Carbon loss from soil accelerating climate change

            It seems like there is another development in the increase of climate change in the world. Two Northern Arizona University researchers discovered that the increased levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere causes soil microbes to produce more carbon dioxide accelerating climate change. The researchers conducted an experiment from 53 different areas around the world e.g. forests, grasslands and agricultural fields. This experiment measured how the extra carbon in the atmosphere affected the plant growth, the microbial production of carbon and the total amount of soil carbon at the end of this experiment. The past accepted belief was that carbon is stored in wood and soil for a long time slowing the climate change. But this new belief suggests that extra carbon provides fuel to microorganisms in the soil whose byproducts, like carbon, are released into the atmosphere, which contributes to climate change.  

            It is crazy to think that the soil microbes are contributing to more carbon into the atmosphere creating a faster climate change. It makes one think that the nature areas around cities are actually doubling the cities impact of carbon into the atmosphere. So not only is the cities inhabitants are causing the climate to change rapidly so is nature, that is so intense. However if we cut down on our carbon output then maybe nature will be able to cut down its carbon output.   

 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140424140907.htm

Commonly used pain relievers have added benefit of fighting bacterial infection

 

It seems that some NSAID’s, which are common drugs, used for aches, pains, fever, and inflammation in joints seem to have the ability to kill bacteria from drug resistant infections as well as superbugs. This discovery is extremely important, this means that NSAID’s can be used to attack and kill superbugs that have become resistant to many or most of the antibiotics on the market. DR. Oakley said that these bacteria killing anti-inflammatory drugs can be developed to create a whole new line of antibiotics against these superbugs. The researchers on this case analyzed three different NSAID’s; bromofenac, carpofen, and vedaprogen the more common NSAID’s such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen were not tested. They discovered that these drugs bind and inhibit a protein in bacteria called the DNA clamp. The DNA clamp is part of an enzyme that allows the bacterial species to multiply, by stopping this it kills the bacteria and not allowing it to grow.

            This is wonderful news for the world of medicine as well as for those who have drug resistant infections or have superbugs. To think that those with these infections will finally have a way to kill these bugs and go back to being a healthy happy individual. I, for one, am super excited for when they develop these NSAID’s into a new line of antibiotics. It means that we are finding more cures for illness’s that are in basic medicine that has been around for a while. It makes me wonder if other commonly used medication can be studied to see if they are helpful in the treatment of other illnesses.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140313123127.htm

Gut Microbes Spur Development of Bowel Cancer

   

 Gut Microbes Spur Development of Bowel Cancer

     It seems that not only is dowel cancer is genetic, and if you are related to someone who has bowel cancer you are not predisposed to it. It seems that there are microbes living in the gut that help in the development of intestinal tumors. Bowel cancer also known as colorectal cancer results in a sequence of genetic mutations that change healthy cells to cancerous cells: by first creating tumors also known as polyps that can become malignant. This new research has shown that polyps are the bacteria that are important for early tumor development. Using mice discovered all this new information in the discovery of these microbes in the gut.

     It seems like to me that more and more cancers are being found to be created or improved by the microbes in the body; also showing that anyone can get cancer and that it isn’t always inherited by genetics. However it could be safe to say that if you are related to someone who has cancer and that anyone can get this kind of cancer if these microbes live in you that you can possibly get cancer. In this case it would be bowel cancer, however it is suggested that this can be avoided if certain gut bacteria is removed; more research is needed to see if this is possible and a true fact that can be implemented in the future. If it is found to be true so many people can be saved and treated before they even get sick.  

 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140303135902.htm

Understanding Plant-Soil Interaction Could Lead to New Ways to Combat Weeds

Rachael Pine

Understanding Plant-Soil Interaction Could Lead to New Ways to Combat Weeds

 

I bet you among many other people are worried about the pesticides used in controlling weeds in crops. As well as being worried about GMO’s, genetically modified organisms, and the possible effects that can happen to humans in the future by the consumption of GMO’s. Microbial ecologist Tony Yannarell and colleagues from the University of Illinois have identified soil microbes that affect ragweed’s negatively. This has provided a new understanding of the relationships between plants and microorganisms happening beneath the soil. Tony Yannarell said that adding microbes to the soil has never been successful in the past, and the best approach is to introduce plants that attract microbe that are bad for ragweed’s.

