Two Texas residents, who reside in long-term care facilities, contracted Listeriosis. The infections were traced back to contaminated chicken products from Tyson Food Inc, prompting a Food Safety Alert.

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria found in soil and water. Cattle and poultry can carry the bacteria, which causes a severe type of food poisoning in humans. Listeria accounts for only 1 percent of reported bacterial food-borne infections, but these cases can be fatal when not treated with appropriate antibiotics.

The CDC reports approximately 1,600 people contract Listeriosis each year in the United States, leading to 260 deaths.

The US Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service compared samples from Tyson Food Inc with those of the infected Texas patients. The bacterial strains from the two patients were a match indicating a shared original source.

Public health agencies traced their exposure to chicken products stating “two precooked chicken samples from two establishments that are closely related genetically to Listeria monocytogenes from ill people.”

Listeriosis was found in fully cooked chicken products marketed under brands such as Tyson, Jet’s Pizza, Casey’s General Store, Marco’s Pizza, and Little Caesars.

The CDC and public health agencies can respond quickly to listeriosis outbreaks because of the Whole Genome Sequencing Project. This early detection tool helps identify infectious disease public health threats before they can spread. When someone tests positive for Listeriosis, scientists genetically sequence the entire strain of bacteria. When two patients test positive for the same strain, public health officials can search for the source causing the infections. According to the CDC, the Whole Genome Sequencing Project allows scientists to:

• Detect early clusters of Listeria infections
• Link cases of Listeria to a likely source
• Identify unrecognized sources of Listeria
• Stop Listeria outbreaks while they are still small

Listeriosis is a potentially life-threatening infection when people eat food contaminated by the bacteria Listeria monocytogenes. Most people who contract Listeriosis have a mild illness, but those with suppressed immune systems or over age 65 can become very sick.

Patients with autoimmune diseases, HIV, cancer, or transplants are at increased risk. The infection can spread to the bloodstream causing sepsis or to the brain, causing meningitis or encephalitis.

The symptoms of Listeria can arise days to weeks after exposure. Common symptoms are similar to the flu, including fever, chills, muscle aches, and diarrhea. Some may develop more concerning symptoms such as headaches, a stiff neck, or confusion.

Listeriosis is especially concerning during pregnancy. Pregnant women are at a much higher risk of getting sick from Listeriosis. Pregnant women who contract Listeriosis generally have a mild illness, but the disease has been linked to miscarriage, stillbirth, and preterm labor.

Listeriosis can be transmitted from a pregnant woman to her baby through the placenta. The placenta is the organ inside the uterus that keeps the baby alive. Maternal blood circulates through this internal filtration system. The growing baby receives oxygen and nutrients from the mother, and the placenta removes carbon dioxide and waste products. 

The placenta is also the defense system against invading infections like bacteria and viruses. Placental immune system cells called trophoblasts are the first line of defense against any invading organisms.

Most infectious invaders do not make it across the placental defense system. Trophoblasts stop them in their tracks. Listeriosis can cross the placental barrier leading to infections in the baby.

Listeriosis can cause intellectual disability, paralysis, seizures, and blindness. Infected babies may develop problems in the brain, kidneys, and heart.

The CDC Food Safety Alert linked this listeria outbreak to fully cooked chicken supplied by Tyson Food Inc recalling products “shipped nationwide to retailers and institutions including hospitals, nursing facilities, restaurants, schools and Department of Defense locations.”The products affected include:

• Fully cooked chicken strips
• Diced chicken,
• Chicken wing sections
• Fully cooked pizza with chicken.

The US Food and Drug Administration offers this helpful video to help families learn about preventing foodborne illnesses.

The post Texas Listeria Outbreak Leads to Tyson Chicken Recall appeared first on Medika Life.

The world is fighting two pandemics: Covid-19 and misinformation. Dangerous social media rumors and falsehoods continue to circulate, creating fear and mistrust among the general public. This week, the misinformation focused on a false link between Covid-19 vaccination and miscarriage.

The baseless claims started after anti-vaxxers misleadingly shared posts from a popular Oklahoma OB-GYN physician. Michelle Rockwell, MD, publicly shared the tragedy of her miscarriage through her social media platforms. She also celebrated her Covid-19 vaccination three weeks later. Conspiracy theorists disregarded the timeline, took her Instagram posts out of context, and spread falsehood regarding the timing of her vaccination and pregnancy loss.  

Facebook also removed a false post claiming that the head of Pfizer research found a link between the vaccine and female sterilization. This particular false claim is based on a confusing twist of scientific facts.

The Covid-19 vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna use messenger RNA (mRNA). A single strand of mRNA delivers instructions to human cells to produce an antibody against the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. The conspiracy theory that Facebook addressed stems from the fact that the spike protein is genetically similar to an essential placental protein called syncytin-1.

The placenta is the organ inside the uterus that keeps the baby alive through its internal filtration system. Syncytin-1 and the coronavirus spike protein share a tiny string of amino acids, but the placental protein is unrelated to the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. The genetic similarity is not close enough for vaccine antibodies to recognize syncytin-1.

