By Dennis Thompson HealthDay Reporter WEDNESDAY, May 8, 2019 (HealthDay News) — Viruses and bacteria are the culprits behind the infectious diseases that plague humans. Researchers recently turned one against the other, using viruses to wipe out a potentially life-threatening bacterium in a 15-year-old girl with cystic fibrosis. This old-time approach to battling bacterial infections… Read More »
Joint replacements are among the most common elective surgeries — but around one in 100 patients suffer post-surgical infections, turning a routine procedure into an expensive and dangerous ordeal. Now, researchers at Stevens Institute of Technology have developed a “self-defensive surface” for these implants that release targeted micro-doses of antibiotics when bacteria approach, potentially sharply… Read More »
Ontario researchers say they have discovered how bacteria become resistant to antibiotics, a finding they say could help combat the growing problem. Maikel Rheinstadter, a physics professor with McMaster University in Hamilton, and Andree Khondker, an undergraduate biochemistry student, said they found bacteria fight off antibiotics by stiffening their cell membranes and changing the barrier’s… Read More »
New research on nanoparticles in food has yielded fresh insights about their impact on gut bacteria. Nanoparticles may influence gut bacteria (which are shown here under the electron microscope). Researchers from the University Medical Center of Mainz in Germany and colleagues from other centers in Germany, Austria, and the United States have discovered that the… Read More »
Do you envision a germ free world? Sorry it will never happen. The reason is that bacteria are everywhere. Some are harmless, some are beneficial and some are dangerous. Think about this. Your body is comprised of about 30 trillion cells. That is a big number, but it is estimated that there are about 39… Read More »
Kelly Kohen, 33, was in shallow water when she felt a pinch on her foot. Days later the wound continued to swell despite receiving antibiotics, and she was diagnosed with flesh-eating bacteria. (PA Real Life) A paddle in the sea led to a terrifying drama for a female angler after she was bitten by a… Read More »