#History to blame for slow crop taming, study showsit's been about 10000 years since our ancestors began farming
The results demonstrate that the bacterial pathogens were inhibited significantly by the use of the antimicrobial films said Catherine Cutter professor of food science.
In the study which was published online in the April issue of the Journal of Food Science researchers determined survivability of bacterial pathogens after treatment with 2 percent oregano essential oil 2 percent rosemary essential oil
and the researchers determined the antimicrobial activity of these films against bacterial pathogens inoculated onto petri dishes.
and poultry products with bacterial pathogens treated them with the pullulan films containing the essential oils
and then evaluated for bacterial growth following refrigerated storage for up to three weeks. The results from this study demonstrated that edible films made from pullulan
because the bacteria-killing action is longer lasting. Liquid applications run off the surface are absorbed not
The pullulan films adhere to the meat allowing the incorporated antimicrobials to slowly dissolve providing immediate and sustained kill of bacteria.
In addition the microorganisms do not have the opportunity to regrow. Cutter conceded that pullulan films are not as oxygen-impermeable as plastic packaging now used to package meats so the edible films are not likely to replace that material.
and keep bacteria in meat at bay further research will be aimed at creating what Cutter referred to as active packaging--polyethylene film with antimicrobial properties.
and goat species. Lentiviruses are viruses responsible for slow infections that damage the immune system and which cause a range of clinical symptoms (nervous pulmonary arthritic and mammary).
The target cells of these lentiviruses are the macrophages. These cells are capable of modifying their genetic expression depending on the external stimuli they are exposed to
Specifically the so-called MR (mannose receptor) could be a safe door of entry for certain bacteria protozoa parasites and viruses like SRLVS into the target cell
which have opposite restrictive capacities over lentiviruses. Furthermore it was observed that the infection induces M2 polarisation
According to a recent study by Kansas State university published in the Applied and Environmental Microbiology journal insects carry antibiotic-resistant bacteria from one point to another including from food animal farms and wastewater treatment
The researchers then genetically analyzed the bacteria in the digestive tract of the insects and compared them to the bacteria present in the animal feces and wastewater.
We found these insects carry the same bacteria found in the animal manure Zurek said.
Then we started sampling insects found in surrounding urban areas including fast food restaurants and again we found house flies with multi-drug resistant bacteria.
The house flies collected from the wastewater treatment plants likewise carried the same bacteria found in the waste itself he said.
House flies collected several miles from the wastewater treatment plants in surrounding urban areas had a lower prevalence of the antibiotic-resistant bacteria than those examined from the facilities themselves
but the bacteria still existed in those urban house flies. The study led the researchers to conclude that insects primarily house flies can pick up antibiotic-resistant bacteria
and disseminate them to surrounding areas. How serious that link is still needs to be investigated
but the potential is clearly there Zurek said. Cockroaches and house flies are highly mobile
They have great potential to move multi-drug resistant bacteria to urban areas. In addition Zurek's team showed that bacteria in the house fly digestive tract can exchange antibiotic resistance by horizontal gene transfer.
The resistant strains multiply in the fly and can be left behind on food by fly regurgitation or spitting and defecation.
Unfortunately because of the intensive use of antibiotics in human medicine we pose high pressure on bacteria
The bacteria that caused the infections are multi-drug resistant. According to a 2013 report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (http://www. cdc. gov/drugresistance/threat-report-2013) at least 2 million people become infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria
and at least 23000 people die each year as a direct result of these infections in the United states. Currently two places where antibiotics are used most widely are hospitals
At the same time if you use low doses of antibiotics extensively that poses selective pressure on bacteria in the digestive tract of these animals and results in antibiotic resistance.
and crows carry multi-drug antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Wild birds can pick up the antibiotic resistant bacteria from fields where animal manure was used as a fertilizer he said.
We still don't know how significant these birds are as carriers. We just know there are multiple venues where wildlife can acquire resistant strains and move them around in the environment.
Lowering the use of antibiotics in animal industry will be another step to lower prevalence of antibiotic resistant bacteria in the environment
They can carry antibiotic resistant bacteria so they should be taken seriously as a vector. Story Source:
and fossil fuel use as well as natural sources such as microbes in saturated wetland soils. The amount of atmospheric methane has remained relatively stable for about a decade
#Bacteria combat dangerous gas leaksbacteria could mop up naturally-occurring and human-made leaks of natural gases before they are released into the atmosphere and cause global warming according to new research from the University of East Anglia.