These fabrications prompted a statement on February 4 by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) titled “Medical Experts Continue to Assert That Covid Vaccines Do Not Impact Fertility.”

Leaders from the U.K. spoke up about the viral misinformation. The president of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Edward Morris, MD, issued guidance in January to reassure the public, stating, “There is​ ​no biologically plausible mechanism by which current vaccines would cause any impact on fertility.”

Neither the Moderna nor Pfizer vaccine contains a live virus. One cannot catch Covid-19 from the vaccine. Pregnant patients can rest assured mRNA vaccines do not cause fetal genetic changes. The mRNA vaccines do not enter our cells’ nucleus and do not alter vaccine recipients’ DNA. 

Much remains unknown about the novel coronavirus’s effects on pregnant women, babies, and Covid-19 vaccination in pregnancy. Research indicates most pregnant people who contract Covid-19 do well but have an increased risk of ICU admission and preterm labor.

Based on the known risks of Covid-19 infection in pregnancy, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists advocates offering vaccination to pregnant and lactating people.

More than 3.7 million individuals give birth in the United States per year. Excluding pregnant patients from vaccine eligibility or scaring them away with false information creates a significant risk for moms and babies.

The post Experts Say Covid-19 Vaccine Is Not Linked to Miscarriage or Infertility appeared first on Medika Life.

When the coronavirus pandemic first hit, Obgyns around the world wanted to know if mothers could pass SARS-CoV-2 to their babies, a process called vertical transmission.

The vertical transmission of Covid-19 was an unthinkable nightmare putting humanity’s next generation of babies at risk. 

Fortunately, data surveillance so far indicates in-utero coronavirus infections are very rare. According to the American College of Obgyn (ACOG) July practice advisory, “the data are reassuring that vertical transmission appears to be uncommon.”

Why are fetal coronavirus infections rare?

New NIH research may explain why pregnant women with SARS-CoV-2 pass the infection to their baby infrequently. Examining the placental response to the virus demonstrates the difference.

Research shows the placenta may be missing what the virus needs to enter the fetal circulation: the door and the key.

The placenta protects the baby from infection

The placenta is the organ inside the uterus that keeps the baby alive. Maternal blood circulates through this internal filtration system. The growing baby receives oxygen and nutrients from the mother, and the placenta removes carbon dioxide and waste products. 

The placenta is also the defense system against invading infections like bacteria and viruses. Placental immune system cells called trophoblasts are the first line of defense against any invading organisms. 

Most infectious invaders do not make it across the placental defense system. Trophoblasts stop them in their tracks. But babies are at risk of a group of maternal pathogens called TORCH infections.

These diseases have developed ways to bypass trophoblasts. They cross the maternal-fetal barrier and cause illness in the baby. The TORCH infections are:

1. Toxoplasmosis
2. Other (like ZIKA)
3. Rubella
4. Cytomegalovirus
5. Herpes

How does the placenta protect against Covid-19? 

For SARS-Cov-2 to enter the placenta it needs to find an entry point and use its spike protein to enter cells. The human placenta may be missing both the door and the key the virus needs to find its way inside the fetal circulation.

The door is the ACE2 receptor. SARS-CoV-2 enters cells through the ACE2 receptor located all over our bodies. These receptors are in our nose, lungs, heart, blood vessels, kidneys, liver, and gastrointestinal tract. 

The placenta has very few ACE2 receptors. It lacks receptors because the human placenta is missing the molecules needed to create it. Without the entry portal, SARS-CoV-2 is unable to bypass the placental defense system and cause infection. 

Because the placenta has a low-level ACE2 receptor expression, SARS-CoV-2 can not find the door to enter cells to cross over from mom to baby. 

But the placenta does have a small level of ACE2 receptors. Even with a small number of receptors, coronavirus could still infect a fetus. Fortunately, the virus needs something more than just an entry point. The ACE2 receptor door is deadbolted and locked. SARS-CoV-2 needs a key to open it.

Researchers demonstrate the placenta is also missing the key the virus needs to unlock the door when it locates an ACE2 receptor. 

The placenta tissues lack the mRNA needed to produce an enzyme called TMPRSS2. This enzyme primes the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein allowing it to enter cells. The TMPRSS2 is the key and without this enzyme, the virus is unable to enter. 

Both the ACE2 receptor and TMPRSS2 are present in the placenta but only in tiny amounts. The low levels likely indicate SARS-CoV-2 can’t find the door and is missing the key to enter into the fetal circulation. 

Many questions remain regarding the risk of pregnancy and Covid-19. This research on the protective effects of the placenta is encouraging. At the same time, fetal infection can occur in rare cases. 

In Dallas, Texas, Parkland Hospital reported one of the first verified cases of intrauterine Covid-19 infections in The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal on July 10, 2020.

As research continues, let’s hope the placenta keeps protecting babies from harm. 

The post The Placenta Protects Babies From Covid-19; Here’s How appeared first on Medika Life.