WASHINGTON (Rueters) - A common cause of pneumonia can kill by causing bleeding in the lungs, researchers said on Thursday in a finding that may explain why antibiotics fail to save many patients.

They found the bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae secretes a toxin that causes severe bleeding in the lungs in some patients, killing them withing days.

The toxin in unaffected by antibiotics, which explains why the drugs often fail to save patients, the researchers reported in the journal Immunity.

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