August 18, 2006
Mmmm.... bacteriophages.
They're going to be spraying viruses on meat (so the viruses can eat the bacteria). Sorry, that completely grosses me out! Or should I be enthusiastic about this because it's natural?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
17 comments:
Ugh. I'd rather have bacteria-laden cold cuts rather than virus-laden cold cuts, thank you.
...and when the bacteria evolves to resist the virus, then what?
I'm sorta on the fence on this one, but before anyone overreacts, keep in mind that the body is exposed to countless pathogens daily, and we're only affected by a few of them (influenza, strep, etc.). Also, keep in mind that we're probably already consuming a small level of such bacteriophages simply by eating meat to begin with.
And, if there's an environment that can really break down a miroorganism, it's the stomach.
My questions would be on the phages themselves, such as: What are the implications of human infection? A phage killing off beneficial bacterial in the human gut would be a problem, although the story does note that the phage is targeted only at Listeria, so maybe human infection's not an issue. And again: The environment of the human stomach would break that stuff down in a hurry, so it'd be unusual cases where the phage survived to infect the rest of the gut, if such an infection is even possible to begin with.
And, Professor: I don't know about being enthusiastic about it, but it's probably a whole lot less impact on the human body compared to, say, preservatives or antibiotics.
Madisonman,
The phage is supposed to be used in packaged foods, so while some bacteria may evolve defenses, they'll end up in an isolated environment (the can/bag/box/whatever) and not be able to spread their evolved resistance to other clusters of bacteria. Assuming that Listeria is kept away from the packaging and spraying equipment, that is. If it's not, then resistence can develop on those surfaces, and can potentially pass on, since they wouldn't be isolated to the package.
Dave,
The article said they're using bacteriophages that target Listeria monocytogenes.
We vegetarians don't worry about such things.
Peace, Maxine
I was a vegetarian for a few years a while back. It's not hard to get yourself riled up about the disgustingness of eating carrion, if that's what you want to do. Of course, you could freak out about all the bacteria and extremely tiny insects and mites and things that are everywhere. I suppose there is a horrific layer to life that is unbearable if you choose to think about it. But what is the alternative? Even more horrific. We must live in the world and deal with it. And, personally, I learned I need meat for my health.
Vegetarians have plenty to worry about. Raw vegetables can carry the bacterium.
Can listeriosis be prevented?
The general guidelines recommended for the prevention of listeriosis are similar to those used to help prevent other foodborne illnesses, such as salmonellosis.
How can you reduce your risk for listeriosis?
General recommendations:
Thoroughly cook raw food from animal sources, such as beef, pork, or poultry.
Wash raw vegetables thoroughly before eating.
Keep uncooked meats separate from vegetables and from cooked foods and ready-to-eat foods.
Avoid unpasteurized (raw) milk or foods made from unpasteurized milk.
Wash hands, knives, and cutting boards after handling uncooked foods.
Consume perishable and ready-to-eat foods as soon as possible.
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dbmd/diseaseinfo/listeriosis_g.htm
And, personally, I learned I need meat for my health.
Just not on Fridays during Lent.
If that seems gross, then you probably don't want to know how your body gets some of its amino acids.
Believe it or not, I've written a law review article on bacteriophages (among many other things). The Phages of American Law, or simply http://papers.ssrn.com/abstract=785524 if you prefer seeing the naked URL.
just to be pedantic, but a bacteriophage virus doesn't "eat" bacteria.
it kills it and uses the bacteria to replicate itself.
virii don't do much of anything, in that they are inert strands of DNA/RNA that are only active once they are taken within a living cell.
/pedantry
To be even more pedantic, while the phage don't eat the bacteria, the root of phage is from the Greek phagein:to eat
I work with phage, so I think this is pretty cool. Listeria and other bacterial food poisoning doesn't kill that many people, but it makes many more sick.
Phage are the most numerous organisms on earth, btw. There are about 10X more phage in the oceans than there are bacterial cells.
The other great thing about phages is that they look like lunar module aliens:
http://www.biochemeng.bio.titech.ac.jp/research/phage/phage.html
The 'yuk' response to new technology soon wears off, if you let it. When 'test tube babies' were invented in 1978, I thought it was gross - even though I was at medical school. But of course it has been a marvellous thing, and brought huge benefits.
Two words: Irradiation. oh, um, Irradiation.
Will the use of prions sprayed on meat cause meat plant inspections to become less stringent? It seems, frequently when there is an e-coli incident, the cause was sloppy practice with feces mixed in the butchered meat.
To my "icky" frightened friends,
This is a good development. In fact, if this type treatment works on the meat, hopefully it will be introduced into hospitals where in small studies it has shown to greatly diminish the existence (on equipment, pens, in air ducts, everywhere) of antibiotic resistence bacteria.
Benefits? Less drugs, less chemical microbacides, no side-effects. It's all good.
The concept of phages sounds interesting but does generate a wide reaction as evidenced in this blog and others.
While we work out the cost/benefits perhaps manufacturers of food, beverages and cosmetics should consider a new natural preservative which uses Australian culinary herb extracts. It is called Herbal-Active (just Google it) and is already being used to preserve a bunch of foods and cosmetics. Its safety, low cost and no risk use provides a certain appeal over the move of phages from treating biological infections to food preservation.
Incidentally, the references to the few thousand who die from food borne diseases each year as a low number ignore the fact that it is such a low number because of preservatives. Without them, it would be in the tens of millions. The challenge now is to eradicate harmful preservatives such as sorbate and benzoate and Herbal-Active does exactly that.
Post a Comment