'Rapid' bacteria detector developed

A NEW device which cuts the time taken to detect bacteria in food down to a matter of hours has been developed by scientists who said it would help reduce the number of food poisoning cases.

The University of Southampton's Biolisme project has developed the new sensor which is capable of collecting and detecting Listeria monocytogenes on food industry surfaces, preventing contaminated products from entering the market.

Listeria monocytogenes is a pathogen that causes listeriosis, an infection with symptoms of fever, vomiting and diarrhoea, that can spread to other parts of the body and lead to more serious complications, like meningitis.

Transmitted by ready-to-eat foods, such as milk, cheese, vegetables, raw and smoked fish, meat and cold cuts, Listeria monocytogenes has the highest hospitalisation (92 per cent) and death (18 per cent) rate among all foodborne pathogens.

Listeriosis mainly affects pregnant women, new-born children, the elderly and people with weakened immune systems.

"Current techniques to detect the bacteria take days of testing in labs, but the new device aims to collect and detect the pathogen on location within three to four hours," a university spokesman said.

"This early and rapid detection can avoid the cross contamination of ready-to-eat food products.

The spokesman explained that the new device was designed to sample single cells and biofilms - groups of microorganisms where cells stick together on surfaces.

Compressed air and water is used to remove the cells before they are introduced to an antibody.

If Listeria monocytogenes is present, cells react with the antibody to produce a florescent signal, which is detected by a special camera.

Doctor Salome Giao, from Southampton's Centre for Biological Science Unit, who worked on the technique with Professor Bill Keevil, said: "The scientific research we have carried out at the University of Southampton has been used by our Biolisme project partners to develop a device which will have major implications for the food industry.

"By making the process simpler we hope that testing will be conducted more frequently, thereby reducing the chance of infected food having to be recalled or making its way to the consumer."

The prototype sensor, which is being created by a consortium of six partners across four EU countries, has been finalised in France and field trials are under way to test the device before it is demonstrated in food factories.

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Shark fin off menu in Singapore resort

A MAJOR Singaporean resort is removing shark fin from its exhibition and convention centre menus, its management has announced.

Shark fin soup is a traditional staple of wedding dinners in the predominantly Chinese city-state.

"Marina Bay Sands is a leader in the hospitality and MICE [meetings, incentives, conventions, exhibitions] industry. We have the unique opportunity to inspire and influence our customers and partners to adopt sustainable practices," said Kevin Teng, the resort's director of sustainability.

Wildlife and environmental activists welcomed the announcement on Wednesday.

"We applaud their strong commitment to marine protection and hope that other hotels will follow their excellent example," the Animal Concerns Research & Education Society.

"This move ... sends a strong and clear message that this is an important issue that needs to be addressed," said Olivia Choong, president of Green Drinks Singapore.

Sharks are hunted and harvested worldwide, mainly to satisfy the large demand for shark fin in Asian markets. The soup is considered a traditional delicacy in Chinese cuisine, and is often served during festive occasions.

But the slaughter of millions of top-tier predators each year just for the fins is cruel and upsets the delicate balance of marine ecosystems, conservationists say.

Singapore has been identified as one of the largest shark fin trading nations, and one of the top exporters to the major market of Hong Kong.

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WA animal poisonings worry RSPCA

THE RSPCA is calling for witnesses after reports of more than 40 animals being poisoned over the past six months in West Australia.

Since December, the not-for-profit organisation has investigated 29 cases of dogs being poisoned, seven cases of cat poisonings and five poisonings of birds and other wildlife.

An RSPCA spokesman said of the cases investigated, the majority of the animals died as a result of the poisoning or had to be euthanised.

Animals who survived poisoning were often left with ongoing health problems such as neurological and organ dysfunction, he said.

On Wednesday, the RSPCA received a report of a dog being poisoned at a home in the Perth Hills region suburb of Roleystone just four weeks after the owner's other dog died from poisoning.

The most recent incident comes only two days after two dogs were poisoned with snail pellets at a Singleton home near Mandurah.

RSPCA chief inspector Amanda Swift said poisoned animals could face a slow and agonising death.

