CRE

 Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, are a new type of bacteria that can cause infections in several areas of the body including the skin, urinary tract, and lungs. So what's the big deal? There is no known antibiotic that can treat the infection. CRE is resistant to the strongest antibiotics doctors have out there. With a 40% mortality rate, CRE is becoming a huge concern. CRE not only can show up in several places in the body, but its also hard to detect, meaning people could have it without even knowing. This type of bacteria has been around for a decade causing problems in nursing homes and hospitals but it has now gone endemic in several cities like Los Angeles, New York, and Chicago. This bacteria could be catastrophic to patients in hospitals suffering from immune compromising diseases, such as AIDS, and as of right now there is nothing we can do about it. Doctors say there isn't a new antibiotic being developed because the bacteria can adapt so quickly that it would be pointless. I guess we will just have to see what happens next.

Buruli Ulcer

 The disease I wanted to learn more about was the Buruli Ulcer. The Buruli Ulcer is one of the 'Neglected Tropical Diseases'.  Neglected Tropical Diseases are a group of parasitic and bacterial diseases that effect more than 1 billion people globally. So why have more people never heard of them? Because these diseases typically effect the world's poorest people. NTD's are serious and can impair physical development and limit productivity, which are extremely detrimental among the poor.

Buruli Ulcer is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium ulcerans. Mycobacterium ulcerans is a slow-growing mycobacterium that infects the skin created lesions. After Tuberculosis and Leprosy, Buruli ulcer is the third most common mycobacteria in humans.

There are two stages of the Buruli Ulcer: inactive and active. The active form is characterized by :

• papules or nodules on the skin. These nodules are mostly found on the limbs and have a wool-like appearance. 

The inactive form is characterized left behind scars from previous nodules.

Buruli Ulcer can be found in over 30 countries but the incidence is unknown because of inadequate reporting. This is also due to the fact that most people infected are poor and unable to receive treatment or visit a doctor. For those who do see a doctor, the treatment includes oral rifampicin and daily intramuscular streptomycin. The only treatment for the nodules is surgery to remove necrotic tissue and correct deformities. Although mortality is low, morbidity is high. 

Higher risks for contracting the parasite are associated with slow-moving or stagnant water and environmental changes, such as deforestation. Most cases are found in poor, rural communities in Africa with children having a higher incidence. 

Cadmium: A toxic metal

Uses of Cadmium

Toxic metals are "metals that form poisonous soluble compounds and have no biological role" (wikipedia). Cadmium is one of these metals. It was discovered in 1817 by two scientists as an impurity of zinc carbonate. They eventually isolated the metal by roasting and reduction of the sulfide.
 Cadmium is considered rare and only makes up .1 parts per notation of the earth's crust. Cadmium is used in the production of batteries and is commonly used in electroplating. Cadmium is used mostly in rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries and is used in electroplating for aircrafts because it resists corrosion. 

Cadmium Battery

Cadmium has no use for most organisms, other than marine diatoms. Cadmium is only used by organisms in environments with low zinc concentrations because Cadmium can perform it's functions.  Cadmium is toxic to humans and most exposure comes from inhalation of fumes during production of materials containing cadmium. Humans are exposed to Cadmium in the environment during iron and steel production and fossil fuel combustion. 

Ingredients in a cigarette

Tobacco smoking is the most important source of Cadmium exposure in humans. Smokers have 4-5 times higher Cadmium concentrations in their blood than non-smokers. Side effects of high Cadmium levels in the body include loss of sense of smell, renal failure, irreversible kidney damage, softening of bones, and breathing problems. 

As far as toxicity goes, inhalation levels should not be higher than .0002 milligrams of cadmium per cubic meter of air. Levels above 0.0035 mg/m3 increase the chance of lung and kidney injury.

Moral of the story? Stay away from Cadmium!

Community Gardening

Community Gardening is awesomezeee! People do it to grow plants and other green things so they can eat them and get full cause being hungry sucks. ERMAHGHERD I LERV GERDERRNSSSS! Sometimes it brings people together because they like planting things at the same time like wizard magic. This is mainly done in the U.S. because in England don't have room for gardens because they don't have souls. My mom had a garden once but then it died because she stopped watering it because honestly, publix has a gangsta fresh food section. Growing plants is also super hard because sometimes the earth is like "No, I won't grow this for you". Life isn't fair. So here are pictures of gardens to help you come to terms with that fact.

