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Fatal Attachment
03 June 2016

Fatal Attachment

Every day we’re under attack. The enemy – bacteria – make their way in through sticky surfaces in our nose, throat, lungs, guts and genitals, attaching to the cells and starting an infection. To combat this assault, humans and other animals have evolved a handy defence strategy: the cells lining these tissues are quickly shed, along with any attached bacteria. This image shows the top layer of cells in a mouse’s vagina lifting off following attack by E. coli bacteria (small red rods), which can cause persistent infections. But this isn’t enough to win the war, as the invaders have come up with a cunning counter-attack. Researchers have discovered that these bugs can stop infected cells being shed, giving them more time to settle down and cause disease. Figuring out how bacteria suppress cell shedding, and how to enhance it, could open up a new front in our arms race against infection.

Written by Kat Arney

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BPoD stands for Biomedical Picture of the Day. Managed by the MRC Laboratory of Medical Sciences until Jul 2023, it is now run independently by a dedicated team of scientists and writers. The website aims to engage everyone, young and old, in the wonders of biology, and its influence on medicine. The ever-growing archive of more than 4000 research images documents over a decade of progress. Explore the collection and see what you discover. Images are kindly provided for inclusion on this website through the generosity of scientists across the globe.

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