Absence of Microbes May Increase Allergies/Asthma

Did you know that microbes may be the cause of your allergies and asthma? And not in good way either. Past research indicated that people of lower socioeconomic status are more prone to asthma, allergies, and other inflammatory disorders. Now, a new study suggests this may be because individuals are more likely to live in urban areas, reducing their exposure to "healthy microbes" in rural settings. Researchers have coined this occurrence as the "hygiene hypothesis", in which populations in richer Western countries are more prone to chronic inflammation because they have become too clean. This hypothesis explores the idea that some microbes and infections combine to abolish inflammation in the immune system and that reducing exposure to these may lead to health problems. The team currently researching this says this idea may explain why individuals of a low socioeconomic status are more prone to inflammatory disorders - they cannot afford to live in rural settings, therefore they have reduced exposure to rural microbes. This is a very interesting article, and it contradicts everything that has been said about how microbes are the cause of asthma and allergies. This really helps me a lot because I have both of those conditions, and it may be because I'm not exposing myself to rural microbes. This article should help a lot of people who have asthma and allergies.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/275992.php

Lack of microbes may cause asthma/allergies

 

New Meaning To "Filthy Rich"

We already know that microbes inhabit everything around us. From our food, to the books we read, and even in our own bodies, microbes are literally everywhere. We also know they can inhabit cash. But how many microbes live on cash? As part of an experiment, NYU researchers analyzed the genetic material on $1 bills and have identified about 3,000 types of bacteria in all of them! The number discovered is many times higher than the previous number originally found, where samples were studied under microscopes. Among the more abundant species researchers discovered was on that causes common skin problems in people, specifically acne. Several others were linked to health issues such as food poisoning, gastric ulcers, pneumonia, and staph infections. Some also carried genes responsible for antibiotic resistance. This is very interesting to know that microbes can grow on money, and it is also concerning the types of diseases one can contract because of the money they handle. The next time you take money from someone, think again, and take precautions to taking it. As for carrying money, always try to sanitize your hands after handling cash, and also, make sure to not carry too much, as microbes can start festering and start growing inside your wallet, and eventually into your pocket and all over your pants. The government, in the mean time, is trying to find a way to make paper money safe and resistance to bacteria when it is printed. This was a really interesting article to read and also raises a lot of concerns about hygiene and how one can help stay clean. The author really raises the issue of foreign banknotes being unsanitary, and that transmission of disease is high some countries because of microbes on money.

http://www.techtimes.com/articles/5925/20140422/new-meaning-filthy-rich-scientists-find-surprising-number-microbes.htm

Our currency is a hotbed for the exchange of hundreds of different kinds of bacteria.

Microbes From T-Rex Head to Space

Now that scientists have the basic idea how different microbes work in different parts of the world, its time to know how they work in space. Microbes from Sue, the Tyrannosaurus Rex at Chicago's Field Museum, launch with the SpaceX Falcon 9. Researchers are trying to figure out how 48 microbes from different places on Earth compare to each other and ones already found on the International Space Station. Officials are trying to understand how microbes behave in microgravity in order to plan for long-term manned space flight. This article really details what microbes are being sent to space and why they are being sent. If this continues, we might be able to start long-term manned missions in no time and be able to land on Mars and other planets in other solar systems. The author really stresses how important these microbes are because apparently they are used in "microbial fertilizer" for agriculture. Everything was clear in this article and this will help future enthusiasts to know how microbes work in space.

http://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/chicago-field-museum-sue-dinosaur-international-space-station-255187091.html

Sue, the T-Rex at Chicago Field Musuem

Dairy Scientists Target Heat-Resistant Microbes

We all know that milk (or any dairy product for that matter) is a prime target for microbes. Because of this, they can spoil and cause cheese to a crumbly mess. For more than a century, milk has been heated to kill any bacteria or pathogens that can affect consumer health and shorten the shelf life of the product. However, it has been recently discovered that microbes, known as thermoduric, can survive the pasteurization. Agricultural Experiment Station researcher and dairy science professor, Sanjeev Anand, has begun developing ways to combat heat-resistant microorganisms, a major challenge for the world's dairy industry. These microbes protect themselves from heat by forming spores. Others, known as thermophlic, even thrive in high temperatures. Milk products containing high microbe counts have flavor, texture, and spoilage problems. In addition, some spore formers produce harmful toxins. Right now, the research team is working on targeting biofilm, which form on a lot of equipment that is used to pasteurize milk. By examining the conditions in which biofilms form, it will prepare make new cleaning systems that can remove them more effectively and efficiently. They are also identifying chemicals that are effective on each species of organisms and this will help better knock out these microbes. With all this new research, the SDSU hopes to improve the quality, safety, and shelf life of dairy products.

