Chickens and Super-viruses: Not a Dumb 80's Movie

Chickens and Superviruses: Not a Dumb 80’s Movie

This writing piece is written on the article “How Your Chicken Dinner is Creating a Drug-Resistant Superbug” from the site The Atlantic, a popular news website and magazine. It was written by Maryn McKenna with the hope that word will spread about the theory which is being developed about a recent strain of drug-resistant urinary tract infections in women. “But the origin of these newly resistant E. coli has been a mystery -- except to a small group of researchers in several countries. They contend there is persuasive evidence that the bacteria are coming from poultry.” This quote from the article effectively sums up the problem which was been giving women some moderately serious problems within the past few years. http://m.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/07/how-your-chicken-dinner-is-creating-a-drug-resistant-superbug/259700/

When Christopher Columbus first came to America, the most effective weapon he had against the natives who lived here was one that he brought unintentionally. He accidentally brought several different deadly diseases with him to the New World, the worst of which being smallpox. As the natives had no immunity or effective treatments for the virus, many were wiped out or became deathly ill. But why were the Europeans immune to the virus? To answer this, we look to Europe’s past, which had many dark times involving disease and the plague. But what set Europe apart from the rest of the world and made them bear the brunt of all deadly diseases for the world? The answer- domesticated animals. Spending large amounts of time living, spending time with, and eating domesticated animals can lead to the development of ghastly diseases, something which wasn’t really relevant until recently. Although this is a topic which I recently discussed in my history class (i.e. yesterday), this fact has a usefulness which can be applied to modern-day problems. In the last few years, a spike in UTIs in women can be traced back to one major culprit- chickens.

When Adrienne LeBouef went to her doctor, Dr. Jehan El-Bayoumi, she knew she had a UTI in her system by the burning and the urge to go to the bathroom. What she did not know, however, was that she was one of many women (and men), who, within the past few years, have been excellent examples of the growing problem of antibiotic-resistant E.coli strain.

Now we must ask ourselves, what is causing the bacteria to become resistant to the treatment? We look to an in-class discussion had by my very own biology class several weeks ago.

We discussed how bacteria such as some strains of Staphylococcus were eradicated by the accidental discovery of penicillin, while in the present day, some have become completely immune to the fungus. The answer to this inquisition- evolution. Since we have been battling E. Coli for so long with the same types of antibiotics and treatments, it has been able to develop its own natural defenses to stay alive.

I think it is nearly impossible for one to question the validity of this article, however absurd the title of it may be. We in the science world should have expected that, although we had the E. Coli problem under control for some period of time, it would eventually adapt to the problem it was faced with. We look to Werner Heisenberg’s “Uncertainty Principle,” which has, more recently, developed into what is referred to as the “Observer Effect.” It states that the act of observation and subtle experimentation will, even if the subject is unaware that it is being observed, change the actions and decisions of the subject.

This very much applies to the recent problem with the E. Coli bacteria, as it has changed as a result of many observations and experiments over the years. When this particular strain of E. Coli was analyzed, it was discovered that it is a form of what is commonly known as ExPEC (extraintestinal pathogenic E. Coli), an evolved form of E. Coli which spreads to and infects other parts of the body aside from the gut, including the urinary tract. When chickens are killed for food, some of the helpful (helpful for digesting, that is) E. Coli in the gut attach to the meat, and when humans eat this, it becomes a bacterial infection when it does not stay in the gut as it is supposed to.

The next time you eat chicken, or any processed meat, make sure you know the quality of the meat, as well as the way it was produced, and how the animal was raised and slaughtered. These important things to note may save you immense discomfort and future problems as the advanced E. Coli strain spreads. If we raise awareness of this (by doing something as simple as sharing this highly informative and descriptive article with friends) we can stop a major issue before it affects the population at large.

Escherichia Coli (E. Coli)

Image from Wolfram Alpha