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Monday, May 23, 2005A SUPERFIT Royal Marine collapsed and died within days of scratching his leg on a bush while on a training run — victim of a mutated superbug one doctor described as the worst she had ever seen. Richard Campbell-Smith, 18, fell victim to pneumonia caused by a rare strain of bacteria that produces a lethal toxin that kills white blood cells. A microbiologist who gave evidence at the inquest into his death yesterday said that she had come across two such cases since December but none in the previous 15 years. Marina Morgan, of the Royal Devon and Exeter Hospital, said that although cases of the toxin Panton-Valentine leukocidin were still rare, it was difficult to detect, even during post-mortem examination, and many cases might be slipping through. The toxin is produced by some strains of the ubiquitous bacteria Staph aureus., which already has a propensity to secrete enzymes that turn host cells into bacterial nutrients. The Panton-Valentine leukocidin targets white blood cells - the body's primary line of defense against infection. Fortunately, less than 5% of Staph aureus produce the Panton-Valentine leukocidin. posted by Sydney on 5/23/2005 10:27:00 PM 0 comments 0 Comments: |
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