Study Finds Link between Dietary Sugar and Increasing Bacterial Epidemics
Published:26 Jan.2018 Source:News Medical
A new study links the rising frequency and severity of healthcare-related occurrences caused by the bacterium Clostridium difficile to the commonly used food additive, trehalose. The team of researchers of the Dan L Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center at Baylor College of Medicine discovered that trehalose supports the growth of more virulent C. difficile lineages (RT027 and RT078), that have predominate in patient infections.
Dr. Robert Britton, a professor of molecular virology and microbiology and the leader of the research, said that C. difficile infections were a common problem in hospitals, and during the past 15 years they have become the most frequent cause of hospital-acquired infections in developed countries.