Even as top German scientists are baffled at the behaviour of the new strain of E. coli now creating havoc across Europe, a team of researchers from Hyderabad has taken up the task of decoding the superbug's genomic signatures that give it the killer instinct.

The Hyderabad team is also working to develop diagnostic markers for easy detection of the bacterium in a diagnostic laboratory, in case the new strain of E. coli hits India.

The team, which consists of bio-informatics specialists, has completed the work on annotating the genome of the bacterium.

The work is being carried out as part of the Indo-German International Research Training Group (IRTG), a collaborative network of scientists from the University of Hyderabad, Mahavir Hospital, Lepra India, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology and CDFD, and corresponding fraternity based in Berlin at the Humboldt University, Charite Medical University, Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology, Free University of Berlin and the Robert Koch Institute.

The network is supported by the German Research Foundation (DFG) in collaboration with the University Grants Commission.

“We hope to make available our results in the next few weeks in the form of a publication. Once we understand the genetic make-up of this new strain, which has thus far been elusive to scientists in Germany and China, we will be able to develop diagnostic tests for the new serotype. This will help us understand the pathogenic mechanism of the bacterium so that we can identify it for better diagnostics and medical treatment of the affected,” a senior researcher associated with the project told this correspondent.

Though Chinese researchers are known for quick sequencing of bacterial genomes, they have thus far failed to get answers about the aggressive new form of E. coli.

The Germans outsourced the decoding work to Chinese scientists at the Beijing Genome Institute as a collaborative exercise.