Gloomy tales <a href=" http://jillianreilly.com/what-is-my-thesis/#moist ">begomovirus thesis</a> E. coli bacteria is common and generally harmless, but the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says that this particular strain, often spread by infected farm animal feces, causes serious gastrointestinal symptoms including bloody diarrhea in 5 percent to 10 percent of people who come in contact with it. Up to 5 percent of those who become severely ill -- about 60 people a year -- die from the infection.