Professor Sanjev Anand and student work on developing a non-thermal and thermal combined application that will make heat-resistant microbes susceptible to the pasteurization process.

MIT Researchers Believe Microbes Caused the Earth's Mass Extinction 252 Million Years Ago

Did you know that microbes may have caused the Earth's mass extinction 252 million years ago? Researchers may believe that methane-producing microbes called Methanosarcina were the cause of it. They may have found their way into the atmosphere and influenced a wild and rapid climate change. Previous theories have stated that massive volcanic eruptions caused the die-off, but this may have been because of the rapid changes in climate and weather. The author explains how sudden spikes in carbon dioxide in the oceans have appeared during the time of extinction. He also explains how the Methanosarcina underwent a genetic change beforehand to become the prolific producer of methane than it apparently was. Lastly, sediment samples show an inrease in Nickel throughout this exact timeline. This increase in methane would have influenced of higher carbon dioxide levels in the oceans. The research doesn't exactly prove that microbes were the sole factor of the mass extinction. But it does eliminate other popular theories and also has a lot of evidence proving its way. This article is very clear in terms of how this was researched and the evidence proves this theory.

One theory of mass extinction

Chocolate; The Miracle Medicine

Did you know that dark chocolate is actually really good for you? I didn't either, but recent studies have shown that stomach microbes turn cocoa into a natural drug that reduces blood pressure. Victoria Woollaston writes about the process in which dark chocolate reduces the blood pressure. Previous studies have already been told that daily consumption of dark chocolate reduces blood pressure and is good for the heart. But more recent studies have found how it reduces blood pressure and the process behind it. Microbes in the gut, such as Bifidobacterium and lactic acid bacteria, feast on chocolate. These bacteria grow and ferment the chocolate, producing compounds that are anti-inflammatory. This naturally forming anti-inflammatory enters the bloodstream and helps protect the heart and arteries from damage. Tests on three types of cocoa powder, the raw ingredient used to make chocolate, in an artificial digestive tract consisting of a series of modified test tubes has concluded that the components are readily processed by the friendly bacteria in the colon. Dark chocolate contains a higher cocoa content, increasing this process. The studies done have found that the small polymers that are produced exhibit anti-inflammatory activity. When the compounds are absorbed by the body, they lessen the inflammation of cardiovascular tissue, reducing the long-term risk of stroke. Combining dark chocolate with fruits such as pomegranates or acai may also boost its benefits. This article is very clear and it explains really well how the process goes when dark chocolate enters your body and the microbes help digest it and make a drug to help protect the heart and arteries.

Cocoa in its natural form

Methane-producing Microbe Blooms In Permafrost Thaw

In northern Sweden and some parts of the world, parts of permafrost are thawing because of the climate warming up. Because of this, new microbes are being discovered and are adding to the list of microbe species. One such microbe, found in the mires of northernmost Sweden, flourishes and produces large amounts of greenhouse gases. Several billion years ago, before cyanobacteria, archaea flourished in warm, shallow oceans and letting out methane into the atmosphere. Today, most of the archaea's descendants hide in places where oxygen cannot reach them, where they also still produce methane. The methanogen archaea in permafrost have led still lives in the frozen soil. The small amounts of methane they produced have stayed below in the ice or have been consumed by methane-eating neighbors. But because of the recent heating-up of the arctic regions, these methanogens now have access to carbon dioxide and hydrogen which they convert into methane. This methane now contributes further global warming. Rhiannon Mondav, PhD student of limnology at Uppsala Universtiy, is part of the international research group which decided to look for methanogens in the Stordalen mire. She discovered a previously unknown methanogen, and with the help of the research group, mapped its genome and named it Methanoflorens stordalenmirensis. This newly discovered methanogen exists in such abundance that it made up 90 percent of the archaea in the Stordalen mire. Now that the new species has been described, it has been found to exist also in other peatlands and mires, contributing in a significant way to global methane production and thereby global warming. From the sound of the researchers in the rest of the article and the writer, it sounds like the discovery of this microbe now just goes to prove that the Earth is going to start warming up a lot faster and their is much worry. Nothing in this article is unclear and the writer explains it in great detail.

The wet areas show where the mire has thawed out completely. Here methanogens thrive.