A Little Frenemy: A Complicated Relationship With A Bacterium
“A bully who has become a friend is a friend forever. ”It is one of the Chinese lines said in the movie "Cloudy and Chance of Meatballs 2". Of course, I already used the English translated line in order for you to understand. That line was mentioned when the main character was in doubt about his friendship to his former bully. It’s just like a bacterium. So, tell me, what’s the first thing that comes into your mind when you hear the word “bacteria”? Let me guess. It is bad. Bacteria are the bullies. It causes many diseases. Under the microscope.
According to Aparna Vidyasagar a contributor on Live Science website, bacteria can be defined as microscopic single-celled organisms which flourish on distinct environments. This organisms can dwell in soil, ocean and of course, inside the human organs. Yes, bacteria can harm humans as well as the animals because of the diseases which they can cause, but admit it or not, bacteria can also help you in many ways. Imagine, how you can produce a yogurt or beer or any fermented and cultured products without them. How about your digestion or the production of vitamins inside your body? Can it proceed without the help of bacteria?According to Encarta Encyclopedia, animals which were raised in a completely germ-free environment, without any single contact to a bacterium, is highly susceptible to infectious disease if they are brought out to the world. Well, it’s not that you’re an animal but you also need a healthy and balanced community of bacteria in your body. It is because some of those bacteria protect us from disease-carrying organisms that might otherwise infect us. Some of it also produces nutrients like vitamin K that cannot be produced by our body. Flavo what?On the other hand, there are bacteria that are very confusing because they could cause harm and they are also beneficial.
One good example of it is the Flavobacteria. You don’t usually hear that name in the streets, right? Now that we’re done discussing the general pros and cons of bacteria, let’s now start discussing this very confusing bacterium. Flavobacterium is a group of "getting from others and only benefiting itself" bacteria. In short, its relationship to other organisms is commensal. The species of this bacterium can be commonly found in healthy fishes and other aquatic ecosystems. Scientists have only discovered and named only a few species of it. But all of them are potential pathogens of disease. This bacterium mainly affects fishes since it is always there with them. Flavobacteria mainly attacks fishes and the most common victim is the trout. One of the diseases caused by flavobacteria is called the Rainbow Trout Fry Syndrome. At first, I really thought that this changes the color of the fish. But, later on, I learned that “rainbow trout” is just one of the species of trouts. I was really disappointed. Anyways, fishes infected with this swim very slowly of course if they are not usually slow. They also lose their appetite and establish a very weird spiral swimming behavior. The gills are pale with swollen eyes and body. It will eventually cause the death of the fish.
Another infection called the “Cold Water Disease” can infect salmons and trout because of the flavobacteria. The water is not going to get cold. It will not affect the water, It will affect the fish. This disease is very simple yet deadly for fishes. This disease targets the caudal fin and the base of the tail and destroys it. It also causes wounds in the body of the fish and eventually, death. This bacterium is torturing the fishes before killing them. This disease is highly infectious, especially in fingerlings. It can diminish the whole population of fish in a fish pond if left untreated. On the other hand, this bacterium is known for digesting plastics, specifically nylon. It is a type of artificially made plastics. Nylon is made up of a long chain of a synthetic polymer. It will eventually become a waste it's no longer used. It contributes to the pollution that is already present in our society. It will be a bully. Since it is a man-made plastic, scientists say that it is almost impossible to degrade it, except now. The specific enzyme that digests nylon is called nylonase. It was named like many other enzymes like lactase which digests lactose in milk and amylase that digests starch which is the other term for our saliva by the way.
To tell you the truth, this enzyme was like a superstition at first. It was only formed as a speculation. Yet a bunch of scientists from Japan started a research about it, based only on the speculations, and achieved success. Since it was discovered, a lot of scientists have considered it as a big biological evolution. They treated it as a giant leap for society. Flavobacterium can be a bully to fishes because of the diseases that it can cause. But, if we focus and amplify the good things about this bacterium, it could become our friend. It could even become our best friend. It will make a lot of difference if it’s potential for plastics degradation is improved. After we do all of those, finally, we can say that a bully can become a friend forever.
