Paleo Gut Used To Study Evolutionary History

Biologists have began to study gut bacteria in order to study the evolutionary history of mammals. This was done in hopes of following gut bacteria all the way back to the to carnivorous creatures 100 million years ago. Gut bacteria is considered microbes, and they have been found to be co-evolving with humans for a long time. They have been found to train our immune systems to fight pathogens and guide development of intestines. Andrew Moeller, a Fellow in UC Berkeley's Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, decided to study feces of different species. Moeller and a couple colleagues obtained feces from gorrillas, chimpanzees, bonobos, and people. Then they isolated and amplified the DNA of bacteria in order to study it. They found three families of bacteria that composed about 20% of the human gut. The bacteria found are Bacteroidaceae, Bifidobacteriaceae, and Lachnospiraceae. Lachnospiraceae was found to be transferred between host species due to their ability to grow spores and survive outside of a host. Bacteroidaceae and Bifodobacteriaceae were found in both the apes and humans, with more diversity in the ape species. 
Their study concluded: 

"Once we calibrated the molecular clock, we were able to date the split of human and chimp bacteria at around 5.3 million years ago, and the human-gorilla gut bacteria split at around 15.6 million years ago, which are roughly in line with what we know from fossil and genomic data of the hosts," Moeller said. "It is one more line of evidence that gut bacteria have cospeciated with humans."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2649005/

Coral Reef Bleaching

Coral bleaching has become an evident and problematic phenomenon among various species of coral in our oceans. The relationship between coral and bacteria can be compared to that of a married couple. They thrive off of each other, creating a life-long lasting relationship. When the coral is subjected to climate change and human pollution, the bacteria growing in the tissues of the coral begins to withdraw, taking the bright colors and vital nutrients along with it. The coral becomes a bleached white color and is susceptible to deadly diseases. Certainly, a coral can survive a bleaching, but its life expectancy drops substantially. Efforts have been conducted to figure out how to reverse the effects of a bleached coral and ultimately bringing them back from certain death, however, research has been inconclusive at this time due to the increasing effects of pollution. This comes at a important time with human pollution and global warming in the spot light. Many scientists believe that if pollutants are decreased, corals around the world can be saved. I agree that if pollutants are somehow decreased, the global ecosystem will improve.

Coral bleaching over a span of 20 years.

Campylobacter jejuni

Campylobacter jejuni is the most common cause for diarrheal illness in the United States. It is considered an Epsilonproteobacteria. Although Campylobacter doesn't commonly cause death, it is estimated that approximately 100 people die from infection each year. It is especially fond of birds and therefore thrives there. This bacteria spreads through under cooked poultry, raw poultry, raw milk and untreated water. In the United States alone this bacteria is the most prevalent food- borne pathogen in poultry, pork, and shellfish. This genus is especially fragile and requires reduced levels of oxygen. It thrives in places like the intestines, and according to my bio teacher reproduces in low temperatures like the freezer. NEVER take out frozen meat to thaw and freeze again. That is a huge-breeding ground and is not a smart idea, only take out meat you are definitely preparing. Major symptoms are basically diarrhea and everything that comes with it like fever, abdominal pain, nausea, headache and muscle pain. The illness usually occurs 2-5 days after ingestion of the contaminated food or water. This infection will generally lasts 7-10 days, and is not treatable with antibiotics. Just last it out, relax as much as possible, and drink plenty of fluids. This little 'BEASTY' is not too be taken lately, and everyone should be fully aware of how and what it can do.What is Campylobacter?