Findings published today in the journal Nature shows how a single bacterial strain (Methylocella silvestris) found in soil
and other gaseous alkanes such as propane was carried out by different groups of bacteria. This new finding is important
because it means that one type of bacteria can mop up the components of natural gas very efficiently
Researchers studied the bacterium Methylocella which is normally found in peat tundra and forest soils in Northern europe.
This type of bacterium has also been found among the microbial community following the Deepwater horizon oil spill in 2010.
We have shown that one microbe can grow on both methane and propane at a similar rate.
These microbes may play an important role in mitigating the effects of methane and other gases before they have a chance to escape into the atmosphere.
For example areas where high levels of methane and propane are released could benefit from an environment rich in these microbes which live naturally in soil.
and is controlled traditionally using chemical pesticides or biological methods such as parasites. Previous studies have shown that whitefly become'restless
#How a plant beckons bacteria that will do it harma common plant puts out a welcome mat to bacteria seeking to invade
The study published this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reveals new targets during the battle between microbe
This signaling system triggers a structure in bacteria that actually looks a lot like a syringe
It's exciting to learn that metabolites excreted by the host can play a role in triggering this system in bacteria said Thomas Metz an author of the paper and a chemist at the Department of energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.
The research examines a key moment in the relationship between microbe and host when a microbe recognizes a host as a potential target
and employs its molecular machinery to pierce it injecting its contents into the plant's cells--a crucial step in infecting an organism.
The work focused on bacteria known as Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato DC3000 which can ruin tomatoes as well as Arabidopsis.
The bacteria employ a molecular system known as the Type 3 Secretion System or T3ss to infect plants.
which is resistant to infection by Pseudomonas syringae. The Missouri and PNNL groups compared levels of metabolites in Arabidopsis to those in the mutant mkp1 form of the plant.
The researchers discovered a group of five acids that collectively had the biggest effect on turning on the bacteria's T3ss:
Since the resistant plants don't have high levels of these acids it stops the bacteria from unfurling the syringe in the presence of the plant.
We know that microbes can disguise themselves by altering the proteins or molecules that the plant uses to recognize the bacteria as a strategy for evading detection said Peck associate professor of biochemistry at the University of Missouri
and lead author of the PNAS paper. Our results now show that the plant can also disguise itself from pathogen recognition by removing the signals needed by the pathogen to become fully virulent.
While Peck's study focused on bacteria known mostly for damaging tomatoes the findings also could have implications for people.
The same molecular machinery employed by Pseudomonas syringae is used also by a host of microbes to cause diseases that afflict people including salmonella the plague respiratory disease and chlamydia.
Also a better understanding of the signals that microbes use helps scientists who rely on such organisms for converting materials like switchgrass and wood chips into useable fuel.
The work opens the door to new ways to rendering harmful bacteria harmless by modifying plants
The concept of another layer of interaction between host and microbe provides an additional conceptual strategy for how resistance might be manipulated.
Rather than trying to kill the bacteria eliminating the recognition signals in the plant makes the bacteria fairly innocuous giving the natural immune system more time to defend itself.
which is used commonly as a farm soil fertilizer contains a surprising number of newly identified antibiotic resistance genes from the cows'gut bacteria.
The findings reported in mbioâ the online open-access journal of the American Society for Microbiology hints that cow manure is a potential source of new types of antibiotic resistance genes that transfer to bacteria in the soils
when found in harmless bacteria. The real worry is when these genes appear in the types of pathogenic bacteria that cause food-borne illnesses
or hospital infections Since there is a connection between AR genes found in environmental bacteria and bacteria in hospitals we wanted to know what kind of bacteria are released into the environment via this route of manure fertilization says Fabienne Wichmann lead study author and former postdoctoral researcher at Yale university in New haven Connecticut.
Farmers use raw or composted cow manure on some vegetable crops which could lead to a scenario where residual manure bacteria might cling to produce
and they or their genes might move to the human ecosystem. Is this a route for movement of these genes from the barn to the table?
asks Jo Handelsman senior study author and microbiologist at Yale. The first step toward an answer was surveying
The genes made a laboratory strain of Escherichia coli bacteria resistant to one of four types of antibiotics--beta-lactams (like penicillin) aminoglycosides (like kanamycin) tetracycline or chloramphenicol.
That might signal good news that AR genes from cow gut bacteria are not currently causing problems for human patients.
AR genes can enter the human ecosystem by two routes--either the bacteria that contain them colonize humans
or the genes are transferred through a process called horizontal gene transfer to other bacteria that colonize humans.
