2nd June - E coli 'resistant to antibiotics'
A strain of E coli spreading across Europe is a previously unseen and more virulent variant of the bacterium, health officials have said.
So far 18 people have died and more than 2,000 have become infected from eating contaminated vegetables. The bacterial outbreak has spread beyond Germany to 10 countries.
There is no evidence yet that the bacteria have appeared on British vegetables.
Stephen Smith, a clinical microbiologist at Trinity College, Dublin, said the new E coli strain was a "mongrel" combining two "nasty" types of the bacterium. He said: "It is very similar to enteroaggregative E coli which has been associated with outbreaks of watery diarrhoea in developing nations since 1970. However, this bacterium has been recognised as a cause of diarrhoea in industrialised nations and has caused outbreaks in the US, Sweden, Britain and Germany."
Read more about this story on The Guardian website