Bad Pork

Research has been done on pork chop and ground pork samples from six cities around the U.S. Of the 198 samples (148 pork chop and 50 ground pork), Yersinia enterocolitica, was found in 69%. Yersinia, which infects about 100,000 Americans each year, is a bacterium that can cause fever, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. The other contaminations were considerably lower than the rate for Yersinia; Enterococcus (11%), Staphylococcus aureus (7%), salmonella (4%), and Listeria monocytogenes (3%). Enterococcus can indicate fecal contamination and can cause problems such as urinary-tract infections. Listeria causes the infection, Listeriosis, which is the leading cause of death among foodborne bacterial pathogens.
Some of the bacteria samples were resistant to antibiotics used to treat people. This is beacuase of the frequent low dose of antibiotics used in the raising of pigs. Of the 132 samples of Yersinia, 121 were resistant to one class of antibiotic, and 52 were resistant to two or more. Of the 19 samples containing Enterococcus, 12 were resistant to at least one class. Of the 14 samples positive for staph, 13 were resistant to at least one class, and 9 were resistant to two or more. Lastly, of the 8 samples consisting of salmonella, 6 were resitant to at least one class, and 3 were resistant to at least 5 types.
A second test was done on a seperate, 240 samples of pork. The controversial drug, Ractopamine, which encourages lean muscle growth, was found in 20% of the samples. It is legal in the U.S, but banned in the European Union, China, and Taiwan. Therefore, those countries do not accept meats containing Ractopamine.
Rep. Louise Slaughter (D-NY), the member of Congress has been the strongest voice for controlling antibiotic resistant bacteria in food. She stated, " I have legislation awaiting a vote in Congress to address this problem once and for all — and it’s time we pass it into law".

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/pork0113.htm
http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2012/11/bad-pork-cu/#more-139025

Beginnings of Bionic

I found a very interesting article in Science News, the article describes a stamp-on circuit and other new electronic devices that are designed to conform to human tissue and could keep you healthy. Michael McAlpines's circuit is dashed with gold, has a coiled antenna and is glued to a stiff rectangle, definitely not something you may want to put in your mouth. But the antenna flexes, and the rectangle is actually silk, its stiffness melting away under water. The electronic gizmo is designed to detect dangerous bacteria and send out warning signals, alerting its bearer to microbes slipping past the lips. Recently McAlpine, of Princeton University in New Jersey, and his colleagues spotted a single E. coli bacterium skittering across the surface of the gadget's sensor. The sensor also picked out ulcer causing H. pylori amid the vase molecules found in human saliva. This new device is still way to big to fit in a human mouth, "we had to use a cow tooth," McAlpine said. McAlpine and his team are planning to shrink the gadget so it can be placed on human enamel.

He is also convinced that one day, five to ten years from now, everyone will wear some sort of electronic device. McAlpine belongs to a growing pack of tech-savy scientist that are trying to merge the rigid, brittle materials of conventional electronics with the soft, curving surfaces of human tissues. This is very interesting to me, because these new little gadgets may actually let you know your getting sick before you get sick!  McAlpines "toothy circuit" is not the only bionic device mentioned in the article to read more go to the following link:
http://www.sciencenews.org/view/feature/id/346135/title/Beginnings_of_Bionic

Superbugs Around Us and How They Come About

As we know, anything in life is not 100% perfect. Computers “act up”, Disinfectant sprays reading “kills 99.9% of germs”, and even human error prevents things being totally precise. It’s safe to say when regarding bacteria and infections, all people want 100% results. However, because of miscalculations, natural occurrences, and environmental cesspools, “superbugs”, have formed. Sounding like something out of a comic book, superbugs are formed as a result of the use of antibiotics. Some bacteria cells survive the exposure to antibiotics, and in turn, become immune to certain widely used drugs to treat bacterial infections.

These bacterial species can become stronger due to the stress that antibiotics inflict on bacterial cells, causing them to mutate. In general, the probability of mutation occurring by chance is about one out of every million copies of a gene of a bacterium. The ability for these prokaryotic cells to change offers harmful effects on humans because 100% of them are not dying. Vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (VRSA), a strain of MRSA, or otherwise known as staph infection, arose from mutation. Vancomycin is the drug of last resort for this infection, proposing the educated guess of the possibility of more mutations and another antibiotic-resistant strain, leaving no drug to treat it.

Resistant genes are also made apparent by gene transfer. Humans reproduce sexually; traits are transferred vertically from parent to child. Prokaryotes do not reproduce sexually, but they exchange DNA between cells. This is known as horizontal gene transfer.  There are three ways horizontal gene transfer can occur: conjugation, transduction, and transformation.  

Conjugation requires cell-to-cell contact, and is common with E. coli. When E. coli cells become in contact with one another, plasmids are transferred. The best known plasmid capable of transfer is the F Plasmid, F for fertility factor. Cells that contain F plasmids are known as F+ cells, and cells that do not have the F plasmid cells are called F- cells. During the process of conjugation in E. coli, the F+ donor cell comes in contact with the F- recipient cell, and a pilus is formed on the F+ cell, acting as a the conjugation bridge. The F plasmid is replicated in the donor cell, displacing a parental strand, which gets transferred to the recipient cell and replicated once more. The F plasmid’s DNA is copied into the F- cell, changing it to an F+ cell. The new F+ cell then has the capability to use the same technique to transfer DNA as the original donor cell. The process is known as the rolling-circle replication.

