'Killer paint' could eradicate superbugs like MRSA and C. Difficile, scientists claim

[Guest guest]

Now maybe I haven't been paying attention, but I thought the jury was still

out on whether titanium dioxide was

carcinogenic....?

http://www.telegraph.co

uk/news/newstopics/politics/health/2989407/Killer-paint-could-eradicate-super

ugs-like-MRSA-and-C.-Difficile-scientists-claim.html

'Killer paint' could eradicate superbugs like MRSA and C. Difficile,

scientists claim

A new " killer paint " could potentially eradicate superbugs from hospital

wards, scientists believe.

By Kate Devlin, Medical Correspondent

Last Updated: 2:30PM BST 19 Sep 2008

The substance is able to kill bacteria which causes the infections.

Superbugs like MRSA and C. Difficile were linked to the deaths of more than

8,000 patients in England last year.

The majority of the infections are thought to be picked up in hospitals and

in recent years the Government has ordered " deep cleans " to try to rid wards

of the problem.

Now scientists at Manchester Metropolitan University believe that they have

created a paint capable of destroying the bugs.

It contains particles, which, when activated by fluorescent lights, kill

bacteria.

Laboratory tests on the potentially fatal bug E.coli showed that the paint,

which contains high levels of a chemical called titanium dioxide, used to

give white paints its shiny gloss, killed 100 per cent of the bacteria.

The scientists believe that the paint could be used on walls, ceilings and

other surfaces to prevent the spread of other bugs across a hospital.

It can even destroy airborne bacteria up to a few feet away, studies show.

Trials of the paint, which costs just 50p more per tin that the average

white gloss, have begun at Cheltenham Hospital in Gloucestershire.

It is also being sold commercially to hospitals in Italy.

The researchers behind the invention hope to roll it out across Britain by

2011.

Prof Norman , who led the research, said: " This is potentially the

biggest, most exciting thing to happen in the world of chemistry for several

decades.

" There's absolutely no reason why this paint can't be used in hospitals to

fight off superbugs.

" What makes this paint so exciting is that it is totally safe to humans, is

odourless, and can be manufactured for just 50p more per tin than existing

brands.

" There is no reason why it couldn't be made on a mass scale in Britain

within three years from now.

" And when it is, there is no reason why it won't spell the end of superbugs. "