Pseudomonas aeruginosa

What is Pseudomonas aeruginosa?

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a bacteria with a number of properties that make it a hospital bacteria or a superbacteria. We call bacteria as such when they have become so resilient that they have acquired immunity to various agents. With Pseudomonas aeruginosa, we know that a large proportion of Pseudomonas strains are antibiotic resistant. This makes it difficult to control infections. The infections get into airways, the blood, the ear or even the heart. The bacteria are most harmful in people who are already weakened. If they are already sick, for example, or have a weakened immune system.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa characteristics and challenges

Pseudomonas aeruginosa can be divided into two groups in terms of characteristics. The antibiotic-resistant group and the antibiotic-sensitive group.

• When Pseudomonas aeruginosa bacteria have that resistance, they pass it on. They do this from mother cell to daughter cell (vertically). And unlike humans and animals, microorganisms can also pass genetic material such as this trait to other microorganisms in their environment (horizontally).
• If a Pseudomonas bacterium does have antibiotic sensitivity, fighting it in problem areas is still difficult. In the food industry, for example, antibiotics are not an option. In the livestock industry, they can. Because re-contamination via drinking water, lurks for example, it often does not help.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the food industry

As a producer in the food industry, you sometimes encounter Pseudomonas aeruginosa on your product during quality control. The bacteria causes food to spoil and can be dangerous to consumers. What is good to know is that this bacteria is always a red flag. During quality control, we do not check for all the bacteria that may be present because there are too many. We do look for Pseudomonas aeruginosa in systems and on products because it is easy to detect. If you detect the bacteria, it almost certainly means that more bacteria and other microorganisms are present. In most cases, the cause is found in the process water and piping systems. In piping where the water regularly stands still, there is a chance of biofilm forming containing the persistent bacteria such as Salmonella and Pseudomonas aeruginosa.

Tackling pseudomonas aeruginosa in water 

In the food and livestock industry, the cause of the bacteria can often be traced to process water or drinking water from livestock. Through the nipples or drinking troughs, animals infect each other and the bacteria spread rapidly. Controlling Pseudomonas aeruginosa with antibiotics is then not a solution. Combating it with Watter is. It is a way to make drinking water free of many harmful bacteria in a safe way. Watter is a device that produces an environmentally friendly, biodegradable disinfecting agent that can be used in animal drinking water or process water.

The Watter system converts water and salt into disinfectant by electrolysis. After the electrochemical reaction, HOCl is the most active substance in the water that clears germs. Think bacteria, fungi, yeasts and viruses that cause damage in livestock farms, food industry and also in health care.

Proven effectiveness against Pseudomonas aeruginosa in systems

Whether in systems processing potatoes, process plants producing glue or disinfecting surfaces and rooms, Watter removes Pseudomonas aeruginosa and other pathogens such as (hospital) bacteria. Watter has been tested by TNO and it is registered on the European Article 95 list for active substances (PT1-5).