Rachel Carson

Rachel Carson, the author of Silent Spring, is not only an author but also the founder of many movements in environmentalism. The Environmental Defense Fund and the Environmental Protection Agency were both started after reactions from her book. Her book brought to light many of the issues with pesticides, such as DDT, that were being used frequently and without out thought. Many critiques opposed the publishing of her book because of the negative impacts it would have on the chemical industry and some people just thought she was an over-accentric environmentalist. Here are some of her most famous quotes:

“Those who contemplate the beauty of the earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts. There is something infinitely healing in the repeated refrains of nature -- the assurance that dawn comes after night, and spring after winter.”

“But man is a part of nature, and his war against nature is inevitably a war against himself.” 

“In nature nothing exists alone.” 

Check out this video! Rachel Carson

Global Warming

Global warming is a recently discovered phenomenon that not many people understand. Here are some facts:

1.  Global warming is the rise in the temperature of the earth's atmosphere and its projected continuation

2. Probably cause by human activities like deforestation and burning fossil fuels, which all increase the concentration of green house gases in the atmosphere.

3. The possible effects of rise in temperature include a rise in sea level, retreat of glaciers, more extreme weather events like droughts and heat waves. (picture to the left)

Most people discount global warming by saying that while it will change the environment but will not effect them. This is completely untrue. Global warming could harm human health. One of the most obvious issues is the direct effect that a natural disaster could have on human populations. Think about the number of lives lost to hurricane Katrina. The disasters brought on by Global warming will be much worse as far as the damage goes. This could have short term and long term health concerns. Short term concerns are immediate death and loss of transportation. Long term affects could include a contaminated water supply. This could be catastrophic if it occurs on the level some scientists describe.

Natural disasters can also cause disease epidemics. Cholera, for example, comes from contaminated water. In a crisis, disease can spread much more quickly and responders have much less time to act. So global warming will not only cause short term health issues but could ultimately result in pandemics.

Mount Vesuvius

Almost everyone has heard of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius that left the city of Pompeii buried for nearly  two centuries but what really happened there and why did no one seem to know what was going on?

Pompeii was once a thriving Roman city famous for it's grand villas. With a population of nearly 20,000 people, half of which were children, it is amazing to consider that no one escaped. In the past decade several discoveries have helped scientists better determine what exactly happened in Pompeii. For example, scientists used to think that the people died of suffocation from all the volcanic ash but careful studies on the bodies that were preserved by the volcanic ash helped helped them determine the actual cause of death.

When Vesuvius erupted in AD 79 no one had a clue what was going on. When the volcano started spewing many people made their way to the beach thinking the water would keep them safe.Most people carried belongings with them, waiting for the volcano to stop erupting. After several hours on the beach people felt a shock and seconds later a 900 degree fahrenheit cloud came billowing towards them, instantly causing death due to thermal shock.

So why didn't anyone know what was happening?...
Well, back in AD 79, while the Roman empire had many advances in the field of science, no one knew that seismic activity related to volcanic pressure. Today we know that the two are closely related and are therefore able to predict volcanic eruptions months in advance. Unfortunately for the citizens of Pompeii, the tremors they felt in the months before the eruption were nothing more than tremors. They also didn't know about dormant stages in volcanoes and that the longer the volcano is dormant, the larger the explosion will be. Due to their lack of understanding they stood absolutely no chance against the eruption. This is why scientists have uncovered many bodies of people bathing in their house and performing everyday activities. 

Archaeologists digging through the ash

Area of land affected by the eruption

5 year old girl with Progeria

Map of all the known cases as of 2010

Where the Progeria Research Foundation is located

As far as Global Health goes, I am extremely interested in the origins and pathways of diseases. So, of course, I am always reading about new diseases and conditions. The other day while I was surfing the internet I came across a disease called Progeria, which in greek means "prematurely old". The term is very literal and the accelerated aging occurs when a child is 18-24 months. Symptoms of Progeria include loss of body fat and hair, atherosclerosis, aged skin, and stiff joints. Most children suffering from this disease die of heart failure around 13 years old. Most doctors believe that the disease is caused by a mutation in the gene that holds cells together causing extreme instability, which leads to accelerated aging. It is an extremely rare disease affecting only 1 in 4-8 million; however, since 1999, it has been discovered in over 40 countries.