Jan. 19 (Bloomberg) -- A deadly toxin produced by certain kinds of E. coli, including those that caused an outbreak in Europe last year, can be combated using the element manganese, according to research that may lead to an inexpensive treatment for infections.

Manganese, commonly found in nature, protected cells against as much as 4,000 times the amount of that toxin required to cause death in the lab, according to scientists in the journal Science. In a study, mice dosed with manganese were resistant to the poison.

That toxin, called Shiga, caused the severe diarrhea and kidney damage seen in the European outbreak. Antibiotics aren’t effective and may make the poison worse by causing the bacteria to burst open, releasing more Shiga and making patients sicker. There is no treatment for the infections, which sicken 150 million worldwide and kill more than 1 million each year, according to the study authors.