Placenta protectors no match for toxic Strep B pigment

Bacterial weapon pokes holes in immune cells, study in monkeys shows

neutrophils

MICROBIAL MACHETE  A toxic pigment made by Strep B bacteria destroys infection-fighting cells called neutrophils (healthy neutrophil, left; one exposed to a pigmented strain of Strep B, middle; one exposed to a hyperpigmented strain, right).

Boldenow et al/Science Immunology 2016

A type of bacteria that can cause stillbirth and fatal illness in newborns attacks with an unlikely weapon: an orange pigment made of fat.