Genomics In Rapid Response Diagnostic Essay

The gut microbiota is extremely diverse – consisting of over 1,000 identified unique species of bacteria. It is indeed difficult to wrap one’s head around it – despite bacteria being microscopically small, and having an undetectable mass, the bacteria of the gut in a human can weigh over 2 pounds! This incredibly diverse mass of bacteria is also mostly unique on an individual basis – over 70% of the bacteria per gut are unique to each person [1]. Thus, the gut microbiota of each individual can effectively function as a unique source of identity.

There are approximately 3.3 million genes (according to the European’s census of microbial genes) in the human digestive system. In comparison, it is about 150 times the count of 20,000-25,000 genes our own gene.

“Bacterial illness is a result of complex interactions between bacteria and the host. During evolution, humans developed many ways to protect themselves against bacterial pathogens. On the other hand, bacteria have developed strategies to evade, subvert or circumvent these defenses” (Sousa, 2003) “One of the most important characteristics of bacterial pathogenicity is the various strategies developed by prokaryotic organisms to use host molecules for their own benefit” (Sousa, 2003). “To accomplish this, bacteria have evolved elaborate control mechanisms to turn genes on and off, varying the transcriptional activator or

3 "Laboratory Methods for the Diagnosis of Vibrio cholerae" (PDF). Centre for Disease Control. Retrieved 29 October 2013.

First of all, according to the CDC (Center for Disease Control and Prevention) it states,”Cholera is an acute diarrheal illness caused by intestine with the bacterium vibrio cholerae.” In other words, cholera is a disease that starts on the inside of your body by germs. Another fact of Cholera is,”Approximately one in 10 (5-10%) infected persons will have severe disease characterized by profuse watery diarrhea,

Bacteria have an intrinsic role to humans thriving commensally in and outside the body, despite their evolutionary and structural differences from us. Their prokaryotic classification gives insight to methods used in identification and observation. Researchers can pinpoint certain genes they know are vital across their phylogeny. An example of this would include autosomal genes, like those that encode for structural proteins used in translation. Particularly, the 16s rRNA gene is highly conserved across prokaryotic species, but unlike many conserved genes, it also includes small variable regions specific to each species. This makes the 16s gene useful as an identification signature for prokaryotes, and it is the most common genetic marker used today (Janda). This is not only due to its presence in nearly all prokaryotes, but because it has been genetically unchanged over time, for the most part. However a flaw to using the 16s rRNA gene is that it cannot be a definite identification

Cholera remains a drastically severe disease, killing hundreds of people each outbreak. When ingested, it attaches to the mucosal lining of the intestines and disrupts the normal flow of ions so that there is more sodium, chloride, and water in the intestinal lumen than normal and results in massive diarrhea. Cholera has made a global impact and been endemic in almost all parts of the world. Cholera control strongly emphasizes sanitation, clean drinking water, isolation, and careful food preparation. Two ways our body works against cholera as a self-limiting disease are sloughing cells and the secretory immunoglobulin (sIgA) antibody produced by mucus throughout our body. There are

Every day DNA technology becomes more advanced and innovative, for example can match the smallest amounts of biological evidence to a criminal offender. Future DNA techniques will be applied to existing systems and testing methods that will become more automated and will be more effective and less time consuming. Instead of waiting months of DNA results the future will provide instantaneous means for DNA profile development.

One of the first pioneers of epidemiology was John Snow, a British physician responsible for discrediting the predominant theory of disease transmission in the early to mid-nineteenth century called the “Miasma theory”. It referred to the idea that many contagious diseases such as cholera, chlamydia and the black death were spread by miasma or “bad air” coming from suspended particles of organic decaying matter thought by sanitary reformers to arise from sewers, bogs, trash pits, open graves, and other foul-smelling sites. Cholera, a widely feared disease’s origin of transmission was largely debated during this time period. It wasn’t until John Snow’s research studies furthering Fillipo Pacinis’ discovery of Vibrio cholera bacteria by reasoning on pathological evidence and disease pattern surveillance was Cholera exposed as a water-borne illness spread throughout local areas from contaminated water sources. John Snow’s research lead him to theorize that cholera was causing digestive problems from drinking polluted water and eating contaminated foods with the Vibrio cholera bacterium which could spread very easily from contaminated public water supplies. As first symptoms appeared upon examination to have been found to harm a person’s digestive tract causing the extreme diarrhea that characterized the disease and not first effecting a person’s nose or lungs as it would if cholera was absorbed from breathing in “bad airs”, as was though with the miasma theory. Although John