Research has shown already that bacteria are transferred from farm animals to their human caretakers. Gene transfer enables genes to jump between microorganisms that are related not
and it occurs in most environments that host bacteria. Some manure bacteria might be pathogenic to humans
so if they acquire antibiotic resistance they could pose a problem. Alternatively benign bacteria in manure might transfer resistance genes to pathogens at any point along the path--in manure soil food or humans.
We're hoping this study will open up a larger field of surveillance to start looking at new types of resistance before they show up in the clinic says Handelsman.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by American Society for Microbiology. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.
for nowseveral parasites and pathogens that devastate honeybees in Europe Asia and the United states are spreading across East Africa
and Europe--parasites pathogens and pesticides--do not seem to be affecting Kenyan bees at least not yet said Christina Grozinger professor of entomology and director of the Center for Pollinator Research Penn State.
or absence of Varroa and Nosema parasites and viruses identify and measure pesticide contaminants in hives
In addition Varroa numbers increased with elevation suggesting that environmental factors may play a role in honeybee host-parasite interactions.
Given their findings that African honeybees currently appear to be resilient to the effects of parasites
As these new parasites and pathogens become more widespread as pesticide use increases and as landscape degradation increases due to increased urbanization farming and climate change we expect to see the combination of all these factors negatively impact the bees in the future Grozinger said.
when bacteria take advantage of the open vagina and cervix to settle in the uterus. Infected cows suffer fever pain inflammation lack of appetite depression and reduced reproductive abilities.
#Pathogenic E coli binds to fresh vegetablesfood-poisoning outbreaks linked to disease-causing strains of the bacterium Escherichia coli are associated normally with tainted meat products.
Research presented today at the Society for General Microbiology's Annual Meeting in Liverpool shows that the disease-causing E coli O157:
Researchers from the James Hutton Institute in Scotland have identified that E coli O157: H7 uses whip-link structures on its surface known as flagella--typically used for bacterial motility--to penetrate the plant cell walls.
The team showed that purified flagella were able to directly interact with lipid molecules found in the membranes of plant cells.
E coli bacteria lacking flagella were unable to bind to the plant cells. Once attached the E coli are able to grow on and colonise the surface of the plant.
At this point they can be removed by washing although the researchers showed that a small number of bacteria are able to invade inside the plant where they become protected from washing.
The group have shown that E coli O157: H7 is able to colonise the roots of both spinach and lettuce.
Dr Nicola Holden who led the research says: This work shows the fine detail of how the bacteria bind to plants.
We think this mechanism is common to many food-borne bacteria and shows that they can exploit common factors found in both plants
and animals to help them grow. Our long term aim is to better understand these interactions
The researchers believe that the E coli O157: H7 bacteria use the same method of colonising the surface of plants as they do when colonising the intestines of animals.
The work shows that these bacteria are transported not simply through the food chain in an inert manner
but are actively interacting with both plants and animals. While outbreaks of vegetable-associated E coli outbreaks are rare in the UK
as a result of strict control measures at all stages of the food chain from plough to plate they do still occur as was seen in 2013
By understanding the mechanisms of how the bacteria interact with plants the researchers are hoping to find targeted ways to stop the binding reducing the risk of food contamination.
and economists expect the prices to continue rising because of diarrhea viruses currently devastating the pork industry.
of which have entered the United states for the first time--porcine epidemic diarrhea virus and delta coronavirus. Swine specialists and molecular diagnosticians at the Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory have developed tests to detect which virus is infecting the pigs.
Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus has killed already an estimated 6 million pigs. The Kansas State university laboratory is one of only four in the United states with the new tests to identify these diseases.
and vehicle tailpipes as well as wildfires soil microbes or reactions triggered by lightning strikes. Teasing out the sources of NOX through history might tell us about the atmosphere of the past how methane ozone
#Corralling milk microbes that survive pasteurizationcorralling desperados with names like bacillus and paenibacillus will require ingenuity and an arsenal of weapons.
For more than a century milk has been heated to kill any bacteria or pathogens that can affect consumer health and shorten the shelf life of the product.
However microbes--known as thermoduric--can survive pasteurization according to South dakota State university dairy science professor Sanjeev Anand.
The Agricultural Experiment Station researcher has begun developing ways to combat heat-resistant microorganisms a major challenge for the world's dairy industry.
Characterizing villainous sporessome of these microbes protect themselves from heat by forming spores Anand explains.
As the colony expands the layers form a biofilm that feeds and protects the organisms.
