Bacteria // Current

How Viruses Destroy Bacteria

Viruses are well known for attacking humans and animals, but some viruses instead... more

Simon_Ruymaekers
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5 days ago
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Are we smarter than bacteria?

Are we that much different from any other life form? Do we all meet the same fate?

loupetho
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1 month ago
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Pfizer Vaccine Halted After Baby Deaths

"The Dutch health institute RIVM has stopped the distribution of a batch of Pfizer's... more

rodstradamus
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7 days ago
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Researchers reveal key to how bacteria can clear mercury pollution

A new discovery by scientists at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, and Oak Ridge... more

ScottP
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Dangerous microbe thrives in shower heads

Shower heads are a perfect environment for a dangerous bacteria related to... more

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Dangerous staph germs found at West Coast beaches

Dangerous staph bacteria have been found in sand and water for the first time at five public beaches along the coast of Washington, and scientists think the state is not the only one with this problem.

The germ is MRSA, or methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus – a hard-to-treat bug once rarely seen outside of hospitals but that increasingly is spreading in ordinary community settings such as schools, locker rooms and gyms.

The germ causes nasty skin infections as well as pneumonia and other life-threatening problems. It spreads mostly through human contact. Little is known about environmental sources that also may harbor the germ.

Finding it at the beach suggests one place that people may be picking it up, said Marilyn Roberts, a microbiologist at the University of Washington in Seattle.

"We don't know the risk" for any individual going to a beach, she said. "But the fact that we found these organisms suggests that the level is much higher than we had thought."

She presented results Saturday at an American Society for Microbiology conference in California. Last year, her team reported finding a different type of bacteria, enterococci, at five West Coast beaches. And earlier this year, University of Miami researchers reported finding staph bacteria in four out of 10 ocean water samples collected by hundreds of bathers at a South Florida beach.

Many communities also commonly restrict bathing at beaches because of contamination with fecal bacteria.

In the new study, researchers tested 10 beaches in Washington along the West Coast and in Puget Sound from February to September 2008. Staph bacteria were found at nine of them, including five with MRSA. The strains resembled the highly resistant ones usually seen in hospitals, rather than the milder strains acquired in community settings, Roberts said.

No staph was found in samples from two beaches in southern California.

People should not avoid beaches or be afraid to enjoy them, scientists say.

"It's probably prudent to shower when you come out" to lower the risk of bacteria staying on the skin, said Dr. Lance Peterson, a microbiologist at NorthShore University Health System in Evanston, Ill.

"Make sure you get all the sand off," and cover any open cuts or scrapes before playing in the sand, Roberts added. Digging in the sand or being buried in it seems to raise the risk of infection, she said.Dangerous staph bacteria have been found in sand and water for the first time at five... more

Future_America
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2 months ago
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Super Honey Helps Fight Off MRSA Superbugs

Honey lovers, you have a whole new reason to feel dedicated to the sweet sticky stuff.... more

TheodoreSouza
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2 months ago
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Prospector's Health Tonic Tricks (they didn't have no vaccines)

Naturally Repair: Diabetics, Parkinson's, Multiple Sclerosis and Alzheimer's,... more

Gravity_Man
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3 months ago
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Rosetta Stone of bacterial communication may have been found

"Quorum sensing is a cell-to-cell communication mechanism that enables bacteria to... more

johnadam33
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3 months ago
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See Through the Eyes of the Bacteria

Viewing microscopic things that appear under the microscope as ultra visual effects is... more

CHANLEEPENG
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4 months ago
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Germs are More Intelligent Than Humans

Super germs are threats to human health.

CHANLEEPENG
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4 months ago
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Manuka honey can kill superbugs

Honey has been used to treat wounds since ancient times, but recent years have seen a surge of medical interest in the sticky stuff. Manuka honey has been the subject of particular interest, with the results of a study just published by Sydney University finding that it has powerful antibacterial properties, and is even effective against antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

Associate Professor Dee Carter, from Sydney University's School of Molecular and Microbial Biosciences said: "Our research is the first to clearly show that these honey-based products could in many cases replace antibiotic creams on wounds and equipment such as catheters. Using honey as an intermediate treatment could also prolong the life of antibiotics."

"Most bacteria that cause infections in hospitals are resistant to at least one antibiotic, and there is an urgent need for new ways to treat and control surface infections."

She added: "We don't quite know how these honeys prevent and kill infections, but a compound in them called methylglyoxal seems to interact with a number of other unknown compounds in honey to prevent infectious bacteria developing new strains that are resistant to it."

Honey is a complex substance, containing up to 800 compounds and its complexity means it has been difficult to pinpoint exactly how it kills bacteria.

Manuka is a type of honey that is made by bees pollinating the flowers of the Manuka bush, a member of the Leptospermum family that grows naturally in New Zealand.

Now, an Australian company is claiming to have produced the world's most potent medical-grade antibacterial honey, made by bees pollinating the Australian jellybush, also a member of the Leptospermum family.

Australia's Medi Bioactive Honey Company claims its Berringa antibacterial honey has twice the antibacterial content of normal manuka honey, and has launched the product in the UK.

Dr Rose Cooper of the University of Wales Cardiff School of Health Sciences has researched honey's antibacterial action and has written a book called "Honey in Modern Wounds Management."

Cooper told CNN that there are many components in honey that contribute to its antibacterial nature. She says its high sugar content, low water content and low pH are all factors. Additionally, some honey produces hydrogen peroxide, which can kill bacteria.

Since 2004, Britain's National Health Service has licensed the use of manuka-honey wound dressings and sterilized medical grade manuka-honey creams.Honey has been used to treat wounds since ancient times, but recent years have seen a... more