A new study published in the latest issue of Cell shows that the body’s bacteria is more complicated than we think. The study shows that bacteria in our body communicate with one another electronically – even over long distances.
The new research could help scientists understand how bacteria are linked with diseases.
The human microbiome is incredibly complex. Each human body has approximately 40 trillion bacteria inside and outside the body. In fact, according to some studies, the human body is 90% bacteria and 10% human.
If we can learn how to analyze bacteria and understand the microbiome, then we can get greater insight into how diseases affect human populations.
What Did Researchers Learn from This Study?
Researchers at the University of California, San Diego analyzed the behavior of bacteria in biofilms.
Biofilms are thin, slimy layers of bacterial communities found where bacteria have attached themselves to something in the body.
One of the best-known biofilms is the plaque on the surface of your teeth.
Why are biofilms important? Well, researchers believe that 80% of all microbial infections are caused by biofilms.
The problem with biofilm-caused infections is that researchers struggle to treat them: biofilm is made up of diverse types of bacteria and multiple strains. There’s no guarantee that a single antibiotic will treat all of these infections.
This latest study provided greater insight into how biofilms cause infections. Namely, they communicate using electronic signals to spread infections throughout the body.
How Bacteria Communicate
Prior to this study, research has shown that bacteria can pass information back and forth – similar to the way neurons communicate. Bacteria, like neurons, use small pores called “ion channels”. Ion channels pass electrically-charged potassium molecules (“ions”) along channels.
As an example of one signal, potassium-hungry bacterial cells on the inside of a biofilm can signal outer cells to stop consuming all of the available nutrient, allowing the cells further within the biofilm to stay healthy and strong – whether they’re beneficial or part of an infection.
We’ve known all of this for a little while. Here’s where things get crazier:
This new research shows that bacteria in a biofilm “can call out to other bacteria elsewhere in a body, sending a sort of eVite to come join and strengthen the community”, explains a study review on BigThink.com.
When bacteria in biofilms send out this invitation, the potassium doesn’t stop at the biofilm’s edge. Instead, it continues to spread outward.
In other words, bacterial biofilms can recruit bacteria from all over the body, allowing the infection to continue growing.
In this latest study, UC San Diego researchers used tracking dyes to show that a certain type of bacteria (Bacillus subtilis) was able to recruit another bacteria (Pseudomonas aeruginosa) using electric signaling.
Researchers published a quick 5 second video of this effect in action here.
Ultimately, this effect led researchers to conclude that “bacteria within biofilms can exert long-range and dynamic control over the behavior of distant cells that are not part of their communities.”
What Does This Mean for Human Health?
What does all of this mean for our health?
It means that doctors have greater insight into how to treat biofilm problems like staph infections.
Thanks to this latest research, doctors now know how these biofilms come together. They could use this information to help determine how biofilms come apart.
As an example, doctors could use electric signals to affect human bacteria growth. Instead of trying to target biofilms with antibiotics, doctors may be able to send certain electric signals into the body to achieve the same effect.
Stay tuned for more information about how this research will affect human health in the future!