Many of these biofilm-embedded organisms cannot be inactivated through conventional cleaning methods. Milk products containing high microbe counts have flavor texture
and spoilage problems Anand explains. In addition some spore formers produce harmful toxins. Rounding up bad guysfor nearly five years Anand
and his team of eight graduate and 10 undergraduate researchers worked on projects related to thermoduric bacteria and biofilms.
The team then isolates the heat resistant bacteria. South dakota's dairy industry produces 1. 8 billion pounds of milk and 232 million pounds of cheese producing a total economic impact of $1. 28 billion a year.
The researchers are investigating ways to either kill the microbes or to make them susceptible to thermal treatment
Knocking out coloniesin addition the team has targeted also microbial biofilms which form on joints plate heat exchangers and filtration membranes within the milk processing equipment.
and cultured to develop single and multi-species biofilms. Under lab conditions a biofilm can takes anywhere from 12 to 48 hours to form he comments.
This process helps the researchers determine under what conditions the biofilms form and ultimately how we can change our cleaning system to remove them more efficiently
and effectively Anand explains. The biofilm embedded microbes are studied not only in a static system but also in bioreactors
which simulate the continuous flow of milk or whey. This is closer to the real system Anand says though the bioreactors are pressurized not like the automatic processing system.
and then will analyze those results to develop a better cleaning protocol to knock out these microbes.
Continued support from Dairy Research Institute will allow the research team to look at modifying the contact surfaces within the equipment to reduce the ability of these microbes to colonize
and form biofilms. Through this multipronged approach at lowering thermoduric microbe levels the SDSU researcher hopes to improve the quality safety and shelf life of dairy products.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by South dakota State university. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length h
and cutting boards remain a source of transmission for multi-drug resistant bacteria such as E coli that produce extended-spectrum beta-lactamases (ESBLS).
The spread of multi-drug resistant bacteria has been associated with the hospital setting but these findings suggest that transmission of drug-resistant E coli occurs both in the hospital
and households said Andreas Widmer MD lead author of the study. Our findings emphasize the importance of hand hygiene
These samples were tested for the presence of ESBL-producing Enterobacteriaceae a family of gram-negative bacteria that includes Salmonella E coli and Klebsiella.
In testing the cutting boards researchers found that 6. 5 percent of hospital cutting boards used in preparation of poultry were contaminated with ESBL-producing E coli.
For boards used in households researchers found ESBL-producing E coli on 3. 5 percent of these surfaces.
They also found that 50 percent of the hospital kitchen gloves were contaminated with this drug-resistant E coli.
or fish were contaminated with any ESBL-producing bacteria. They also found that the meat's country of origin did not play a factor in the presence of bacteria on any of the surfaces.
Story Source: The above story is provided based on materials by Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.
and limits photosynthesis. Particular types of bacteria consume methane creating food for grazing insects and consequently the rest of the food web including trout.
Amazonian grasses sometimes called macrophytes convert atmospheric carbon to plant biomass which is processed then by aquatic microorganisms upon decomposition.
This capacity might buffer soil microbes against the disturbance of forest removal they said. In contrast sandy soils have larger particles with less surface area retaining fewer nutrients and less organic matter.
If you disrupt the community in a sandy soil all of the nutrients the microbes rely on for food are leached away:
biotic generally caused by infectious organisms like bacteria; and abiotic caused by environmental agents like nutrient deficiency flood and salinity.
The scientists looked at the genes'response to five abiotic stresses--drought heavy metal contamination salt cold and nutrient deprivation--and five biotic stresses--bacteria fungus insect predation weed
A bacterium called Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus (CLAS) vectored by the Asian citrus psyllid is presumed the causal agent of the disease.
#Reducing E coli in cows, improving food safetya new biological treatment could help dairy cattle stave off uterine diseases
and because those maladies are linked often to bacteria he said. The UF researchers did their experiments in labs
because cattle uteri have a neutral ph. The study's findings suggest chitosan microparticles kill bacteria in the uteri he said.
Jeong said it may someday be possible for chitosan microparticles to be used to help humans who have become ill from consuming E coli-contaminated food
Once bacteria become resistant whether on farms hospitals or in the environment they can infect humans through water food
and animals kill good and bad bacteria. Scientists can use the UF study's findings to begin to develop better drugs that target bad pathogens
but leave beneficial bacteria Jeong said. E coli are everywhere including the human gut but can contaminate beef unpasteurized milk soft cheeses made from raw milk
and raw fruits and vegetables that haven't been washed properly The most recent outbreak of meat-traced E coli was in 2010 according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
That year 21 people in 16 states fell ill from the pathogen including one in Florida the agency reported.
when two different strains of Listeria monocytogenes were found in the traditional Austrian curd cheese known as Quargel. 34 people were infected
Listeria is a rod-shaped bacterium highly prevalent in the environment and generally not a threat to human health.
