Bacteria News and Research

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New ways to enhance or block fertilization

Researchers have capitalized on the unique properties of a sperm cell to follow cell membrane fusion as it occurs during fertilization, tracking the full cascade of events for the first time. The findings could reveal new ways to enhance or block fertilization, as well as how to control the secretion of neurotransmitters and hormones such as insulin.

6 Sep 2005

Alcohol-based hand sanitizer gel significantly reduces the spread of gastrointestinal infections in the home

In a study of 292 Greater Boston families - half of which were given hand sanitizer - those that used the gel had a 59 percent reduction in the spread of GI illnesses.

6 Sep 2005

Fewer antibiotic prescriptions leads to fewer superbugs

That's the take-home message behind a new study in the Oct. 15 issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, now available online. The study found that reducing antibiotic use for pediatric respiratory tract infections resulted in lower rates of carriage of drug-resistant bacteria.

6 Sep 2005

Immune cells known as macrophages linked to growth of lymph vessels in eyes,

Scientists at Schepens Eye Research Institute have discovered that a particular immune cell contributes to the growth of new lymph vessels, which aid in healing. This cell, known as a macrophage, is called in by the body during the wound healing process.

6 Sep 2005

Single molecular anchor holds the key to treating many types of bacterial meningitis

By blocking the molecule's anchoring ability, researchers may be able to find a way to stave off the most common serious infection of the central nervous system and a major cause of childhood death and disability. The researchers' findings appear in the September 2005 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

5 Sep 2005

New drug will help fight against superbugs

In the fight against the infections invading hospitals both sides of the globe, scientists have developed a drug that destroys the defences of superbugs, raising hopes it could help quell the rampant and often lethal outbreaks that continue to strike hospitals.

4 Sep 2005

Macrophages kill bacteria - but not always

Macrophages are effective weapons used by our immune system to absorb and digest pathogenic intruders. Some bacteria, however, can subvert this defence mechanism and even multiply within the macrophages.

1 Sep 2005

Deadly health crisis imminent in New Orleans

In New Orleans, as a result of hurricane Katrina, health specialists are predicting a vast and potentially deadly crisis for residents.

1 Sep 2005

MRSA risk doubled in critically ill patients with glucose in their airways

Critically ill patients with glucose in their airways seem to be at double the risk of picking up serious hospital acquired infections, including MRSA, suggests research in Thorax.

1 Sep 2005

More than 15 percent of our genes are mobilized to defend against microbial attacks

The body's overwhelming genetic defense, which has implications for the survival of patients who are severely burned or injured, was revealed in a sweeping analysis of gene activity in volunteers who were injected with a bacterial product that temporarily created flu-like symptoms.

1 Sep 2005

Significant advance in understanding how enzyme can prevent certain bacteria from becoming virulent

A team of biomedical researchers from Brandeis University and the University of Texas at Austin has determined the first 3-dimensional structure of an enzyme that may be pivotal in preventing certain bacterial infections in plants, animals and humans, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

30 Aug 2005

Designer molecules that combine metals such as copper with natural organic materials could treat diseases in the body

That's the finding of chemists at Ohio State University, who have successfully tested such molecules against portions of HIV and Hepatitis C virus RNA in the laboratory. They've also created molecules that act like ACE, or angiotensin-converting enzyme, inhibitors - drugs that are used to lower blood pressure.

30 Aug 2005

Good old fashioned soap and water the answer for "superbug"

Superbugs are bacteria that have mutated to become resistant to common antibiotics which are no longer any use against them.

30 Aug 2005

Dental problems caused by radiation, chemotherapy should be treated before a child undergoes immunosuppression as part of bone marrow transplantation therapy

Many children who undergo bone marrow transplantation (BMT) as part of cancer treatment already have dental abnormalities that leave them vulnerable to potentially life-threatening bacterial infections, according to investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. A report on this study appears in the prepublication online edition of Bone Marrow Transplantation.

29 Aug 2005

Vitamin D puts a brake on activated macrophages - newly discovered mechanism keeps inflammation under control

When macrophages, the first line defender cells of the immune system become activated, they produce an inhibitor, which acts back on them to suppress their activity.

29 Aug 2005

New way to "image" the internal chemistry of bacteria

As part of the search for better ways to track and clean up soil contaminants, scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory and Stony Brook University have developed a new way to "image" the internal chemistry of bacteria.

29 Aug 2005

Unusual type of antibiotic shows promise in defeating deadly "superbugs"

An unusual type of antibiotic being developed by chemists at Notre Dame University shows promise in defeating deadly "superbugs" - highly drug-resistant staph bacteria that are an increasing source of hospital-based infections.

29 Aug 2005

New laboratory method for quickly detecting active anthrax proteins

A new laboratory method for quickly detecting active anthrax proteins within an infected blood sample at extremely low levels has been developed by researchers at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases and the National Cancer Institute.

29 Aug 2005

New way to count bugs in dirt

Don't call them the Dirt Doctors, or Sultans of Soil, they're just clever Lab guys. A team from Los Alamos National Laboratory has a paper in this week's Science Magazine with a new way to count bugs in dirt. Bacteria, that is, in the highly complex world beneath our feet.

29 Aug 2005

Carbohydrate-based vaccine against cancer?

Couldn't we be immunized against cancer? This sounds like a dream, but is in fact a thoroughly realistic research goal. American researchers have now taken an important step forward in the development of a cancer vaccine.

29 Aug 2005