Listeria’s secret weapons
At ACO, we not only invest in research into the ‘cleanability’ of drainage products, but we also keep a close eye on the very latest research being conducted by academic organizations throughout theworld. Here, we highlight the key findings of a report which explains why listeria is so hard to fight.
The CDC estimates that approximately 1,600 illnesses and 260 deaths occur annually due to listeriosis in the United States. The outbreak underlines how harmful and potentially deadly this bacterium can be.
Conducted by Associate Professor Birgitte Kallipolitis, PHD, and her colleagues from the Departmentof Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Southern Denmark, the research testedhow listeria reacts when exposed to a number of substances that can normally fight pathogenicbacteria.
This is what the Associate Professor and her team discovered:
Listeria is constantly aware of its surroundings and it reacts quickly
In fact, listeria reacts instantly to changes in its surroundings and environment, and it hasa number of strategies for dealing with threats.
It’s an expert at “not attracting unwanted attention from the body’s immune system”
Listeria has to produce special proteins to successfully infect the cells in our body, but it hasbecome an expert at doing this without producing so many of these protein cells that ourimmune system can detect their presence. Researchers found that listeria produces ‘RNA molecules’ which enable it to adjust the amount of each protein it produces so it can infect someone andsneak past their immune system!
Listeria actively protects its own cell walls from infection
The RNA molecules produced by listeria protect its own cells from attack by detecting anythreats, including the presence of antibiotics. In fact, RNA molecule production is only triggered when listeria is exposed to a threat. This response mechanism enables listeriato adapt so effectively and, if it senses an attack, to quickly repair any cell damage. This is a key factor determining its resilience.
This research underlines why it’s so important to take every possible step to prevent an outbreakof listeria and why it’s so important to ensure drainage – a key area in which bacteria can grow – ishygienically engineered to the highest possible standards.
The University of Southern Denmark is now conducting research to establish if listeria can be rendered harmless by removing RNA molecules. For more information on the study, contact the University of Southern Denmark.
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