New Infectious Bacteria Species Found in Hospital Patient's Blood

Researchers in a London hospital have discovered a new species of infectious bacteria in a patient's blood. This is the first reported case of the new species, which the researchers believe likely jumped over from sheep.

The patient, 55, who works as a shepherd in Canterbury, Kent, in the U.K., was first admitted to Guy's & St Thomas' Hospital in London with a persistent fever, weight loss and an abnormal swelling in the walls of the main artery from their heart. Standard blood tests revealed the presence of several different species of disease-causing bacteria that could be behind the infection.

However, one species could not be recognized using standard testing procedures.

To identify this species X, researchers from the hospital and King's College London came together to analyze its DNA. Using nanopore sequencing technology—a technique that allows scientists to read single sequences of DNA rapidly—the team was able to analyze the whole genome to confirm that the bacteria was indeed a previously undescribed species.

The team published the results in the journal Clinical Infection in Practice, showing that this new bacterial species was a type of Variovorax—a group of bacteria that mainly live in soils. The patient named the new species Variovorax durovernesis, which is derived from the Latin name for the city of Canterbury, where the shepherd lives in the U.K.

But how did this soil-dwelling microbe end up in the patient in the first place?

"Further investigation suggested the patient became infected during the lambing season or while feeding the sheep anti-parasite medications (a process called 'drenching'), which was all done without gloves," Lara Payne, specialist registrar at St. Thomas' Hospital, London, said in the paper.

The researchers wrote: "This case highlights the importance of an open mind interpreting results from clinical samples as more atypical infections from the environmental microbiome may be isolated."

The researchers added that this study highlights the usefulness of nanopore technologies in the quick identification of new and unusual species in clinical settings.

"Once we know the cause of infection, we can change the antibiotics accordingly—meaning patients get personalized and targeted treatment," Adela Alcolea-Medina, joint first author and a researcher at King's College London and next generation sequencing lead at Synnovis, said in a statement.

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