Microbiology 101: The Red Queen Rules All

Hello, and welcome to my blog. Nothing has fascinated me more than the field of microbiology. From viruses to bacteria, each organism had shown to be an incredible piece of nature. To me, I'd even take it as far as saying that they are works of art. At first glance many bacteria look the same, either a rod or a bunch of circles.  But when you get down to understanding what they do and why they do it, they turn into something incredible. You see that in the realm of evolution and with the struggle to survive comes the advent of some of the most clever and interesting evolutionary adaptations imaginable. This blog aims to enlighten my readers to these mechanisms in a simple way, but still provide that "wow" factor that has driven me to learn as much as I can about these microbes

First off, there are several things that must be explained. I am not a master in this field and the information I provide is only what I have gained through four grueling years of study. Next, this blog is meant to look at some of these adaptations from the perspective of evolution. If you are a person that doesn't believe evolution is real then I encourage you to read through my articles with an open mind. Either way some of these pathogens will lead you to say "How do they do that?" regardless if you believe evolution is the source or God (or whatever deity you may believe in) is the source. Look at and admire the beauty of these pathogens and you will appreciate nature more. Finally, question what I write and respond. As a writer I'd love to engage is conversations about the topic I write about. Some will be my own opinion and I am more than welcome to see what everyone else thinks about it...Oh yeah one more thing, the images in this blog are taken from Google except the background image which I took using PyMOL freeware.

Now that that's out of the way I'll get right to the basics of microbiology. The simple rule: EVERYTHING IS RULED BY EVOLUTION. The way by which pathogens survive are all ruled by the principles of natural selection. The most fit will continue to proliferate while the least adapted pathogens will die. It's no surprise then that bacteria replicate many times in a short time-frame. By increasing the turnover rate of bacteria there is an increase in the chance of variation that can lead to more adaptive mechanisms. It is also no surprise then  that certain pathogens take advantage of this genetic variation by increasing the amount of mutations in their genomes by getting rid of repair mechanisms or by recombining genomes with other bacteria.

This leads us to the Red Queen Hypothesis. This is basically the hypothesis that best explains why pathogens act the way they do in the human body.In order to understand disease pathogenesis caused by bacteria and viruses, it it necessary to understand this hypothesis. In Lewis Carroll's Through the Looking Glass the character of the Red Queen says "It takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place." In microbiological terms this translates into an arms race between the pathogen and the host. As the bacteria develops ways of infecting the host in order to survive, the host develops ways to combat the infection. Conversely, as the host develops these defenses, the pathogen develops new ways of infecting the host. The result is an evolutionary stalemate, a battle to stay in balance with neither the host nor pathogen gaining ground in the battle of survival. Disease happens when this homeostasis is disrupted and the pathogen gains a new trait that leads to disease.

As a result of this arms race the pathogen develops virulence factors, traits that cause disease in a host organism. It is the virulence factors that are the focus of pathogenesis and what I find most interesting about how these "bugs" cause disease. These factors will be the primary focus throughout my posts. This also raises a bigger question of why in some bacteria these traits are expressed but in avirulent (non-disease causing strains) bacteria they are not...But more on that stuff later. For now, enjoy the journey and appreciate how these small beings have continued to persist within the human population despite our best attempts to eradicate them entirely.