Common Garden Microbe Combats E. coli
Geneticist Michael B. Cooley of the ARS Western Regional Research Center in Albany, Calif. has found that the common garden microbe Enterobacter asburiae significantly reduced the quantity of both E. coli O157:H7 and Salmonella enterica. Hale seeds were incubated with E. asburiae and both of the pathogenic microbes.
In a similar test using lettuce leaves, E. asburiae reduced the levels of E. coli 20-30 fold.
This research looks to be very promising especially for farms that grow produce. E. coli frequently contaminates raw produce due to proximity to animals or contaminated water. If E. asburiae turns out as effective in the field as in the laboratory, mothers will be able to feed their young children fresh produce without the risk of E. coli infection.
Sources:
1. Cooley MB, Miller WG, Mandrell RE. 2003. Colonization of Arabidopsis thaliana with Salmonella enterica and Enterohemorrhagic Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Competition by Enterobacter asburiae. Appl Envir Microbiol, 69: 4915-4926.
2. Cooley MB, Chao D, Mandrell RE. 2006. Escherichia coli O157:H7 Survival and Growth on Lettuce Is Altered by the Presence of Epiphytic Bacteria. J Food Prot, 69:10: 2329-2335.
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