Bacteria shows promise against salmonella

Eric Brown and other microbiologists at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are experimenting with naturally occurring "good" bacteria that can kill "bad" bacteria on fresh fruits and vegetables, The Washington Post reported Saturday.

"The beauty is that we take something alive and organic and put it back into the field, and by itself, it will kill other bacteria. We're right on the edge of this," said Brown, who presented his findings this month at an international salmonella conference in France.

Brown and his team worked with more than 300 species of plant bacteria before isolating five "good" bacteria effective against salmonella. Those five species of bacteria don't appear to be harmful to humans though further investigation is needed, Brown said.

Salmonella, a leading cause of food-borne illness, kills more than 500 people and sickens an estimated 1.4 million each year in the United States.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International.