Study finds cracks in resistance of harmful hospital bugs ANI | Updated: Apr 23, 2021 18:11 IST Washington [US], April 23 (ANI): Researchers during a recent study identified critical factors that enable dangerous bacteria to spread disease by surviving on surfaces in hospitals and kitchens. The study published in the journal PLOS Biology, into the mechanisms which enable the opportunistic human pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa to survive on surfaces, could lead to new ways of targeting harmful bacteria. To survive outside their host, pathogenic bacteria must withstand various environmental stresses. One mechanism is the sugar molecule, trehalose, which is associated with a range of external stresses, particularly osmotic shock - sudden changes to the salt concentration surrounding cells.