One of the many reasons I am a member of the American Society for Microbiology is their dedication not only to excellent science, but science communication and public policy. “Microbes After Hours” is one of their fabulous science communication events. Since 2012, the ASM headquarters in Washington, DC has opened its doors to anyone interested in microbiology for talks, appetizers, and some microbially-fermented beverages. For those who can’t make it to DC, the talks are live streamed through ASM’s MicrobeWorld site. Speakers even take questions via email and twitter at the end of the talk. Fortunately, my mama-scientist, microbe-road trip friend, Robin Munroe, and I made it down in person to the January 28, 2016 Microbes After Hours that featured Dr. Marti Blaser talking about his research and book, Missing Microbes. Read more about his book in this previous post. I was thrilled to finally get my copy of his book signed! Below is our journey in photos compliments of Robin! She also live-tweeted our trip. For future adventures – follow me on Twitter @mostlymicrobes. Microbes After Hours Do you have questions about this or Dr. Blaser’s book? Anything else microbe related? Feel free to ask in the comments section below, fill out a
“Seeding” a C-section Newborn with Vaginal Microbes: Can we? Should we?
New research is out today from the laboratory of Dr. Maria Gloria Dominguez-Bello demonstrating that at least part of mom’s vaginal microbiome can be transmitted to her c-section delivered infant. Infants born via c-section are at increased risk of developing non-communicable diseases such as asthma, diabetes, immune system disorders, and obesity. C-section babies frequently have a microbiome that is more similar to skin bacteria than mom’s vagina or GI tract. Swabbing a baby at birth with mom’s vaginal fluids is a potentially low cost, easy way to mimic one aspect of vaginal birth and transmit potentially beneficial microbes. Parents considering this procedure should check for the presence of pathogens such as Group B Strep and viral pathogens. Any such procedure should be discussed with your medical care team. For the full post – go to the post at Science and Sensibility’s website. Vaginal Seeding Procedure Illustration by Cara Gibson, Phd
#MicrobeWeek: Continuing the Celebration
More #MicrobeWeek YouTube videos including one we made. Yesterday’s post on #MicrobeWeek featured a fabulous video Microbes of New York from the American Museum of Natural History (AMNH). #MicrobeWeek was inspired the current microbially focused exhibition The Secret World Inside You, at AMNH (see my review). AMNH teamed up with BrainCraft, Gross Science, and Science Friday to create four YouTube videos and other content about their favorite microbial research.
Can Breastfeeding Help Antibiotic-Exposed Microbiomes Recover?
Exclusive breastfeeding for at least three months may lessen the effect of antibiotic use during labor and delivery on an infant’s microbiome. Cesarean delivery and antibiotic use during vaginal or C-section childbirth decreases diversity of an infant’s microbiome [1, 2]. However, a study by Azad et al. suggests that exclusive breastfeeding for at least three months may lessen the effect of maternal use of antibiotics during labor and delivery on the microbiome [3]. Breastfeeding may repair the infant microbiome after antibiotic use. Birth is a key time for beneficial microbes to be transmitted from mother to infant, especially during vaginal birth [1, 4, 5]. However antibiotics that disrupt microbiome transmission may be used during both vaginal and Cesarean section (C-section) deliveries. During childbirth, especially in Canada and the United States, antibiotics may be used for several reasons. In vaginal deliveries, antibiotics are used to prevent transmission of Group B Streptococcus (GBS) transmission to the infant. However, the use of antibiotics for GBS is correlated with increased antibiotic-resistant Escherichia coli infections in infants [6]. Antibiotics may also be given to reduce opportunistic pathogen infections during long labors where the amniotic sac membrane has ruptured. Cesarean section surgeries use antibiotics as
Missing Microbes and Increased Antibiotic Resistance
Dr. Martin Blaser’s book Missing Microbes details his observations and hypotheses on how overuse and misuse of antibiotics may be the source of modern non-communicable diseases, such as diabetes, asthma, and obesity. The maps of the U.S. colored with obesity and antibiotic prescriptions fit extremely well – and centered on my Southern homeland. Could it be that the obesity epidemic, diabetes, allergies, asthma, and other non-communicable diseases that are centered over the American South are not due to our preference for all things fried or sopped in butter and washed down with a swig of sweet tea? It’s not just due to sitting in front of screens too much. Certainly poor diet and little exercise don’t help. But could an over-use of antibiotics also be to blame? That was the hypothesis. Obesity Caused by Over Use of Antibiotics? Dr. Martin Blaser from NYU’s experimental research on mice demonstrated drastic changes in the different types of gut bacteria present before and after antibiotic use. More strikingly, when the antibiotic use was discontinued and the bacterial populations rebounded, the bacterial types that did come back were different metabolically. Antibiotics drastically effected the gut microbiome. Does antibiotic somehow set us on a path