Month: September 2011

Paris, 9 sep (EFE).-salmonella can cause foodborne illness in humans not only by consumption of eggs and meat, but also through fruit and verdudas contaminated with the bacteria, according to a study released today in Paris.

It’s the scientific confirmation that the bacterium salmonella enterica can trigger salmonella, the most common food poisoning, since you now know how that infects the fruit and vegetables.

Thus indicated the French Centre for scientific research (CNRS in its French acronym), which refers to the study conducted by scientists at the University of Evry (France), Giessen (Germany) and Vienna.

The authors of the study – published this week in the American publication “PLos ONE” – indicate that salmonella agrees to the plants on the surface of plant cells, entering through the pores of the leaves.

Salmonella inhibits the immune systems of the plants according to a mechanism similar to get access to the human.

The report’s authors claim that plants contaminated by salmonella are very infectious in human cells, and it has also found in cells of mice.

In humans, the salmonella bacteria injected with an appendix, in a similar way to a DART, a cocktail of proteins that block immune defenses and favour the proliferation of the bacteria in the body

Scientists who participated in the study have observed the same phenomenon in plants and they have succeeded in demonstrating, according to the CNRS, salmonella polluting plants is very infectious in humans and mice, “which represents a new challenge in terms of food safety and health surveillance”.

However, neither human nor plants are defenceless against salmonella, recalled the CNRS, since both have developed forms of detection of bacterial attack that activate their immune systems respective.

Annually, it is estimated that some 100 million people are infected with salmonella, which is the leading cause of gastroenteritis and typhoid fever, he recalled the Agency Gallen.

Until not long ago, it was thought that the infection in humans occurred only by ingestion of contaminated products of only animal origin (meat, eggs and milk), but in the last ten years has detected an increase in infected persons after consuming vegetables, according to the CNRS. EFE

Beijing, 9 sep (EFE).-the American pharmaceutical company Pfizer will develop, manufacture and distribute vaccines for animals in China, where demand for a secure supply of pork, beef and dairy products is growing, said the agency Xinhua.

Through the creation of a joint venture between its subsidiary, Pfizer Animal Health, and the Chinese company Jilin Guoyuan Animal Health, the American brand will strengthen its presence in China through expanding its market in livestock.

Usual cases of poisoning or death by eating meat and dairy products contaminated and the resulting loss of consumer confidence has led to the organizations representing the latter to ask a food supply more secure.

Among others, scandals recently as milk adulterated with melamine to increase their proteins, pork with nitrite to preserve its color, strawberries scented with chemicals or chickens fed with paintings and plastic to increase its weight have triggered alarm among the consumers unprotected Chinese.

In the case of melamine, six infants died in 2008 and other 300,000 are suffering various kidney diseases, while a syrup adulterated with brake fluid and exported to Panama killed in 2007 to 142 people.

These scandals prompted the authorities to change the law this year to punish those responsible of intentional poisoning with death penalty and has made attempts to regulate more efficiently the procurement and distribution of food

Pfizer and Jilin Guoyuan have encrypted the Chinese market in this field in 800 million dollars a year, and although they have not revealed the keys of the agreement, have brought forward its first objective will be to develop vaccines for pigs, that China is the largest producer of beef and pork.

Despite the announcement, the agreement is still subject to approval by the competent authorities, which will give a verdict in the coming days to approve or not the creation of the joint venture. EFE