Navigation Links
U Alberta finds weakness in armor of killer hospital bacteria
Date:6/8/2012

There's new hope for development of an antibiotic that can put down a lethal bacteria or superbug linked to the deaths of hundreds of hospital patients around the world.

Researchers from the University of Alberta-based Alberta Glycomics Centre found a chink in the molecular armour of the pathogen Acinetobacter baumannii. The bacteria first appeared in the 1970's and in the last decade it developed a resistance to most antibiotics.

U of A microbiologist Mario Feldman identified a mechanism that allows Acinetobacter baumannii to cover its surface with molecules knows as glycoproteins.

Feldman and his team then discovered that if the superbug cannot produce glycoproteins they become less virulent and less capable of forming biofilms, which protect the bacteria from antibiotics.

Feldman says more work is required to understand how the bacteria produces glycoproteins. The researchers say that will enable future development of drugs to interrupt the production of glycoproteins, reducing the bacteria's ability to shield it from antibiotics.

Acinetobacter baumannii is a particularly insidious and contagious pathogenic bacteria that has plagued hospitals around the world. It spreads from one person to another by physical contact. The bacteria can live on hard surfaces for several days and can cling to hospital equipment like catheter tubes and inhalers. Acinetobacter baumannii is also spread by coughing and sneezing.

Hospital patients whose immune systems are already worn down are the most susceptible to Acinetobacter baumannii. It infects wounds and can spread to the lungs, blood and brain.

Feldman is a principal investigator for the Alberta Glycomics Centre at the U of A. He was assisted by U of A graduate students Jeremy Iwashkiw and Brent Weber along with research colleagues in Ottawa, Austria and Australia. Their work was published June 7 in the journal PLoS Pathoge
'/>"/>

Contact: Brian Murphy
brian.murphy@ualberta.ca
780-492-6041
University of Alberta
Source:Eurekalert

0

GOOD

Page: 1 2

Related biology technology :