This idea is fantastic it allows farmers to use this technique to help keep weeds away and this same plan can be used to attract microbes that can fight against pests and insects from harming the crops. It will help stop the use of GMO’s and harmful pesticides and human consumptions of these chemicals and GMO’s; along with the future problems they can create. This can give people more organic food as well as the possibility of becoming cheaper and more affordable allowing our country to become healthier.

            To be honest I never knew that some plants could attract microorganisms to prevent or attack weeds, pests, or insects from attacking the crops being grown. I thought the only way to remove them would to be constant attention to pull or remove them as well as using chemicals to prevent the crops from being harmed.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/03/140325133548.htm

Scientists find new strategy to combt bacterial infections

Well it seems that scientists are finding an increasing number of bacteria that is becoming antibiotic resistance. This gives scientists a challenge in trying to create an antibiotic that can kill or disrupt bacteria from growing. But they have found a new drug to treat bacterial infections particularly uti’s (urinary tract infections). However this drug does not destroy pathogenic bacteria but disarms them. This helps the useful bacteria to become unharmed and a lower risk of development and spread of resistance of the bacteria.

Hopefully this will be utilized in other areas of bacterial infections and help keep other antibiotic’s from hurting other parts of the body. Such as penicillin; penicillin causes yeast infections in most people. If this new strategy works it will prevent those patients from getting yeast infections and will cause them to get better faster. 

 http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140129075808.htm

Antibiotic ‘smart bomb’ can target specific strains of bacteria

Rachael Pine

Antibiotic ‘smart bomb’ can target specific strains of bacteria

            This article mentions how they have developed an antibiotic that can identify certain strains of bacteria and dissolve their DNA abolishing the infection. This system approach helps treat infections with a multi-drug resistant bacterium. Typically conventional antibiotic treatments tend to kill both good and bad bacteria that can harm the patient causing even more illness, causing the patient to go back to the doctor to get more antibiotics that will cause other illnesses. According to this new approach takes advantage of a part of the immune system present in many bacteria called CRISPR-Cas system. This protects bacteria from invaders like viruses and making small strands of RNA called CRISPR RNA’s.

            This advancement will help many people from getting ill and causing patients to not get yeast infections or other possible illnesses that can harm the patient(s). Hopefully this will help future patients, and who knows maybe this technique will be utilized and tuned to kill other bacteria strains.

  

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/01/140130110953.htm

How Our Immune System Backfires and Allows Bacteria Like Salmonella to Grow

Rachael Pine

How Our Immune System Backfires and Allows Bacteria Like Salmonella to Grow

            Did you ever think that your bodies’ defenses would ever betray you? We were always taught that the microorganisms in our body helped with taking care of our everyday functions, and that they helped keep us healthy. We were also told that when we got sick that our antibodies helped keep these bacteria and viruses at bay.

            Well that isn’t the case for this guy, researchers call him Interleukin-22 or IL-22 this is a immune protein. Il-22 helps protect against disease causing pathogens by separating metal ions like iron, zinc, and manganese from microbes. By doing this it is starving them of essential nutrients so they can’t grow and become dangerous. They still don’t understand how Salmonella escapes this and uses IL-22 to help grow. Researchers at the University of California found that IL-22 doesn’t protect the host against Salmonella but actually helps it grow. The Researchers even set up an experiment with mice some who have normal IL-22 and some who are lacking IL-22 and infected them with Salmonella. The mice that were lacking IL-22 got sicker faster than the normal mice. So it’s clear that whether you have a normal amount or lacking amount you will still get sick.

            Isn’t that amazing to think we have an immune protein that can make us sicker. Hopefully researchers will find out how it gets past IL-22 and stop it from happening; along with stopping it from helping it grow and hurting the host. At least that’s what we can all hope for.