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The Conversation USA

Why the 'brain-eating' amoeba found in freshwater lakes – while rare – is so deadly

  • Written by Bill Sullivan, Professor of Pharmacology & Toxicology, author of Pleased to Meet Me: Genes, Germs, and the Curious Forces that Make Us Who We Are, Indiana University
Computer-generated representation of the amoeba _Naegleria fowleri_, which causes deadly brain infections.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Composed of a single cell, amoeba seem harmless enough: They look like playful critters waltzing under the spotlight of a microscope until they come upon a group of bacteria. Then, these previously...

Read more: Why the 'brain-eating' amoeba found in freshwater lakes – while rare – is so deadly

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