SRUC to co-host major E. Coli conference

A major conference examining the enduring threat to both animals and people from Escherichia coli bacteria is to take place in Aberdeen next month.

Registration is now open for the four-day event, which is being jointly hosted by the SRUC and the University of Aberdeen’s Rowett Institute from 10 to 13 May.

Although major advances have been made since the 1995 outbreak in Scotland in which 21 people died, experts say they remain worried about particularly persistent strains of the pathogen.

Professor Nicola Holden from the SRUC’s vet school, who chairs the event’s local organising committee, said: “Verocytotoxigenic or Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (VTEC/STEC) continues to be a priority pathogen around the world.

“The triannual VTEC conference series showcases the value of bringing specialists from diverse disciplines together to jointly address challenges, identify knowledge gaps, and explore new approaches.”

One Health priorities

As well as considering the challenges of containing outbreaks linked to human food, the conference, which is being held at the city’s P&J Live arena complex, will also examine the pathogen’s implications for One Health priorities.

Stefano Morabito, director of the EU’s E. coli reference laboratory, said: “The elusive nature of STEC necessitates a multidisciplinary approach, such as the One Health concept, to gain a comprehensive understanding of its biology and the sources of human infections.

“The VTEC conference, gathering microbiologists, epidemiologists, clinicians and expert in food chain and genomics, serves as an ideal platform to achieve this objective.”

Registration will remain open until 1 May. More details are available via the conference’s website.