Layla Brinster
Current Event #1
AP Biology
8/7/18
Scientists are Retooling Bacteria to Cure Disease
By Carl Zimmer
In years past, bacteria has been used by scientists to create antibiotics and help cure diseases, making an industrial impact and introducing new cures. However, recently, researchers at Synlogic, a company interested in developing synthetic biotic medicines, have started to investigate the effect bacteria and microbiomes. Researchers have developed a bacterial concoction aimed at treating phenylketonuria or PKU, a rare genetic disease. People who have PKU are unable to breakdown the amino acid phenylalanine, found in cheese, meat, and high amounts of protein. Since the body is unable to breakdown phenylalanine, the acid builds up in the blood causing delayed development, psychiatric problems, and disabilities. The past treatment for PKU is a low protein diet and alternate sources of nutrition. However, the bacteria in the Synlogic treatment is designed to breakdown the phenylalanine, initiating a different and more effective treatment for PKU. Researches took harmless strains of E. Coli and genetically engineered it to break down the phenylalanine once it entered the gut, an area with low oxygen levels, and rid the body of the amino acid through excretion. Before testing people with PKU, Synlogic tested their microbe on people without PKU who then reported lower levels of phenylalanine after ingesting high amounts of protein. The next step in Synlogic’s clinical trial is to test their microbiomes in patients with PKU, and they hope to have positive results within the a year. Additionally, scientists are looking to use synthetic biology in different areas of scientific study. Synthetic biology holds the capacity to be at the forefront of many breakthroughs in the future.
Synlogic’s new approach by genetically engineering bacteria and microbes for treatment is just one of the many ways science is evolving through the generations. According to Tal Danino, a scientist at Columbia University, “anywhere there are bacteria in the body is an opportunity to engineer them to do something else.” This quote represents how much science is advancing and using bacteria in the bodies to do so, aided by the development of new technology. Engineering microbiomes has the potential to be, and is, even more effective than using drugs. As experimenting with bacteria continues to grow, more treatments will be discovered, expanding the area of research potential. Overtime, science and research have impacted society and introduced new cures and treatments, and will continue to do so. Many years ago, typical vaccines were just being discovered, and today we receive them regularly. Because science continually to advances, it changes society and improves people’s lives tremendously.
The information in the article was presented in chronological order, which made it comprehensible and easy to follow. The disease and treatments of PKU were thoroughly explained and well thought out. Although the introduction was catching, it started somewhat in the middle of things. I understand how starting an article in the middle of the action is a literary techniqu; however, I do not think it is necessary for an informative piece about research and science. In my opinion, I would have started an article by introducing the disease and existing treatments, then explain the process and stages of research. A strength of the article was gathering data and quotes from multiple sources, which backs and proves the research. The article was mostly focused on how synthetic biology and manipulating bacteria can help cure PKU, but at the very end it explained a little bit about how it could be used in other areas of study. Connecting the use of microbiomes outside PKU is useful because it supplies context and the next steps of study. Overall, the article was very educative and enjoyable.
Citation:
Zimmer, Carl. “Scientists Are Retooling Bacteria to Cure Disease.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 4 Sept. 2018
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