"Deadly Discovery: Bacteria's Vampiric Attraction to Human Blood"

Scientists from Washington State University have discovered that certain disease-causing bacteria, including strains of Escherichia coli, are chemically attracted to human blood serum as a source of food, explaining their tendency to cause life-threatening sepsis. The research, published in the journal Elife, found that these bacteria are finely tuned to seek out blood for nourishment, a phenomenon the authors have termed "bacterial vampirism." The team hopes that understanding this behavior could lead to the development of new drugs to block this ability and prevent bloodstream infections, particularly in people with inflammatory bowel diseases.