Can genetically manipulated foods be the culprit: German E. coli outbreak is a killer hybrid - blaming game has begun

New Scientist reports that the bacteria were initially identified as a strain of E. coli called STEC, or Shiga-like toxin-producing E. coli, which secrete toxins that cause bloody diarrhoea. Normally about 5 to 10 per cent of STEC infections progress to a severe complication called haemolytic-uraemic syndrome (HUS), in which toxin-induced blood clots in capillaries damage major organs, especially the kidneys.

The German national consulting lab for HUS at the University Hospital in Münster yesterday announced that it had sequenced the outbreak bacteria's genome and in addition to STEC genes, they found genes from another kind of E. coli called entero-aggregative E. coli. These latter bacteria normally adhere to the gut wall, causing watery, persistent diarrhoea. While STEC lurks mainly in cattle guts, entero-aggregative E. coli are known only in humans.

"The rapid whole-genome sequencing results enabled us to discover within days a unique combination of virulence traits," says Alexander Mellmann, one of the researchers in Münster. The team plans to study whether this has caused a true increase in virulence in the hybrid.

Damaging is also that there seems to be a concerted attack against the producers of natural foods by the powerful US based chemical and food industry, which has seen its share of genetically manipulated food sector come under pressure from natural foods and which has not made much headway in convincing EU lawmakers that they should allow genetically modified foods and seeds sold in Europe. E-Coli epidemics do happen all over the world, including the US. and should have nothing to do with the increased sales of natural foods. As a matter of fact it might be also wise to look into the influence of genetically produced foods on infectious diseases such as the E-Coli becoming resistant to anti-bacterial treatments.

EU-Digest