According to data from the CDC, the number of deaths caused by Legionnaires’ Disease has just about tripled over the past two decades. In 2002 there was 63 deaths directly attributed to Legionnaires’ Disease. The CDC reported 170 deaths caused by Legionnaires’ Disease in 2015, the most recent year that was analyzed. When Legionnaires’ Disease is taken into account as a contributing factor to death, the number of deaths in 2015 increases to 217. Legionnaires’ Disease is the underlying cause of death in 78.3% of fatalities associated with the disease. The data also shows that the mortality rate for Legionnaires’ Disease…
Researchers at the Chemical Genomics Center of the Max Planck Society in Munich have promising results from their study of legionella infections. Legionellosis, the process of infection by legionella bacteria, is a particularly evasive infection. The body’s typical immune response involves ‘eating up’ foreign intruders such as bacteria and viruses in a process known as autophagy, ultimately preventing the onset of diseases and infections. A molecule known as LC3-PE is responsible for this process. Legionella bacteria has been found to contain a molecule, called RavZ, that disrupts the actions of LC3-PE and ultimately allows legionella bacteria to propagate within the body,…