"If you suspect your pet has been poisoned, they need to be taken to the nearest veterinary clinic immediately," she said.

People found guilty of poisoning an animal can face a fine of up to $50,000 and five years jail.

Anyone who has information or has witnessed any suspicious behaviour is urged to call the RSPCA cruelty hotline 1300 CRUELTY.

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Ministers talk security in Japan

Australia's defence and foreign ministers are in Japan for top level talks. Source: AAP

DEFENCE Minister David Johnston and Foreign Minister Julie Bishop are in Japan for top level talks as Australia and Japan move to deepen defence and security co-operation.

The ministers were meeting their opposite numbers in Tokyo on Wednesday for the fifth Australia-Japan Foreign and Defence Ministerial (2+2) Consultations.

That follows Prime Minister Tony Abbott's visit to Japan in April where he agreed on both a trade deal and future cooperation on defence science and technology, particularly joint research on marine hydrodynamics.

In practice, that means submarines, with Australia interested in Japan's new Soryu-class boats as it looks to replacements for the Navy's six Collins submarines.

The ministers are expected to conclude negotiations on the proposed Defence Science, Technology and Materiel Agreement, announced during Mr Abbott's visit.

The agreement will allow Australia and Japan to jointly develop defence technologies, establishing a basis to deepen defence cooperation, they said.

During the visit, Ms Bishop will meet Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida and other senior Japanese ministers, parliament members and academics to discuss international and bilateral developments.

That will include the New Colombo Plan, under which students from around the region will receive scholarships to study in Australia.

Senator Johnston will meet Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera separately to discuss progress in bilateral defence engagement in areas such as logistics cooperation, exercises and training, and peacekeeping and disaster relief.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who reportedly is planning to visit Australia in July, wants Japan to play a bigger role on the global stage, loosening longstanding constitutional restrictions on the role of its defence force.

He has moved to ease tight restrictions on weapons exports, paving the way for greater defence co-operation with Australia.

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Dust mites 'may cut asthma risk'

EXPOSING babies to a dust mite could significantly reduce the risk of developing allergies including asthma and eczema as they get older, according to new research from the UK.

Researchers at the NIHR Southampton Respiratory Biomedical Research Unit recruited 111 children with a history of allergy in both parents and gave half of them oral drops of dust mite allergen and half a placebo.

They administered the treatments twice a day from the age of six months to 18 months and discovered exposure in this way to the common allergen, which is often found in pillows, mattresses and on carpets, reduced the incidence of allergy by almost two-thirds (63 per cent).

"These findings are extremely exciting as we have shown that a simple and safe treatment - oral dust mite extract - given to children at high risk reduces the early development of allergy," said Professor Hasan Arshad, a consultant in allergy based at Southampton General Hospital.

"Although dust mites are an important cause of asthma and allergy, using the same allergen in an oral extract form, known as immunotherapy, can reduce the body's reaction to not only dust mites, but also other important allergens.

"As a result, we think there is a strong possibility this could now lead to the prevention of asthma, eczema and other allergic diseases."

As many as one in four people in the UK are affected by an allergic disease and, as allergies start early in life, children bear the brunt of the diseases.

In the UK, dust mites are the most prevalent allergy-triggering substance, inducing reactions in a high proportion of children with asthma.

Prof Arshad, who is chair of allergy and clinical immunology at the University of Southampton, said previous studies carried out by his team showed that about a quarter of all high-risk children have evidence of an allergy at 18 months and they were at high risk of developing asthma later in life.

The findings, presented on Wednesday at the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology Congress in Copenhagen, showed results in the placebo group were as expected - 25.5 per cent developed allergy to dust mites or other allergens - but the dust mite extract intervention group saw that happen in only 9.4 per cent.

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Choppers used again in Canada jailbreak

3 inmates in Canada have escaped from a detention centre with the help of a helicopter, police say. Source: AAP

THREE inmates have escaped from a detention centre in Quebec City with the help of a helicopter, police in Canada say.

It's the second helicopter-aided prisoner escape in Quebec province in two years.

