Legionnaires’ disease in England and Wales: 2016 – Official Statistics
Reported cases of Legionnaires’ disease in residents of England and Wales with onset of symptoms during 2016. LINK
FREE ACCESS PAPER – Distribution of Legionella and bacterial community composition among regionally diverse US cooling towers
FREE ACCESS PAPER – Distribution of Legionella and bacterial community composition among regionally diverse US cooling towers Abstract Cooling towers (CTs) are a leading source of outbreaks of Legionnaires’ disease (LD), a severe form of pneumonia caused by inhalation of aerosols containing Legionella bacteria. Accordingly, proper maintenance of CTs is vital for the prevention… Read more »
Brexit and standards – position statement
Since the UK voted to leave the EU in June 2016, BSI, in its capacity as the UK’s National Standards Body, has consulted its members and stakeholders about the possible implications of Brexit for standards. READ MORE
EVENT REPORT – Water & Health joint workshop with RSC WSF a success! Write up by Richard Luxton, chair for the day
Water & Health joint workshop with RSC WSF a success! Write up by Richard Luxton, chair for the day February 15th, 2018 SWIG and the RSC WSF group held a joint workshop on ‘Water & Health’ kindly hosted by the IBST at UWE, Bristol, on 31 January 2018. Richard Luxton, Chair for the day… Read more »
New EU rules on drinking water
High quality, safe and sufficient drinking water is essential for our daily life, for drinking and food preparation. We also use it for many other purposes, such as washing, cleaning, hygiene or watering our plants. READ MORE
FREE ACCESS PAPER: Effect of heat shock on hot water plumbing microbiota and Legionella pneumophila control
FREE ACCESS PAPER: Effect of heat shock on hot water plumbing microbiota and Legionella pneumophila control Abstract Background Heat shock is a potential control strategy for Legionella pneumophila in hot water plumbing systems. However, it is not consistently effective, with little understanding of its influence on the broader plumbing microbiome. Here, we employed a… Read more »
Updated HSE-CQC MoU
The revised Memorandum of Understanding between HSE and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) is now available on both the HSE and CQC websites. http://www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/howwework/framework/mou/mou-cqc-hse-la.pdf http://www.cqc.org.uk/sites/default/files/20180202_mou_between_cqc_hse_las.pdf The document outlines the respective responsibilities of CQC, HSE and local authorities in England when dealing with health and safety incidents in the health and adult social care sectors. It… Read more »
Free Access paper link: May car washing represent a risk for Legionella infection?
FREE access paper: May car washing represent a risk for Legionella infection? Background Legionella is a ubiquitous Gram-negative bacterium naturally found in aquatic environments. It can pose a health problem when it grows and spreads in man-made water systems. Legionella pneumo-phila is the most common cause of Legionnaires’ disease nowadays, a community-acquired pneumonia with pulmonary… Read more »
Free access scientific paper: The Life Cycle of L. pneumophila: Cellular Differentiation Is Linked to Virulence and Metabolism
Legionella pneumophila is a gram-negative bacterium that inhabits freshwater ecosystems, where it is present in biofilm or as planktonic form. L. pneumophila is mainly found associated with protozoa, which serve as protection from hostile environments and as replication niche. If inhaled within aerosols, L. pneumophila is also able to infect and replicate in human alveolar… Read more »
Free access scientific paper: The Toolbox for Uncovering the Functions of Legionella Dot/Icm Type IVb Secretion System Effectors: Current State and Future Directions
Legionella pneumophila was recognized as human pathogen in 1976 after a devastating outbreak of pneumonia, termed Legionnaires’ disease, at an American Legion convention (Fraser et al., 1977; McDade et al., 1977). Investigations into the epidemiological and pathological mechanisms soon established that L. pneumophila is a ubiquitous, facultative intracellular pathogen of protozoa (Rowbotham, 1980), which, after… Read more »
