Immunization Newsbriefs (c) Copyright Information Inc., Bethesda, MD. Brought to you by the National Network for Immunization Information (NNii). Visit NNii's new website at http://www.immunizationinfo.org.

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November 6, 2002

U.S. IMMUNIZATION NEWS

"Defensive Measures Against a Super Bug"

Los Angeles Times (www.latimes.com) (11/04/02) P. 3; Roan, Shari

Staphylococcus aureus infections, also known as staph infections, cause about 500,000 post-surgery infections per year, and Arnold S. Bayer of the Harbor-UCLA Medical Center's Research and Education Institute is working with a team of researchers to develop new treatments for the bacteria, which is known to become resistant to drugs, and even a new vaccine against the bacteria for ill newborns.  Researchers are specifically avoiding antibiotics, because such a method pressures the bacteria into resistance.  Using the nature of the bacteria itself, Bayer has devised a vaccine that removes the bacteria's ability to stick to surfaces, and other researchers are studying whether the body's immune system can be trained to fight the infection.  The project is in collaboration with the biotechnology company Inhibitex.

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