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Maggots could help in MRSA battle
Scientists hope maggots can help produce an antibiotic that can tackle strains of the MRSA superbug.
The researchers at Swansea University are developing the antibiotic from maggot secretions from the common green bottle fly.
They hope to develop it into an injection, pill or ointment to tackle 12 strains of MRSA, as well as as well as E.coli and C.difficile.
The research also involved scientists at universities in Belgium.
The antibiotic has been named Seraticin and scientists have studied how it can prevent infection.
It takes around 20 maggots to make one drop of the antibiotic in its purified form.
Scientists now hope to complete the identification of the compound and find a way to synthesise it, before it can be tested on human cells and trialled to determine its medical effectiveness.
Using live maggots on infected wounds is a well established method of tackling infections.
Read more... Scientists hope maggots can help produce an antibiotic that can tackle strains of the MRSA superbug. ... more -
MRSA Superbug Found to be Widespread in Pigs, Pig Farmers
The antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is widespread among both pigs and pig farmers in Canada, suggesting the livestock industry as a possible source of the disease, according to a study published in the journal "Veterinary Microbiology."
Researchers examined 258 pigs on 20 farms in Ontario, and also tested the workers on those farms. They found that 45 percent of farms, 25 percent of pigs and 20 percent of farmers were infected with MRSA, rates substantially higher than the rate of infection in the general North American population.
Ugg...just when I was heading to Canada... The antibiotic-resistant staph bacteria known as methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is widespread among both pigs and ... more -
Superbugs kill record numbers in UK
" Superbugs are killing a record number of patients in hospitals, nursing homes and hospices, the British Office for National Statistics indicated. "
According to the offices reports deaths from Clostridium difficile and MRSA doubled to 8,000 in 2006 from 5,300 in 2005 according to the offices reports in England and Whales, and also states that the vast majority of the inflicted died in hospitals, or their hospices/nursing homes.
MRSA only increased by 4 deaths in 2006, however Clostridium difficile increased from 3,719 in 2005 to 6,424 in 2006.
" The Office for National Statistics said many of the hospitals reporting large numbers of deaths from the infections likely had high numbers of patients.
The office got the information from death certificates that showed where patients died but not where they acquired the infection or were treated before their deaths. " " Superbugs are killing a record number of patients in hospitals, nursing homes and hospices, the British Office for National Sta... more -
"Oops, Our B...": Health Officials Issue Apology to Gay Community for M...
Over the last few weeks, the subject of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) has hit the media making a big impact in the gay community. Several reputable news agencies including the New York Times and the San Francisco Chronicle published detailed studies about the spread of the disease between men who have homosexual relations. While the risk of theâÃÂàsuperbugâÃÂàdoes have a higher rate of infection among men who have sex with men, the University of California San Francisco, who first reported the problem, issued a public apology to the gay community for singling them out as major contributor of this potentially deadly disease. Over the last few weeks, the subject of Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) has hit the media making a big impact in th... more
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New bacteria strain afflicts gay men in Boston and San Francisco
This is frightening news. A new, highly drug-resistant strain of the "flesh-eating" MRSA bacteria is being spread among gay men in San Francisco and Boston, researchers have reported.
In a study published online Monday by the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, the bacteria seemed to be spread most easily through anal intercourse but also through casual skin-to-skin contact and touching contaminated surfaces.
The authors warned that unless microbiology laboratories were able to identify the strain and doctors prescribed the proper antibiotic therapy, the infection could soon spread among other groups and become a wider threat.
The new strain seems to have "spread rapidly" in gay populations in San Francisco and Boston, the researchers wrote, and "has the potential for rapid, nationwide dissemination" among gay men. This is frightening news. A new, highly drug-resistant strain of the "flesh-eating" MRSA bacteria is being spread among gay ... more -
New Flesh Eating Bacteria Attacking Gay Men
A new drug resistant form of MRSA bacteria is showing up in alarming numbers in gay men in San Fransisco and Boston. Anal intercourse and other skin to skin contact will transfer the disease. It is just a matter of time before this is a national epidemic effecting the entire population. In other words THIS IS NOT A GAY DISEASE. Like most outbreaks, the gay population usually experiences them first. Symptoms are, "causing abscesses and infection in the buttocks and genital area." 19,000 people died from MRSA in 2005 according to the CDC. The best prevention is a thorough scrubbing following skin to skin contact with other people.
For a more graphic images of MRSA symptoms, follow this link: http://www.ronjones.org/Weblinks/MRSA-Photos.html A new drug resistant form of MRSA bacteria is showing up in alarming numbers in gay men in San Fransisco and Boston. Anal intercourse... more -
Deadly Strain of Staph Passed in Gay Sex
A drug-resistant strain of potentially deadly bacteria has moved beyond the borders of U.S. hospitals and is being transmitted among gay men during sex, researchers said on Monday.
They said methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, or MRSA, is beginning to appear outside hospitals in San Francisco, Boston, New York and Los Angeles. A drug-resistant strain of potentially deadly bacteria has moved beyond the borders of U.S. hospitals and is being transmitted among g... more -
Deadly New Flesh-Eating Disease Emerges
Uh oh. A deadly new drug-resistant strain of the superbug MRSA which can lead to a flesh-eating form of pneumonia has emerged, experts have warned.
Research suggests it's more prevalent among the gay community; in San Francisco the bug is 13 times more common among the city's homosexual men than other people.
So far only two cases of the bug, a new form of a strain called USA300, have been recorded in the UK. It's resistant to treatment by most conventional anti-biotics, making it difficult to treat, and the symptoms don't sound pretty. Those infected can expect to find tennis ball-size boils on the skin and, in severe cases, expect some fatal blood poisoning or a cell-killing pneumonia that chomps away at the lungs.
Unlike the MRSA we're used to seeing in the news, this strain of bug isn't normally contracted in hospitals and MRSA expert Professor Mark Enright from Imperial College and St Mary's Hospital, London, said gay communities and drug users were particularly at risk. But it could also be spread by those involved in sports with skin-to-skin contact. Uh oh. A deadly new drug-resistant strain of the superbug MRSA which can lead to a flesh-eating form of pneumonia has emerged, experts... more -
MRSA- methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus
An article from the student doctor network - worth checking out...
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Nurse Gets Fired For MRSA Failure
A nurse in Britain has become the first to get fired for a MRSA violation. Among other accusations, failing to wash her hands after treating a patient with MRSA, was the contributing factor in her dismissal. A nurse in Britain has become the first to get fired for a MRSA violation. Among other accusations, failing to wash her hands after tr... more
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New superbugs are at home on the farm
The antibiotics fed to the farm animals we eat may have helped to create superbugs like the drug-resistant staph bacteria known as MRSA. The antibiotics fed to the farm animals we eat may have helped to create superbugs like the drug-resistant staph bacteria known as MRS... more
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Product claims to be able to kill MRSA on contact
Still being evaluated by the FDA, but a very promising development in our newest health scare
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