Researchers found colistin-resistant bacteria in 49% vegetable, meat samples in Chennai. They have for the first time deciphered the mechanism by which food Klebsiella bacteria develop resistance to colisitin, a last-line antibiotic. Mutations and insertional inactivation of the mgrB gene, which is present in the chromosome, are responsible for colistin resistance in Klebsiella. A study carried out in … Continue reading Mechanism of colistin resistance in food Klebsiella bacteria unravelled
E. coli
Mutant worms live 60% longer on specific diet
The longevity of C. elegans increased 40-60% when NII researchers used a mutant that lacked the function of a particular gene and fed the worm a specific bacterial diet — E. coli strain H. The lifespan increased even when there was no restriction on the quantity of food consumed. The understanding of gene-diet pairings is important as … Continue reading Mutant worms live 60% longer on specific diet
IISc researchers find cholesterol helps bacterial toxins kill cells
IISc researchers found cholesterol present in cell membrane plays a central role in the two-step process of stabilising and binding the pore-forming toxin Cytolysin A. On binding to cholesterol, the structure of the toxin protein that is bound to the cell membrane undergoes a change and is also stabilised. Cholesterol is also essential in holding together … Continue reading IISc researchers find cholesterol helps bacterial toxins kill cells
IISER Pune shows bacteria develop resistance even without exposure to antibiotics
Researchers at IISER Pune found that E. coli subjected to different stresses simultaneously and in a unpredictable manner evolved to tolerate novel stresses that they were never exposed to such as antibiotics and heavy metals. Also, the ability to cope with stress was significantly better when the exposure to complex, unpredictable environment continued for 100 days than 30 days. … Continue reading IISER Pune shows bacteria develop resistance even without exposure to antibiotics
IISc: Chemically etched aluminium kills, keep surfaces bacteria-free
Researchers at IISc have produced etched aluminium that is capable of killing Gram-negative bacteria such as E. coli and keep surfaces free of both E. coli and S. aureus. Surfaces that have both micro and nanoscale features are most effective in killing bacteria, drug-resistant bacteria included. These can find ready application in hospitals to prevent hospital-acquired … Continue reading IISc: Chemically etched aluminium kills, keep surfaces bacteria-free
IISc team mimics nature to keep orthopaedic implants bacteria-free
Mimicking tiny features seen on insect wings and shark skin that effectively keep their surfaces free of bacteria, a team from Bengaluru’s Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has found a way to prevent bacterial infection on orthopaedic implants without using any chemicals. The team led by Prof. Kaushik Chatterjee from the Department of Materials Engineering … Continue reading IISc team mimics nature to keep orthopaedic implants bacteria-free
Indian researchers reverse multidrug resistance in E. coli
Indian researchers have unravelled the mechanism by which hydrogen sulphide (H2S) gas produced by bacteria protects them from antibiotics and plays a key role in helping bacteria develop drug resistance. And by blocking/disabling the enzyme that triggers the biosynthesis of hydrogen sulphide in bacteria, the researchers from Bengaluru’s Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Indian … Continue reading Indian researchers reverse multidrug resistance in E. coli
IISc produces a novel salt to better combat bacterial infections
Using crystal engineering, a team of researchers from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore has successfully produced a highly efficacious binary salt of two commonly used drugs — norfloxacin (antibacterial) and sulfathiazole (antimicrobial). The salt is more effective than a physical mixture of the two drugs. The results were published in the journal Molecular Pharmaceutics. … Continue reading IISc produces a novel salt to better combat bacterial infections
IIT Hyderabad finds a chink in E. coli armour
Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad (IIT-H) have made a promising start to render E. coli bacteria more susceptible to host immune response. The researchers have found a potential way of preventing the bacterial surface-associated polysaccharide — capsular polysaccharide (CPS) or K antigen — from attaching on the surface membrane and forming a protective encapsulation of the bacteria, thus … Continue reading IIT Hyderabad finds a chink in E. coli armour
Voila! IISc’s catalyst uses sunlight to make water E. coli-free
Drinking water can now be made completely free of E. coli in about 30 minutes by exposing it to sunlight thanks to a catalyst developed by researchers at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore. The E. coli bacteria is responsible for most of the water-borne bacterial infections. The results were published on September 2, 2016 in … Continue reading Voila! IISc’s catalyst uses sunlight to make water E. coli-free
Science Chronicle 