Eat scallops - forget everything else.

Here is a link to a Telegraph article about a Michelin-starred chef in Spain who allegedly served shellfish from a water source known to be contaminated with diatoms (small protists) that produces domoic acid.

Spanish Michelin star chef arrested over toxic shellfish

Domoic acid is considered a marine toxin.  It can cause an illness called Amnesic Shellfish poisoning.  I'll let you read about it and its effects here.  Yes, it's a Wikipedia article.  But it is the clearest explanation I found, and has some great anecdotal bits at the end, including a possible link to Alfred Hitchcock's movie "The Birds".  I have always been a bit partial to the movie because it was filmed in and around the area where I grew up.

A personal post

I am posting this because I think this information is important, since many of us travel to the Gulf Coast.  

A close friend of mine told me tonight that "Harvey", another friend, is in the hospital with a life-threatening infection that he acquired through a cut on his leg while Jeep-ing in the surf off of the Gulf Coast of Florida.  Harvey (obviously not his real name) is in his 50's, and has chronic Hepatitis C infection and diabetes.  When my friend told me he was sick, the first thing that came to mind was a Staphylococcus infection, only because my uncle had such an infection in his hand many years ago, with similar signs and symptoms (s/s).  Then my friend told me she thought it started with a V.  Immediately I thought of Vibrio vulnificans, but thought it most likely associated with his diabetes, since the entry point seemed to be his lower leg.

I then went to my most trusted ally (www.cdc.gov) and discovered that one of the biggest risk factors for V. vulnificans, other than being immunocompromised, is chronic liver disease.  

Here's the link...  http://www.cdc.gov/nczved/dfbmd/disease_listing/vibriov_gi.html

 

Well, I'm new to this Blogging thing, it looks like it might be below the post.

Anyhow, here's the speedy science part.  V. vulnificans is well-known as a contaminant in raw shellfish in warm ocean waters (like the Gulf of Mexico).  It is a halophile, which means it prefers salt water environments (halophile =  salt-loving).  In the past year or two, a woman with a compromised immune system died from V.v. contracted from eating raw oysters at a well-known restaurant on the outskirts of Atlanta.

Less well-known (at least to me), is V. vulnificans infection of wounds.  According to the attached link to the CDC, a person with chronic liver disease or impaired immune system is 80 times more likely to get a blood infection as a result of an initial infection with V. vulnificans.

Vibrio vulnificans is a Gram-negative organism (also related to the bacterium that causes cholera), which means it produces, among other things, a substance called endotoxin.  Endotoxin, AKA Lipid A, is a substance that our immune system finds particularly annoying, especially in the bloodstream.  Endotoxin is a normal part of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria.  However, when these organisms multiply in our bloodstream (in particular), they release some endotoxin, and our immune system tends to overreact, causing endotoxic shock.  Endotoxic shock often results in death (see article for 50% mortality rate for V. vulnificans blood infections).

The moral to this story?  If you are immunocompromised for any reason, or have chronic liver disease, please don't swim in warm ocean waters with open wounds (even scratches).  Don't eat raw oysters or other raw seafood products.  Harvey has been given a 5% chance of survival, with complete amputation of his leg.

Edited to post that this man lost his battle this week. :(   We don't know if he ever got out of the hospital.

A favorite short video from TED.com

Most of my students will recognize this video from TED.com, since I tend to show it whether or not is has any relation to the course. It's that cool.  The presenter is a gentleman by the name of David Gallo.

He presents a short video (about 5 minutes long) on two subjects - bioluminescence and cephalopods. Both are great, but I suspect you will really enjoy the last minute or so.  I have watched it over and over, and I am amazed every time.

http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/david_gallo_shows_underwater_astonishments.html

The Pill Makes Women Pick Bad Mates | LiveScience

This link is from LiveScience, and discusses an article in Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.



http://www.livescience.com/culture/080812-contraceptive-smell.html



The basic idea behind this study is that birth-control pills (BCP) cause a woman's body to be hormonally pregnant. That is, she is not releasing an egg and therefore has no need for a mate. This affects her ability to recognize a mate with differing MHC molecules. MHC molecules are part of our immune response. Diverse MHC molecules allow one to recognize more foreign invaders.



So for your (future) offspring, it is best if you mate with someone who does not share your MHC molecules. So how do you tell? Run a genetic screen on everyone you date? Nah, turns out you can smell 'em. You just don't realize. The article brings up some really interesting possible consequences of not recognizing them because of the interference of BCP.



See also this article:

http://www.livescience.com/health/070207_romance_gene.html



It goes into more detail about the whole MHC link to mate selection.