Transduction is seen as an accident. When a phage infects a cell, it injects its DNA into the cell, and the phage DNA is replicated, and the host DNA is degraded. Phage particles are then packaged with DNA and released. When the phage package their DNA, they can package host DNA instead of phage DNA, producing a transducing phage. When the transducing phage infects a new cell, it only injects a piece of chromosomal DNA, which is incorporated by homologous recombination. The new cell contains DNA from the donor. The transducing phage incorporates its DNA into a cell, resulting in change in the genetic makeup of the cell to be like the donor cell, rather than phages being released as explained before.

Transformation occurs when one cell dies and releases its contents to its surroundings. These DNA fragments and be taken up in another cell and the DNA is incorporated by homologous recombination. The cell then contains DNA from the donor cell.

Antibiotic resistance can also occur due to contact with animals. Animals raised for food are given antibiotics either to promote growth, like Ractopamine, which promotes lean muscle growth, or to treat infections. “When you give low-dose antibiotics for growth promotion or for prophylaxis of infection, you end up killing off the susceptible bacteria, whether they’re E. coli, salmonella, campylobacter, or other bacteria,” says Robert S. Lawrence, M.D., director of the Center for a Livable Future at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in Baltimore. “And you continue to select for those bacteria that, through spontaneous mutations or transfer of genes from other resistant bacteria, allow them to be resistant to antibiotics.” This is an example for the “cesspools” mentioned before. Because of the close living quarters of the animals, it is a breeding ground for new antibiotic resistant bacteria cells to form.

Another breeding ground is hospitals. Since superbugs evolve from the heavy use of antibiotics, hospitals are a culprit. Also, considering the amount of open wounds and tubes carrying blood, that is another reason why hospitals are susceptible to antibiotic resistant superbugs. College campuses are another environment superbugs enjoy because of the unwashed clothing and sheets, being exposed to so many people, frequently used cafeteria trays, and even beer pong cups.

http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/pork0113.htm
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2010/08/12/superbug-facts-to-know-as-ndm-1-emerges.html

New compound defeats drug-resistant bacteria

After reading this article all you can do is just be amazed of the intelligence of these chemists who came up with this. According to the article a number of chemists at at Brown University synthesized this new compound that can make drug resistant bacteria susceptible again to antibiotics. As we all know all species big and small have evolved and have made adaptations over time. Bacteria like all living things have adapted as well and medication that once killed the bacteria can now sometimes prove to do nothing because of the evolution the bacteria has made to become immune to it. What these chemists have done is amazing. They have created this new compound which means that now old antibiotics that use to be unsuccessful can now once again prove to effect the bacteria once again. Thanks to these chemists at Brown university and found a way to defeat the drug-resistant bacteria we now dont have to do the more expensive option which would of been to make a new and more costly antibiotic. So our advancement in medicine continues and proves to continue to do so as our race goes on.

Black Death DNA puzzle no longer plagues scientists

In this article scientist were able to reconstruct an entire genome taken from ancient skeletons to find information about the Black Death. DNA was taken from teeth of plague victims buried in London over 600 years ago. The DNA was then used to recreate the genome. The study showed that the medieval bacteria has remained unchanged compared to modern day strain. The German and Canadian scientists who constructed the study believe that the bacteria is Yersinia pestis, which is the ancestor to all circulating bacteria. Scientists had to sequenced the DNA first to create a genome. When they did this they found that increase of virulence of the bacteria during the Black Death that showed that not only was the there genetics factors but also environmental factors. Famine and poor living conditions help the disease to spread rapidly.

This study is expected to begin a new era of infectious disease research, according to lead scientist Dr. Hendrik Poinar of McMaster University of Canada.

Visible Organs

I read an article in Science Daily.com about how scientists at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University developed a new fluorescent protein that would allow them to visibly see the internal organs inside living animals. The protein is derived from a bacterial phytochrome that not only detects light, but it also emits light.

The scientist that produced this fluorescent protein targeted the liver as their organ of choice to experiment with since the liver is hard to visualize because it has a high blood content. The concluded that their product was at it's peak on the 5th day after it was taken by the specimen. They also concluded that it was a non-toxic product.

