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A new study showed that it mapped the spread of strains of Enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) bacteria around the world and provided key information about how pathogenic bacteria arise, which will be important for the diarrhoea vaccine currently under development, researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy in western Sweden said Tuesday.
The study, which is carried out by researchers from Sweden, Germany, Japan, the United States and Britain, was published in Nature Genetics.
It shows how researchers used comprehensive DNA analyses to reveal the ETEC bacteria's genetic composition. The analysis also makes it possible to map how the bacteria spread.
ETEC bacteria are responsible each year for around 400 million cases of diarrhoea and 400,000 deaths in the world's low- and middle-income countries. Children under the age of five are most affected. ETEC bacteria also cause diarrhoea in nearly one in two travellers to these areas, according to a statement released by the Sahlgrenska Academy.
Researchers believe that children, adults and travellers are all affected to the same extent by diarrhoea caused by the different strains of ETEC, which would suggest that the vaccine could work for all three groups.
"We can see that some of the dangerous strains of ETEC derive from a single bacterium that has divided and spread right around the world," said Astrid von Mentzer, one of researchers at the Sahlgrenska Academy.
"This may sound like bad news, but it actually means that the vaccine that we are developing on the basis of the most common types of bacteria will be of global benefit," added Moentzer.
The statement emphasized that the new information about the genetic composition of ETEC bacteria and how they spread means another step closer to reducing the prevalence of diarrhoeal diseases worldwide.