1. Study finds chronic abnormal brain blood flow in Gulf War veterans
2. New Competitive Arena Emerges for Pharmaceutical Companies in Healthcares Changing Payment Landscape, Finds PwC Health Research Institute Study
3. Study In Prenatal Diagnosis Finds Sequenom CMMs MaterniT21™ PLUS Lab-developed Test Accurately Detects Fetal Trisomies In Pregnant Women Carrying Twins Or Triplets
4. Armored caterpillar could inspire new body armor
5. NTU scientists invent superbug killers
6. BBVA Foundation Unites the Efforts of Massachusetts General Hospital and Barcelonas Vall dHebron Hospital in Biomarker Research for Personalized Cancer Therapies
7. Antelope Valley Hospital Converts to Masimo rainbow SET for State-of-the-Art Noninvasive Patient Monitoring Capabilities
8. What Hospitals Must Do to Thrive -- Not Just Survive -- on Medicare Margins
9. Meaningful Use Stage Two: The Advisory Board Company Helps Hospitals Set Strategy
10. Biotech Firm Spun Off from Childrens Hospital Raises $7 Million to Advance Magnetic-Based Vascular Treatment
11. Narayana Hrudayalaya Hospitals Teams With Ascension Health Alliance to Build Health City at Grand Cayman
Post Your Comments:
*Name:
*Comment:
*Email:
(Date:5/20/2013)... , May 20, 2013 Pacific Biomarkers and ... solutions for developers of biosimilars at the 2013 ... Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina ... will have the opportunity to speak with company representatives ... Paths That Cross" on May 21 from 1-2 p.m. ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... NY (PRWEB) May 20, 2013 With bed ... Products said that although bed bugs need to be eliminated, ... will not compromise a person's health. And so to help ... how to get rid of bed bugs without ... non-pesticide bed bug spray it called Bed Bug Bully. , ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... BALTIMORE , May 20, 2013 ... regional private-public partnership focusing on commercializing market-relevant biohealth ... Central Maryland , today announced ... the first Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EIR) for BHI at the ... Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI). Dr. Aiyar ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... , May 20, 2013 Cempra, ... on developing differentiated antibiotics to meet critical medical ... announced that it presented data at the American ... Philadelphia demonstrating the antibacterial and ... Cempra,s prior Phase 2 clinical trial in outpatients ...
Breaking Biology Technology:Pacific Biomarkers and Clinigene International To Announce Laboratory Solutions for Developers of Biosimilars at 2013 AAPS/ National Biotechnology Conference 2New Non Pesticide Discovery on How to Get Rid of Bed Bugs Tipped by My Cleaning Products 2BioHealth Innovation, Inc. Names Ram Aiyar as Entrepreneur-in-Residence to NIH National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute 2BioHealth Innovation, Inc. Names Ram Aiyar as Entrepreneur-in-Residence to NIH National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute 3BioHealth Innovation, Inc. Names Ram Aiyar as Entrepreneur-in-Residence to NIH National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute 4Cempra Presents Post-Phase 2 Analysis of Solithromycin's Efficacy and Safety Results from Patients with Community Acquired Bacterial Pneumonia (CABP) 2
... XIANYANG, China, Aug. 12 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ ... or "the Company"),a Xianyang-based developer, manufacturer and supplier ... of diseases and conditions,today announced that management will ... quarter at 10:30 a.m. EDT on Friday, August ...
... team of researchers from the Netherlands, Russia and ... set the mobility in self-assembled monolayer field-effect transistors ... chemical sensors that can be produced in a ... Research Eindhoven and Eindhoven University of Technology. The ...
... , , SAN MARINO, ... researcher for bio technology company Viral Genetics (Pink Sheets: VRAL), will ... Stem Cell Therapy. Her presentation will highlight the potential for combining ... cells to generate the energy needed to repair chemotherapy induced DNA ...
Cached Biology Technology:Biostar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to Host Fiscal Year 2009 Second Quarter Earnings Conference Call on Friday, August 14, 2009 at 10:30 a.m. EDT 2Biostar Pharmaceuticals, Inc. to Host Fiscal Year 2009 Second Quarter Earnings Conference Call on Friday, August 14, 2009 at 10:30 a.m. EDT 3Mysterious charge transport in self-assembled monolayer transistors unraveled 2Viral Genetics Scientist Presents Potential New Treatment for Drug Resistant Brain Tumors at Aspen Symposium 2Viral Genetics Scientist Presents Potential New Treatment for Drug Resistant Brain Tumors at Aspen Symposium 3
(Date:5/20/2013)... University of Bristol and published online today in the ... how the brain and inner ear developed in dinosaurs. ... Sciences, together with Tom Hbner from the Niederschsische Landesmuseum ... year old dinosaurs. , The two palaeontologists studied different ... a very young (juvenile) individual of approximately three ...
(Date:5/20/2013)... New Geology articles posted online ... cover a wide swath of geoscience subdisciplines, including ... and paleobotany. Locations studied include Siberia; the Sumatran ... Apuane, Italy; Ukraine; Mars; and the Southeastern U.S. ... Rubies, jadeite, and plate tectonics;, 2. The clear ...
(Date:5/19/2013)... study reports that white men and women of European ... valgus) and lesser toe deformities, including hammer or claw ... estimate the heritability of foot disorders in humansappear in ... by Wiley on behalf of the American College of ... many as 60% of older adults have foot disorders ...
Breaking Biology News(10 mins):Fossil brain teaser 2New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 2New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 3New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 4New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 5New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 6New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 7New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 8New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 9New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 10New in GEOLOGY: Gems, Darwin, Mars, Hemp, Snowball Earth, a Siberian Impact Crater, and More 11Blame your parents for bunion woes 2
... the strange, bony crests on the heads of the ... long, convoluted nasal passages that loop up over the ... of Toronto, Ohio University and Montana State University now ... and reconstruct the brains and nasal cavities of four ...
... . Tomislav Domazet-Loo and Diethard Tautz from the ... systematically analysed the time of emergence for a large number ... studies show for the first time that the majority of ... the first cells. The search for further genes, particularly those ...
... grants exceeding $3 million will assist Michigan State ... to turn animal waste into usable heat, electricity ... Digestion Research and Education Center will consolidate new ... south of campus, at MSU,s expanding farm animal ...
Cached Biology News:Key to function of dinosaur crests found in brain structure 2Genetic based human diseases are an ancient evolutionary legacy 2Cost-effective farm waste-to-energy technology focus of research 2Cost-effective farm waste-to-energy technology focus of research 3
Rabbit anti Xanthine Oxidase Xanthine Oxidase, Bovine Buttermilk...
... Kits without ammonium sulfate are compatible with ... as Taq and AmpliThem™™ DNA polymerases. You ... systems in one experiment by adding your ... the PreMixes supplied with the kit. This ...
Application: for RNase- decontamination , Registered Trademark of Ambion. ,Special grade: for molecular biology Density: 1.00 g/mL (20 C) Suitab tst: RNase decontamination in accordance...
Matrix for protein MALDI-MS...
Biology Products: