Case Study

In 2016, Public Health England (PHE) investigated a national outbreak of a rare strain of E. coli O157 that was identified by PHE’s whole genome sequencing technology. There had been 161 cases of this strain of E. coli identified (154 in England, 6 in Wales 6 and 1 in Scotland). Epidemiologists identified bags of mixed salad leaves as the likely cause of the outbreak.

Read the news article here

Read the PHE report here

Image taken from Giant Microbes.

Escherichia coli (E. coli)

(Esh-Er-Ic-E-Ah Co-Lie)

Please discuss the following in the comments below, and feel free to interact with other learners:

• How long should you stay off school or work when you have vomiting or diarrhoea?
• At what critical points should you wash your hands to avoid spreading microbes that cause foodborne illness?
• How should you store and treat raw vegetables, including salad, to prevent foodborne illness?