Since 2017, a particularly dangerous strain of E. coli O157:H7 has emerged across the country to spark outbreaks, severe disease, and deaths. It spreads in various ways: via leafy greens and contaminated beef, like its relatives, but also recreational waters. Hundreds of people across 46 states have been infected, and health officials have documented at least nine separate outbreaks. One in 2018, linked to lettuce, caused over 200 infections across 37 states, killing five people and causing a severe kidney condition in 26.

Now, a sweeping genetic analysis by researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention suggests a tiny mutation in one of the bacteria's molecular weapons may be behind the strain's rise. The finding, published recently in the journal Emerging Infectious Diseases, provides insights into this clinically significant plague and its rise to prominence. It also highlights the role of the bacteria's sophisticated military tactics.

The mutated weapon is part of a complex system that E. coli and other harmful bacteria sometimes use called a Type 3 Secretion System (T3SS). This involves molecular machinery that basically functions like a syringe, complete with a long needle that is poked into the cells of its victims. The T3SS then directly injects a fleet of hostile proteins. Those proteins—called effectors—attack specific targets that collectively disable the host's defense responses and make the host more hospitable for its bacterial conqueror.

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In now-rarified comments from experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, an agency official on Tuesday evening said the explosive measles outbreak mushrooming out of West Texas will require "significant financial resources" to control and that the agency is already struggling to keep up.

"We are scrapping to find the resources and personnel needed to provide support to Texas and other jurisdictions," said David Sugerman, the CDC's lead on its measles team. The agency has been devastated by brutal cuts to CDC staff and funding, including a clawback of more than $11 billion in public health funds that largely went to state health departments.

Sugerman noted that the response to measles outbreaks is generally expensive. "The estimates are that each measles case can be $30,000 to $50,000 for public health response work—and that adds up quite quickly." The costs go to various responses, including on-the-ground response teams, vaccine doses and vaccination clinics, case reporting, contact tracing, mitigation plans, infection prevention, data systems, and other technical assistance to state health departments.

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