The disease, cholera, is an infection of the intestines, caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. As stated in Microbes and Infections of the Gut, the bacterium is “a Gram-negative, comma- shaped, highly motile organism with a single terminal flagellum” (105). Cholera is characterized by the most significant symptom that presents with the disease, diarrhea, and victims can lose up to twenty liters of body fluids in a day. Cholera can be a serious disease, due to the serious dehydration that can occur, but it is only fatal if treatment is not administered as soon as possible. This research paper includes information on the causes of cholera, symptoms, ways of treatment, studies of treatments, complications that may occur, the

cholerae, epidemics of cholera are caused by two toxigenic serogroups: O1 and O139.6 The O groups are the cause of widespread cholera epidemics and are followed closely by the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control.7 Non-O group cholera can cause mild to severe diarrhea, but generally does not result in fever or bloody stool.7 As neither Carmen nor the other patients presented fever or bloody stool, it is possible that they are infected with less toxic V. cholerae. Therefore, their stool cultures would have to be further studied to identify whether it is one of the two toxigenic strains to be confirmed as epidemic-causing

In a 2015 article, “Geospatial Resolution of Human and Bacterial Diversity with City-Scale Metagenomics” by Ebrahim Afshinnekoo, Cem Meydan, Shawn Levy, and Christopher E. Mason, they discussed how hundreds of species of bacteria and DNA are present in the subway, but most of them were either harmless or unknown. Studies were conducted in the metropolitan area of New York City, because it was an ideal place to undertake a large-scale metagenomic study and it is the largest and densest in terms of population, in the United States. The conducted study consisted of 1,457 collected samples, all across the entire NYC Metropolitan Transit Authority open subway stations, (466 stations) and 24 subway lines. The Staten Island Railway, 12 sites in the Gowanus Canal, four public parks, and one closed subway station that was submerged during the 2012 Hurricane Sandy were also included in the collected sample. In the summer of 2013, three samples were collected from each subway station. Two from the station, from areas such as: the station benches, garbage cans, rails and one from inside the train. There were additional samples taken for culturing and testing.

The diarrhea fluid is often brimming with comma-shaped bacteria. The definitive diagnosis is made by confinement of the bacteria from the diarrhea on a selective medium thiosulfate-citrate-bile salts agar (TCBS). (Davis/2012). "Cholera cots" also used to diagnose cholera measures the volume of stool loss and fluid replacement needs. Also identifying the bacteria in stool sample can diagnose cholera. (Normandin, 2012)

Cholera is an infectious bacterial disease of the small intestine. This bacterium has spread through the world covering about 50 countries that came about through 7 pandemics. This disease is a worldwide public health concern affecting 3-5 million people each year, killing 120,000. Before, it was thought that cholera spread through a sort of fog known as a miasma however now we know the whole mechanism for the cholera toxin. It was discovered that cholera is transmitted through fecal-oral transmission and is thus a waterborne bacterium. Although a very deadly and disturbing disease, even without medical education, this disease can be managed and usually even treated.

Vibrio cholerae is a gram-negative bacterium which is causative agent for the diarrheal disease cholera. Vibrio cholerae is a member of the Vibrionaceae family, which is a facultative anaerobic and is capable of respiratory and fermentative metabolism. It does not form spores and its motility is due to the single polar flagellum. Vibrios are highly halophylic and are very sensitive to low pH. (Nair, n.d.)