New E.coli Vaccine And Testing May Ensure The Safety Of Billions Of Worldwide Consumers

Consumers around the world have been affected by inability of science to protect us from a multitude of diseases and organisms. One of these potentially deadly organisms is the E.Coli bacteria. Instead of the number of infections decreasing with the advance of time and technology, the frequency and impact is actually increasing. Today, the biotechnology industry is developing both testing and a vaccine to help alleviate the danger of E.Coli 0157:H7 and its impact on the beef industry and consumers all over the world.

The number of beef recalls in 2006 was an already unacceptable eight, but an extremely disturbing trend began to develop in 2007 when the number rose to 21 recalls. Safety inspectors are already seeing an increased number of E.Coli contaminations in 2008. As alarming as these numbers are, the real alarm is the increase of reported human illnesses, from zero in 2006 to seven in 2007. Essentially, this reflects the inability of existing safeguards to prevent the virus from making its way to our dinner tables and restaurants.

One Colorado-based biotechnology company, GeneThera, bases its assay business on an Integrated Technology Platform (ITP) that combines a proprietary diagnostic solution called Gene Expression System (GESTM), with its system for analyzing large scale DNA sequencing that is called PurivaxTM. The first part of the ITP consists of ongoing development of molecular diagnostic assay solutions using a technology called Fluorogenic Polymerase Chain Reaction (F-PCR), to detect the presence of infectious disease from the blood of live animals. This platform offers tests that are presently not available from other technologies.

One of the many benefits of this form of testing is the fact that the animals do not have to be destroyed. Most of these sicknesses require that the animal be killed to determine whether it has the disease or not. Many of us have seen the brutal images, from England, of entire herds of cattle being destroyed because one or a few of the beasts were infected. This type of solution not only saves the animals, but also does it in a more timely and cost-effective manner. Ranchers will now be able to test their animals at birth or they can even test animals that they are possibly going to purchase. This test could potentially save millions, if not billions, of dollars for the cattle and healthcare industries.

As previously stated, vaccines are also being developed to eliminate E.Coli. For example, a vaccine has been developed for use against Shiga toxin-producing E.Coli (STEC) in cattle. Along with the mutation to inactivate the Shiga toxin gene, the modified bacteria also carry a mutation that inactivates genes that allows the growth of the E.Coli 0157:H7 in the cow intestine. These modifications will greatly attenuate bacterial virulence.

This vaccine has the potential of securing the safety and well-being of not only 6 billion humans throughout the world, but the health and conservation of countless billions of cattle and livestock. This vaccine can now eliminate the E.Coli before it can be harmful to human consumers. The potential for a product like this is staggering, when you consider how much money is spent every year in treating E.Coli and attempting to eradicate it prior to consumption.