Strange pathogen emerged
near medical research center
The source of a deadly E. coli outbreak remains a mystery, helping fuel suspicion that the pathogen escaped from a research laboratory at a medical institute near where the outbreak first occurred.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said that the strain of the E. coli bacteria was "very rare" and had never been seen in an outbreak form before.

"It has been seen in sporadic cases and is very rare," according to Gregory Hartl, a WHO spokesman.

The 0104:H4 outbreak was traced to the Kartoffelkeller pub in Lubeck, Germany, which is home to the University of Lubeck, a center of medical and biological research.

Despite extensive efforts to track the bacteria, health authorities were unable to identify the source. No evidence has substantiated initial suspicions of contaminated cucumbers or sprouts.

There is no indication as to whether any of the kitchen staff of the Kartoffelkeller pub might have been exposed to an errant research strain.

The outbreak is the latest example of the emergence of a new form of an old disease now resistant to antibiotics and the antibodies of the human immune system. It appears that 0104:H4 picked up resistance to a whole range of antibiotics. The emergence of drug-resistant bacteria is a persistent problem, with hospitals becoming increasingly prone to such contamination.

Little is publicly known about how 0104:H4 acquired the set of genes necessary for such resistance. The usual suspect is overuse of antibiotics, which brings about what scientists call "selective pressure" to breed the occasional mutants resistant to particular drugs.

On occasion, however, experimental pathogens escape from a laboratory and cause deadly outbreaks. Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are a routine research tool of molecular biologists. E. coli is perhaps the most studied of all the types of bacteria, because of its availability and genetic properties. E. coli strains occur naturally in the human gastrointestinal system and are generally benign, as are most research strains used by scientists. However, scientists find it relatively easy to breed drug-resistant pathogens for either research or biowar purposes (though bioweapons require further processing).

Research into E. coli and other pathogens has burgeoned in recent years because of the explosion of the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries.

Numerous virology links
http://www.virology.net/garryfavweb12.html

Emerging Infectious Diseases (CDC journal)
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/EID/

Naming viruses
http://www.ictvdb.org/

New math in HIV fight (WSJ)
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303936704576397491582757396.html

Biotech or bioterror: a global dilemma
http://www.angelfire.com/ult/znewz1/bioterror.html  

Biotech, bioterror, emergent disease
http://www.zkea.com/