Provincial police said the helicopter headed west from the Orsainville Detention Centre after the breakout.

"We (are working with) a few partners like the airports of Quebec City and surrounding areas, the military bases, and of course there's a ground search in the event that the helicopter is located," said police spokeswoman Audrey-Anne Bilodeau.

Police identified the inmates as Yves Denis, Denis Lefebvre and Serge Pomerleau and told anyone who sees them to not approach them and immediately contact police.

They were being held at the detention centre awaiting trial.

In March of last year, a helicopter pilot was forced at gunpoint to pluck two inmates from the St-Jerome prison on a quiet Sunday afternoon. Two inmates climbed up a rope ladder into the hovering helicopter and fled.

Police caught the two escapees and the two suspects who hijacked the helicopter within a few hours of the escape.

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Malta authorities rescue 130 boat migrants

ABOUT 130 migrants have been rescued and taken to Malta as boatloads of immigrants trying to reach Europe have set sail on the Mediterranean in recent days, authorities say.

The Armed Forces of Malta said the group of immigrants rescued from a sinking dinghy included 11 women.

In a Twitter post, Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat criticised Europe for being "totally absent" and praised the Maltese Armed Forces and the Italian and US navies for their work in the rescue.

Italy's navy, which is co-ordinating a large-scale maritime patrol mission called Mare Nostrum (Our Sea), has intercepted several thousand people at sea since Thursday, bringing the number of migrant arrivals in the country since January 1 to more than 50,000.

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Iraq Kurdish party office blasts kill 19

A double bombing at a Kurdish party office has killed 19 people in a town northeast of Baghdad. Source: AAP

A DOUBLE bombing at a Kurdish party office has killed 19 people in a town northeast of Baghdad, Iraqi officials said.

Police officials said the attack took place on Sunday morning when a suicide bomber set off his explosive vest at the gate of the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan office in Jalula, 125 kilometres northeast of Baghdad in the ethnically mixed Diyala province.

Minutes later, a car bomb exploded near the building as security forces arrived to inspect the scene of the first blast.

Police put the death toll for both explosions at 19 killed and 65 wounded.

The dead included a senior police officer and four of his bodyguards, and several houses and cars were damaged in the attack.

Hospital officials confirmed the casualty figures.

All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to talk to media.

The PUK is headed by the ailing Iraqi president Jalal Talabani, who is receiving treatment in a hospital in Germany.

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Slovenes hold referendum on secret files

SLOVENIA is holding a referendum to decide whether sensitive personal information like sexual or religious orientation in communist-era state security files should be open to the public.

The small Balkan country's ruling coalition wants to restrict access to such data as a matter of privacy and human rights.

Sunday's vote has been pushed by the opposition Slovene Democratic Party.

It argues that extracting such data would be time-consuming and could thwart historical research in state archives.

The referendum centres on a parliamentary bill amendment.

Under Slovenian law, at least 20 per cent of the country's 1.7 million voters must take part in the referendum for the proposal to succeed - meaning that turnout will matter.

Slovenia was one of six republics in Yugoslavia under Josip Broz Tito's Communists before the country fell apart in 1990s.

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Portugal cops 'to quiz Madeleine suspects'

POLICE in Portugal are likely to interview "several suspects" in the near future over the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, media reports say.

British police have spent the last week searching an area of scrubland close to where she went missing in the Algarve holiday resort seven years ago.

It was reported on Friday that Scotland Yard has been granted permission from the Portuguese authorities to question three suspects about the case.

But according to a BBC report, Portuguese police said more than three people will be interviewed over the coming weeks.

Portuguese officers would conduct the interviews in the presence of British officers, who would not be allowed to intervene in questioning them, the BBC said.

Scotland Yard declined to comment.

The area of scrubland, a few minutes' walk from the the Ocean Club resort apartment in Praia da Luz where Madeleine and her family were staying, has been searched before.

Two other areas are also expected to be searched by investigators.

The operation is likely to continue next week after British police applied to the judiciary to spend an extra seven days there.

Madeleine disappeared from the holiday resort in May 2007, aged three.

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