Salmonella in space helps with sickness in humans

William Atkins
Thursday, 07 May 2009 18:30

Science - Health

The scientists think that at this point (inside these tiny spaces near the microvilli) the bacteria begin to feel low fluid shear, which changes its motion and may likely help it to survive inside our bodies and cause us a lot of discomfort (infection, sickness, and all of that).

Nickerson’s team have run computer simulations and now think that the weightlessness of space and these tiny spaces between microvilli are very similar.

Nickerson says, "Space flight is a low fluid shear environment,” as is the spaces between these microvilli. Thus, the connection.

They are continuing their studies of this connection. They are working with ions (charged particles) to artifically change the way this bacteria work.

The NASA article concludes with this statement from Dr. Nickerson: "One question people ask me is, 'Why in the world did you think of looking at [Salmonella in space]?' I turn that around and ask, 'Why would you not think of it!'" Nickerson says. "Whenever scientists have studied microbes under extreme conditions, we have found amazing new insights into how they function. Space flight is another extreme environment that's relatively untapped."

Read more of the story in the NASA article “Salmonella Spills its Secrets on the Space Shuttle.”

If their research is successful, we may not have to put up with the nasty illnesses that is caused by the Salmonella bacteria.

More information on Salmonella and salmonellosis, the medical condition is causes, is found on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website “Salmonellosis.”

Additional information on the Nickerson studies on Salmonella is found in the NASA article "Experiments May Lead to Ways of Neutralizing Virulent Microbes."