The microbes that live in the vagina constitute to the vaginal microbiome (or microbiota). New research from the lab of Jacques Ravel at the University of Maryland shows that Chlamydia infection is associated with a different composition of the vaginal microbiome compared with the microbiome of healthy patients. Additionally, the vaginal microbiome of the patients … Read more
In light of the study showing that bacteria with a particular form of the protein DnaK can interfere with a cell’s response to DNA damage and the ability to repair such damage, I have been thinking about what kinds of cancers may have a bacterial cause or contribution. The one that the researchers studied to … Read more
Researchers find that a bacterial species present on healthy skin produce a chemical that prevents skin cancer. Humans can be considered metaorganisms. Our bodies includes billions of microorganisms. There are microbes in the gastrointestinal (GI) system (referred to as the gut microbiome), on the skin, in the nose and eyes, and in the parts of … Read more
Antibiotic-resistant bacteria are becoming a major threat to human health (Figure 1). After a recent scare with a relative who contracted pneumonia while in the hospital, I began to think about antibiotic resistance and how bacteria become resistant even to those antibiotics that are rarely used, such as the carbapenem antibiotics. Bacteria can be infected … Read more
Lyme disease is caused by bacteria (Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia afzelii, and Borrelia garinii) that are delivered by a bite from an infected tick (Figure 1). The Centers for Disease Control (1) recommend a preventative (prophylactic) single dose of the antibiotic doxycycline for adults bitten by a mosquito with a high probability of carrying the Lyme-causing … Read more