One species however Listeria monocytogenes can cause listeriosis a very dangerous disease. This pathogen can be present in raw milk
In 2009 and 2010 a dairy in Hartberg (Styria Austria) produced Quargel cheese contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes leading to a multinational listeriosis outbreak in Austria Germany
two distinct bacterial strains which had evolved not recently from a common ancestor and therefore entered the food chain independently.
Highest level of operational hygiene essential Listeria expert and co-author Stephan Schmitz-Esser emphasizes the importance of cleanliness in production:
and that possible food for the bacteria be limited. Any products listeria is found in must be recalled immediately.
Recalls are very expensive for producers and we need to do everything we can to prevent them.
Austria-wide the Institute for Milk Hygiene Milk Technology and Food Science at the University of Veterinary medicine Vienna offers effective Listeria monitoring and a range of molecular and microbiological examination methods for the food industry.
#Radiation damage at the root of Chernobyls ecosystemsradiological damage to microbes near the site of the Chernobyl disaster has slowed the decomposition of fallen leaves
The team concluded that the bacteria and fungi that decompose plant matter in healthy ecosystems are hindered by radioactive contamination.
Researchers have reported just that certain bacteria in the stomach gobble the chocolate and ferment it into anti-inflammatory compounds that are good for the heart.
We found that there are two kinds of microbes in the gut: the'good'ones and the'bad'ones explained Maria Moore an undergraduate student and one of the study's researchers.
The good microbes such as Bifidobacterium and lactic acid bacteria feast on chocolate she said. When you eat dark chocolate they grow
The other bacteria in the gut are associated with inflammation and can cause gas bloating diarrhea and constipation.
These include some Clostridia and some E coli. When these compounds are absorbed by the body they lessen the inflammation of cardiovascular tissue reducing the long-term risk of stroke said John Finley Ph d. who led the work.
He said that this study is the first to look at the effects of dark chocolate on the various types of bacteria in the stomach.
They then subjected the nondigestible materials to anaerobic fermentation using human fecal bacteria according to Finley.
when they reach the colon the desirable microbes take over. In our study we found that the fiber is fermented
When you ingest prebiotics the beneficial gut microbial population increases and outcompetes any undesirable microbes in the gut like those that cause stomach problems he added.
but that good bacteria like to eat. This food for your gut's helpful inhabitants also comes in dietary supplements.
and tested the tags using E coli (food-spoiling bacteria that cause gastrointestinal problems) in milk as a reference model.
#Honey offers new approach to fighting antibiotic resistancehoney that delectable condiment for breads and fruits could be one sweet solution to the serious ever-growing problem of bacterial resistance to antibiotics
The unique property of honey lies in its ability to fight infection on multiple levels making it more difficult for bacteria to develop resistance said study leader Susan M. Meschwitz Ph d. That is it uses a combination of weapons including hydrogen peroxide
and polyphenols--all of which actively kill bacterial cells she explained. The osmotic effect which is the result of the high sugar concentration in honey draws water from the bacterial cells dehydrating
and killing them. In addition several studies have shown that honey inhibits the formation of biofilms or communities of slimy disease-causing bacteria she said.
Honey may also disrupt quorum sensing which weakens bacterial virulence rendering the bacteria more susceptible to conventional antibiotics Meschwitz said.
Quorum sensing is the way bacteria communicate with one another and may be involved in the formation of biofilms.
In certain bacteria this communication system also controls the release of toxins which affects the bacteria's pathogenicity or their ability to cause disease.
Meschwitz who is with Salve Regina University in Newport R i. said another advantage of honey is that unlike conventional antibiotics it doesn't target the essential growth processes of bacteria.
The problem with this type of targeting which is the basis of conventional antibiotics is that it results in the bacteria building up resistance to the drugs.
Honey is effective because it is filled with healthful polyphenols or antioxidants she said. These include the phenolic acids caffeic acid p-coumaric acid and ellagic acid as well as many flavonoids.
Several studies have demonstrated a correlation between the non-peroxide antimicrobial and antioxidant activities of honey and the presence of honey phenolics she added.
A large number of laboratory and limited clinical studies have confirmed the broad-spectrum antibacterial antifungal and antiviral properties of honey according to Meschwitz.
She said that her team also is finding that honey has antioxidant properties and is an effective antibacterial.
In our antibacterial studies we have been testing honey's activity against E coli Staphylococcus aureus and Pseudomonas aeruginosa among others.*
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