Summary This study identifies those sites in public restrooms where enteric bacteria are likely to occur. Forty-seven public restrooms were randomly selected and analyzed in this study. Samples collected with moistened-sterile cotton swabs were transferred to tubes containing Colilert media and incubated at 37° …
Cleaning contaminated equipment and surfaces with detergent-based cleaners or Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)-registered disinfectants is effective at removing MRSA from the environment. Because cleaners and disinfectants can be irritating and exposure has been associated with health problems such as asthma, it is important to …
(Editor’s Note: This article was written under the auspices of the Cleaning Industry Research Institute – CIRI.) As health issues and microbiology-based concerns related to cleaning emerge, like HIV, Anthrax, mold, West Nile Virus, and more recently Avian or Bird Flu, it is …
Bioluminescent ATP Assay ATP (adenosine triphosphate) is the chemical compound in which energy is stored in all living cells. In the ATP-luminometric test the firefly enzyme (luciferase) in the presence of its substrate, luciferin, oxygen and magnesium ions catalyzes conversion of chemical energy of …
Overall, S. aureus is the most common cause of bacterial infections involving the bloodstream, lower respiratory tract, and skin/soft tissue. MRSA (methicillin resistant S. aureus) is at present the most commonly identified antibiotic-resistant pathogen in many parts of the world, including Europe, the Americas, North …
A team of Princeton scientists has discovered a key mechanism in how bacteria communicate with each other, a pivotal breakthrough that could lead to treatments for cholera and other bacterial diseases. The mechanism is a chemical that cholera bacteria use for transmitting messages to each …
Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are infections that patients acquire during the course of receiving treatment for other conditions within a healthcare setting. Healthcare-associated infections are one of the top ten leading causes of death in the United States.
The most bacteria per square inch was found on surfaces commonly used by school teachers. This may be due to constant teacher contact with children or children’s interaction with surrounding surfaces. Surfaces regularly used by teachers had ten times more bacteria per square inch …
A single bacterium can become a million bacteria in just eight hours and — in an era of MRSA and other public health concerns — disinfectant products are also multiplying: germicidal sales are projected to be more than $1 billion this year with 8,000 disinfectant …
The problem of hospital-acquired infections is far larger than previous CDC estimates, according to an article published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA). The article, assessing the number of MRSA “invasive” infections in the United States, shows that for every patient diagnosed …