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St. Paul, Minn.

E. coli in mammals not always toxic

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E. coli bacteria
A microscopic view of E. coli bacteria, which normally lives in the intestines of people and animals. Under certain conditions it may cause food poisoning, hemorrhagic diarrhea and kidney failure.
Rocky Mountain Laboratories, NIAID, National Institutes of Health

E. coli is in the news now and then, but it's actually in our bodies every day. Escherichia coli is a type of bacteria, or "gut flora" that live in the lower intestines of mammals, usually without complication. But when E. coli travels to a body cavitie where it is not normally found, such as the bladder, or when it produces toxins that attack the body, it makes us sick.

MPR's Greta Cunningham speaks with Dr. Jon Hallberg about his clinical experience with E. coli.

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E. coli bacteria
A microscopic view of E. coli bacteria, which normally lives in the intestines of people and animals. Under certain conditions it may cause food poisoning, hemorrhagic diarrhea and kidney failure.
Rocky Mountain Laboratories, NIAID, National Institutes of Health