Antibiotic Resistance

Human Gut Potential Site For Gene Transfer

Published in TB and Outbreaks Week, March 13th, 2001

Bacteria in your gut could be exchanging genetic material, including antibiotic resistance genes, with bacteria that are simply passing through on your food, say researchers from the University of Illinois.

The study, in the February 2001 issue of the journal Applied and Environmental Microbiology, is the first to provide evidence of this phenomenon in the human digestive tract.

"What we've shown is antibiotic resistance genes in nature can move about in the human colon," says Abigail Saylers, the senior investigator. "A surprising amount of gene transfer is occurring in the human colon. There's a lot of bacterial hanky-panky going on in...

Want to see the full article?

Purchase this article for only $3.00

We're a pay-per-view site for premium content. If you'd like to purchase this article, it's only $3.00.

Welcome to NewsRx!

Learn more about a six-week, no-risk free trial of TB and Outbreaks Week

Source: TB and Outbreaks Week (2001-03-13)

NewsRx is Social

Top Medical Newsletters

Awards

Best Health/Healthcare Content, 2012
Best Health/Healthcare Content, 2011
Best e-Business Site, 2010
Best e-Business Site, 2009
Best e-Business Site, 2008
Best e-Business Site, 2007
Best e-Business Site, 2006
Best Healthcare Content, 2005
Best Overall Internet Site, 2005
Best Interactive Site, 2005

Facts & Stats

NewsRx also is available at LexisNexis, Gale, ProQuest, Factiva, Dialog, Thomson Reuters, NewsEdge, and Dow Jones.

Google 2010 PageRank: #2 Among Top Health News and Media Publications
Google 2010 PageRank: #2 Among Top Science Publications in Biology/Physiology
Google 2010 PageRank: #2 Among Top News and Media for the Business of Pharmaceuticals
Amazon's Alexa 2010 PageRank: #2 News and Media Site for the Pharmaceutical Industry