From Alzheimer’s to Zebrafish: Eclectic Science and Regulatory Stories 150
The deadly 2011 outbreak of Escherichia coli infection in Europe has been linked to con-
taminated bean and seed sprouts from an organic farm in Germany. At the time this article
was written, there were 42 deaths and approximately 3,900 individuals infected with
the rare and super-toxic 0104:H4 strain of the bacteria. More than 780 people developed
hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can lead to kidney failure.1
This follows earlier cases of the same disease in Scotland, although with a differ-
ent strain (0157). The Scottish outbreak caused a number of deaths in elderly patients.
Hemolytic uremic syndrome associated with diarrhea generally affects children and is the
most common cause of acute renal failure in Europe and North America.2
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), E. coli has also
been associated with food poisoning in the US from consuming contaminated bologna,
cheese, hazelnuts, romaine lettuce, poultry, beef, pizza and cookie dough.3 E. coli is the
most common etiologic gram-negative organism responsible for US hospital-acquired
urinary tract infections. Most of these cases are associated with urethral catheterization.4
E. coli bacteria can come in many toxic strains or serotypes, which reproduce at astro-
nomical rates, and are the basis for their potential danger. The organism can double its
population in less than two hours under the right conditions. It has the potential to make
people, especially children and the elderly, very sick.
The explosive population rate is also one of the reasons E. coli can be used for genetic
research. All E. coli strains share the same underlying biology, but they range from being
harmless and beneficial to being extremely dangerous pathogens.5 The well-known K-12
strain, for example, is harmless. Other strains are a different story, and books have been
written that describe their mechanisms of virulence.6,7 This article briefly discusses the
organism, its virulence, sources of infection and how it has revolutionized the study of
biotechnology.
The Discovery
E. coli was first described in 1885 by Theodor Escherich, a German pediatrician, in a mono-
graph on the relationship of intestinal bacteria to the physiology of digestion in the infant.
The organism was isolated from the diapers of healthy babies and he called it “bacterium
coli commune.”8
At that time, E. coli was merely one of a rapidly growing list of species of bacteria that
scientists were discovering. In 1919, the name Escherichia coli was proposed in his honor,
but it was not officially recognized until 1958.9
The Organism
Escherichia coli is a typical member of the Enterobacteriaceae family that have their prin-
cipal habitat in the bowels of humans and animals. It is a short, straight gram-negative
bacillus that is non-spore-forming, usually motile with flagella distributed over the whole
surface, and occurring singly or in pairs in rapidly growing liquid cultures. A capsule or
microcapsule is often present, and a few strains produce a profuse polysaccharide slime.10
E. coli can exist in an anaerobic environment and is capable of fermentative and respi-
ratory metabolism. Its optimum temperature is 37º C and it grows readily on a wide range
of simple culture media and on simple synthetic media. E. coli is a member of the normal
commensal bowel flora in humans, and colonization takes place soon after birth.11
It has been suggested that it has a nutritional significance by providing a source of
vitamins. In nature, it is found in soil, water or at any other site it can reach from its pri-
mary habitat, usually by fecal contamination.
E. coli is a fairly typical bacterium, about 1 micron wide and 2 microns long. Thus, a
billion of them can be packed into a volume of a few cubic centimeters. They can be frozen
alive, and in the frozen state, they can persist almost indefinitely without any serious loss.
The deadly 2011 outbreak of Escherichia coli infection in Europe has been linked to con-
taminated bean and seed sprouts from an organic farm in Germany. At the time this article
was written, there were 42 deaths and approximately 3,900 individuals infected with
the rare and super-toxic 0104:H4 strain of the bacteria. More than 780 people developed
hemolytic uremic syndrome, which can lead to kidney failure.1
This follows earlier cases of the same disease in Scotland, although with a differ-
ent strain (0157). The Scottish outbreak caused a number of deaths in elderly patients.
Hemolytic uremic syndrome associated with diarrhea generally affects children and is the
most common cause of acute renal failure in Europe and North America.2
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), E. coli has also
been associated with food poisoning in the US from consuming contaminated bologna,
cheese, hazelnuts, romaine lettuce, poultry, beef, pizza and cookie dough.3 E. coli is the
most common etiologic gram-negative organism responsible for US hospital-acquired
urinary tract infections. Most of these cases are associated with urethral catheterization.4
E. coli bacteria can come in many toxic strains or serotypes, which reproduce at astro-
nomical rates, and are the basis for their potential danger. The organism can double its
population in less than two hours under the right conditions. It has the potential to make
people, especially children and the elderly, very sick.
The explosive population rate is also one of the reasons E. coli can be used for genetic
research. All E. coli strains share the same underlying biology, but they range from being
harmless and beneficial to being extremely dangerous pathogens.5 The well-known K-12
strain, for example, is harmless. Other strains are a different story, and books have been
written that describe their mechanisms of virulence.6,7 This article briefly discusses the
organism, its virulence, sources of infection and how it has revolutionized the study of
biotechnology.
The Discovery
E. coli was first described in 1885 by Theodor Escherich, a German pediatrician, in a mono-
graph on the relationship of intestinal bacteria to the physiology of digestion in the infant.
The organism was isolated from the diapers of healthy babies and he called it “bacterium
coli commune.”8
At that time, E. coli was merely one of a rapidly growing list of species of bacteria that
scientists were discovering. In 1919, the name Escherichia coli was proposed in his honor,
but it was not officially recognized until 1958.9
The Organism
Escherichia coli is a typical member of the Enterobacteriaceae family that have their prin-
cipal habitat in the bowels of humans and animals. It is a short, straight gram-negative
bacillus that is non-spore-forming, usually motile with flagella distributed over the whole
surface, and occurring singly or in pairs in rapidly growing liquid cultures. A capsule or
microcapsule is often present, and a few strains produce a profuse polysaccharide slime.10
E. coli can exist in an anaerobic environment and is capable of fermentative and respi-
ratory metabolism. Its optimum temperature is 37º C and it grows readily on a wide range
of simple culture media and on simple synthetic media. E. coli is a member of the normal
commensal bowel flora in humans, and colonization takes place soon after birth.11
It has been suggested that it has a nutritional significance by providing a source of
vitamins. In nature, it is found in soil, water or at any other site it can reach from its pri-
mary habitat, usually by fecal contamination.
E. coli is a fairly typical bacterium, about 1 micron wide and 2 microns long. Thus, a
billion of them can be packed into a volume of a few cubic centimeters. They can be frozen
alive, and in the frozen state, they can persist almost indefinitely without any serious loss.