and events taking place in Wales. Results of a substantial diagnostic validation of the GPP test conducted by The Public Health Wales Microbiology laboratory team at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff, are anticipated to be published in a peer reviewed journal

From Luminex 6 Aug 2012

Scientists decode stability blueprint of rhomboid enzyme

Johns Hopkins scientists have decoded for the first time the "stability blueprint" of an enzyme that resides in a cell's membrane, mapping which parts of the enzyme are important for its shape and function.

1 Aug 2012

Mapping rhomboid enzymes could eventually lead to drugs to treat malaria

31 Jul 2012

Slippery technology prevents harmful bacterial slime from forming on surfaces

Biofilms may no longer have any solid ground upon which to stand. A team of Harvard scientists has developed a slick way to prevent the troublesome bacterial communities from ever forming on a surface. Biofilms stick to just about everything, from copper pipes to steel ship hulls to glass catheters. The slimy coatings are more than just a nuisance, resulting in decreased energy efficiency, contamination of water and food supplies, and-especially in medical settings-persistent infections. Even cavities in teeth are the unwelcome result of bacterial colonies.

31 Jul 2012

Researchers decode deadly 2011 E. coli outbreak in Germany

The secret to the deadly 2011 E. coli outbreak in Germany has been decoded, thanks to research conducted at Michigan State University.

27 Jul 2012

Tips to prevent illness in crowds

Massive crowds from around the globe will mingle in London during the Olympics, and that means a world-class array of germs will mix with them. Mayo Clinic infectious diseases expert Gregory Poland, M.D., offers several tips for avoiding illness when you are around lots of people, whether at the Olympics, a professional football game, convention, arena concert or other major event.

26 Jul 2012

Neogen fourth quarter revenues increase 11.4% to $48,545,000

Neogen Corporation announced today that its revenues for the fourth quarter of its FY 2012, which ended May 31, increased 11.4% from the previous year's comparable quarter to $48,545,000. Net income for the fiscal year's final quarter was $0.25 per share, the same as the prior year's fourth quarter of $0.25 per share.

24 Jul 2012

Experts examine host recognition of Staphylococcus and E.coli bacteria

We are surrounded by bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites. The fact that we nevertheless do not fall prey to infections is thanks to certain cellular sensor molecules such as toll-like receptors (TLR), which recognize the molecular structure of pathogens and intercede by ensuring an often completely unnoticeable elimination of the invaders. Their immune-activating abilities were only detected in 1998, a discovery which was awarded with the Nobel Prize

21 Jul 2012

New class of chemically produced antimicrobial agents could become future infection treatment alternative

The World Health Organization (WHO) has named antimicrobial resistance one of the most important threats to human health. We therefore need to find new compounds that can be used as future alternatives to conventional antibiotics.

20 Jul 2012

Researchers discover HVEM’s unknown role in fighting off E. coli infections

Despite ongoing public health efforts, E. coli outbreaks continue to infiltrate the food supply, annually causing significant sickness and death throughout the world. But the research community is gaining ground. In a major finding, published today in the scientific journal Nature, researchers from the La Jolla Institute for Allergy & Immunology have discovered a molecule's previously unknown role in fighting off E. coli and other bacterial infections, a discovery that could lead to new ways to protect people from these dangerous microorganisms.

16 Jul 2012

Cranberry benefits not an old wives’ tale

Consuming cranberry products can reduce the risk for urinary tract infections, particularly in women, a meta-analysis shows.

13 Jul 2012

UC Davis, CDC, Agilent and FDA partner to develop public database of foodborne pathogen genomes

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the University of California, Davis, Agilent Technologies Inc., and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) announced today a collaboration to create a public database of 100,000 foodborne pathogen genomes to help speed identification of bacteria responsible for foodborne outbreaks.

12 Jul 2012

Researchers settle controversy over the mechanism by which silver nanoparticles kill bacteria

Rice University researchers have settled a long-standing controversy over the mechanism by which silver nanoparticles, the most widely used nanomaterial in the world, kill bacteria.

12 Jul 2012

TLR1 plays a critical role in protecting the body from food-borne illnesses

A naturally occurring protein called TLR1 plays a critical role in protecting the body from illnesses caused by eating undercooked pork or drinking contaminated water, according to new research from the University of Southern California (USC).

11 Jul 2012

Effective ketoprofen dose identified for pig endotoxins

Compared with tap water, treatment with ketoprofen significantly reduces the rectal temperature and total clinical scores among pigs challenged with the Escherichia coli endotoxin, report researchers.

10 Jul 2012

UCLA to examine whether copper surfaces result in reduced hospital infection rates

Hospital-acquired infections are a huge public health burden, and hospital environments play a key role in harboring potentially deadly bacteria such as E. coli, C. difficile and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

10 Jul 2012

Study shows link between changing rates of antibiotic consumption and resistance

A new study published in Clinical Infectious Diseases and available online shows how seasonal changes in outpatient antibiotic use - retail sales of antibiotics typically get a boost during the winter - can significantly alter seasonal patterns of drug resistance. The findings suggest that hospital campaigns to reduce inappropriate antibiotic use should be coordinated with efforts in the broader community if they are to be most effective.

3 Jul 2012

Study identifies possible new approach to defeat bacterial infections

Research led by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists has identified a possible new approach to defeating bacterial infections by targeting an innate immune system component in a bid to invigorate the immune response.

3 Jul 2012

Survey of home healthcare practices related to infection control

A healthy boy was infected with antibiotic-resistant bacterium that was traced to his mother's nurse's bag left in the family's car after his mother's home healthcare visit to a patient with the same infection. Although the boy's infection and the patient's infection were never DNA tested, the coincidence was remarkable.

26 Jun 2012

Next-generation sequencing technologies for the 1,000 Rare Diseases Project

BGI, the world's largest genomics organization, and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) today announced that they have jointly initiated the 1,000 Rare Diseases Project with the aim of accelerating the discovery of genetic variants underlying rare diseases.

19 Jun 2012