I thought this article was very interesting since this would mean it would eliminate CT scans and MRI's, since it does not use any radiation. They can use this product to detect tumors, and other harmful subjects in a person. This product would also eliminate contrasting agents, since it is so vibrant that there would be no use for any contrasting agents.

Origional Article found at: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110718101208.htm

Picture from: Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University

Gut Bacteria Could Help With Diagnostics and Influence Treatments

Scientists at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, and collaborators in the international MetaHIT consortium, have found that humans have three different gut types.

The study, originally posted on Nature discovered that microbial genetic markers that are related to traits such as age, gender and body-mass index. These gene markers are hoped to be used one day to diagnose and predict outcomes for certain diseases. And a persons gut type information could help with the treatment of it. The bacteria in our gut does many things such as digest food and break down toxins. But they found that the number of different bacteria and quantity varies from person to person.

"We found that the combination of microbes in the human intestine isn't random," says Peer Bork, who led the study at EMBL: "our gut flora can settle into three different types of community -- three different ecosystems, if you like."

It is yet known by scientists though why people have these different gut type, but speculate that it may depend on each individuals immune system and how it distinguishes good and bad bacteria.

I found this article to be interesting that we are made up of different "gut types" just like our blood types. Our blood types are extremely important and maybe these gut types will be one day too. Its another step towards finding ways to diagnose and treat different diseases.

Nanoparticle vs. Superbug

On Monday, April 4, 2011, IBM announced information on their development of a new technology that combats and conquers drug-resistant bacteria. This drug-resistant bacteria, aka superbugs, are responsible for thousands of deaths every year. The most famous example of a superbug is MRSA. The researchers at IBM developed a new nanoparticle that essentially breaks down the cell membrane of drug-resistant bacteria, leaving the cell to biochemically degrade harmlessly inside the body. The new technology works by using "biodegradable plastic to engineer electrically charged nanoparticles that in turn attract to the bacteria’s opposite charge, in turn destroying the membrane walls hence the cell entirely." Other antibiotics work to destroy the DNA of the bacteria, which is almost always effective. Sometimes, however, not all of the bacteria is destroyed, and the remaining bacteria develops a resistance to the anitbiotics previously used, leading to a strain of superbugs. The new medicine developed by IBM destroys the bacteria's cell membrane, allowing it to degrade inside the body. Since the medicine is also composed of only organic materials, the human body can safely dispose of it, meaning that there are no side effects like most medicines can have. This new system was testing on mice infected with MRSA and proved to be very successful. IBM is in the process of setting up human trials with several pharmaceutical companies.

This article made me very happy! Hearing that someone finally had a breakthrough in developing medicine to fight drug-resistant bacteria gives me hope that breakthroughs for other diseases such as cancer or HIV/AIDS can happen as well. This discovery can lead to saving thousands and even millions of lives! Hopefully they can get the CDC to approve this new medicine rather soon so we don't have to worry about the new superbug in hospitals anymore (see "Superbug Runs Rampant").

Superbug Runs Rampant

Lately there have been stories on the news about a "superbug" that has infected many patients in hospitals across the country, even killing some of them. One news station reports on a case in Birmingham, Alabama, where 19 people were infected in 6 different hospitals; 9 of them were killed. A superbug is a type of bacteria infection that is resistant to antibiotics, the classic example being MRSA. Currently the most infected region of the country is around Los Angeles, California. In the Alabama case, health officials discovered that the outbreak was linked to a batch of IV bags produced by Meds IV in Birmingham. The IV was fed directly into the bloodstream of hospital patients, and the resulting infection was caused by serratia marcescens, "a bacteria that typically strikes patients with a compromised immune system." This is not the first time an outbreak of superbugs has occurred. Five years ago, a similar outbreak spread through hospitals in both California and New Jersey. The bacteria can be treated if caught early. This superbug is strong though, causing 60% of all infections in ICUs across the country.

I found this article not only interesting but also scary. I had never heard of the outbreak 5 years ago, so this was new to me. I had first heard the story on 6ABC news, but couldn't find their online article. It scared me because my boyfriend is currently stationed in southern California, merely 2 hours away from Los Angeles, which is said to be the most infected region. I hope they can figure out a cure to this soon.