A recent study published in Cell Systems found that several organisms on the NYC subway and other places in the city, match no other known organisms. Over a 17 month period, Researchers at Weill Cornell medical college went throughout the city (above and underground) swabbing benches, handrails, poles, and doors. They found that almost half of the DNA they discovered had been completely unknown to science.
Along with the mysterious DNA, researchers found recognizable DNA such as bacteria and viruses, both being mostly harmless. They also identified small particles of DNA from anthrax and the bubonic plague. Overall they found that only 12% of the thousands of Bacteria and virus samples discovered, were associated with diseases. The most common microorganism found was Pseudomonas studtzeri, a rod-shaped bacterium known for its flexible metabolism that can cause infection in humans.
The researchers also found that human DNA found in subway stations aligned with the ethnicity of people living in that area. Samples taken in the subway near a neighborhood with high numbers of Hispanic residents, yielded a large amount of Hispanic and Asian genes. Samples from the Brooklyn neighborhoods turned out to host genes specific to British, Tuscan and Finnish heritage. These researchers now say that by understanding the normal population of microorganisms in the city, they now have a baseline to compare new samples against in the case of bioterrorism or a disease outbreak.
I find this study very interesting because of how much researchers can find out about a city just by looking at DNA swabbed from random places. Also, how they found a sample related to the plague was very interesting, (but also a bit scary).
This was an interesting article. I'm a huge germ freak and I am very conscious of what I touch or what people are doing around me (i.e. sneezing into their hands, coughing, etc.). Even though only 12% of the viruses and bacteria swabbed were associated with diseases, surfaces in public places (especially in such a highly populated city), are very dirty. But, it is cool to know that just by swabbing a doorknob you can tell what ethnicity is abundant that area.
ReplyDeleteIts so interesting how far we have come in the past 20 years yet even in a major metropolis like New York we are finding new things. I would have assumed that the unknown bacteria and viruses would have been mutants, not just completely unknown.
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