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Honey Has Antibiotic Properties that Kill Bacteria

1/27/2012

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Bacillus nocturne, a normally passive estuarine bacteria, is genetically modified and released into the water at beach resorts by a rogue scientist in Nocturne, Opus 1: Sea Foam. What did the scientist design it to do, and how fast will it spread through the world's waterways? These are the questions that our heroine Dr. Kate Connors must answer as she and her husband Dr. Jake Connors track down the killer. 

Medical personnel have an arsenal of antibiotics to use against bacterial infections, but some of those bacteria have become resistant to the well known antibiotics in use today. Research to discover new antibiotics is an ongoing process, and some say it is a race against time. 

Are there other ways to stop a bacterial infection if all the antibiotics fail? Would it be a good idea to know about these methods and tuck them in the back of our minds, just in case some day an antibiotic is needed and none are available? The characters in Nocturne think so. 

Through the use of fact-based fiction, the characters in Nocturne re-examine the techniques used by physicians and native healers that can slow down the replication rate of bacteria and boost the body's immune system to fight against an infection.    
 
When I saw the headline "Honey Helps Heal Wounds," I wanted to share this timely article with you.  Katherine Harmon transcribed a podcast about the antibacterial effects of honey on wound healing for the 60-Second Health Segment of  Scientific American's webpage (www.scientificamerican.com/podcast/episode.cfm?id=honey-helps-heal-wounds-12-01-31). Her article follows: 

"Honey soothes a sore throat. Now research suggests that it could also help fight serious skin infections.
People have used honey's antibacterial properties for centuries. Now, scientists are discovering just how it works—and that it might be even better than antibiotics. 


After surgery or a skin injury, many otherwise harmless bacteria that live on the skin can infect the wound site. One type of strep is particularly common and can lead to stubborn wounds that refuse to heal. But researchers found that honey—in particular that made from bees foraging on manuka flowers—stopped this strep in its tracks. The study is in the journal Microbiology [Sarah Maddocks et al, Manuka Honey Inhibits the Development of Streptococcus pyogenesBiofilms and Causes Reduced Expression of Two Fibronectin Binding Proteins]. 

 
In lab tests, just a bit of the honey killed off the majority of bacterial cells—and cut down dramatically on the stubborn biofilms they formed. 


It could also be used to prevent wounds from becoming infected in the first place. Hospital-borne infections are all too common, with more and more strains developing resistance to standard antibiotic treatments. So if the honey works in clinical trials, too, this sweet news will be all the buzz." 


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Welcome to Norene's Environmental Thriller Blog

1/21/2012

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1 + 1 = 3   Synergy!

In Nocturne, Opus 1: Sea Foam, a physician researches the concept of synergy, a combination of elements that produce better results than would be expected by using each element separately. 

The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) posits the use of synergy as a possible area of research for studying how to boost the protective effect of phytochemicals in foods. The AICR stated that "no single food or food component can protect you against cancer by itself. But scientists believe that the combination of foods in a predominantly plant-based diet may. There is evidence that the minerals, vitamins, and phytochemicals in plant foods could interact in ways that boost their individual anti-cancer effects. This concept of interaction, where 1 + 1 = 3, is called synergy." 

Synergy plays an important role in Nocturne, Opus 1: Sea Foam. What combination of elements do you think the physician uses in his experiment? 
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Welcome to Norene's Environmental Thriller Blog

1/14/2012

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Water Quality Reports for Your Favorite Beaches


In Nocturne, Opus 1: Sea Foam, an eco-activist's concern about polluted waterways leads to media discussions and political arguments about the solution to an impending crisis of epic proportions. What if the water from our rivers and streams, and our lakes and aquifers, was no longer safe to drink? 

In some areas of the United States, public and private water recreation areas close their beaches after heavy rainfalls to limit our exposure to toxic runoff. State and Federal agencies monitor the bacterial counts at public beaches, issuing advisories and closing beaches when the counts exceed a healthy limit. How do we know which beaches are safe to visit? A quick check of the beach water quality reports on the internet can prevent a frustrating drive to a closed beach or warn about being careful not to swallow any water while swimming. 

The Natural Resources Defense Council surveys the water quality at United States' beaches annually, producing and publishing the report Testing the Waters. Individual State Summaries of beach water quality from the report can be found at www.nrdc.org/water/oceans/ttw/titinx.asp in the second column on this NRDC webpage. 

The NRDC also recognizes the Superstar Beaches that have achieved a five star rating for water quality for the previous year. The criteria for the ratings are listed below:

                                   1. Water Quality for 2010

                                   2. Water Quality for the Past Three Years
                                   3. Water Quality Testing Frequency
                                   4. Always Issues Advisories Promptly
                                   5. Posts Closings and Advisories

The NRDC Selected the 2010 Superstar Beaches: 

Delaware: Rehoboth Beach, Rehoboth Avenue Beach, Sussex County
Delaware: Dewey Beach, Sussex County
Minnesota: Park Point Lafayette Community Club Beach, St. Louis County
New Hampshire: Hampton Beach State Park, Rockingham County 



Another popular list of best beaches in the United States is produced every year by Dr. Stephen P. Leatherman, aka Dr. Beach. He selects the top beaches in the United States based upon 50 criteria which he lists on his webpage. He releases his annual report before the Memorial Day weekend. His website is www.drbeach.org/top10beaches.htm.  

Dr. Beach's 2011 Top 10 Beaches:  

 1.  Florida: Siesta Beach in Sarasota, Florida 
 2.  California: Coronado Beach in San Diego, California  
 3.  Hawaii: Kahanamoku Beach in Waikiki, Oahu, Hawaii  
 4.  New York: Main Beach in East Hampton, New York  
 5.  North Carolina: Cape Hatteras in the Outer Banks of North Carolina  
 6.  Florida: St. George Island State Park, Florida panhandle 
 7.  South Carolina: Beachwalker Park Kiawah Island, South Carolina  
 8.  Massachusetts: Coast Guard Beach in Cape Cod, Massachusetts 
 9.  Hawaii: Waimanalo Bay Beach Park on Oahu, Hawaii 
10. Florida: Cape Florida State Park in Key Biscayne, Florida 


Watch for this year's updates to these lists, which I will post in this blog section as soon as they are released. 
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Welcome to Norene's Environmental Thriller Blog

1/7/2012

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Bacteria at Our Beaches


Why does Dr. Kate Connors worry about beach water quality in Nocturne, Opus 1: Sea Foam? First of all, she is the mother of a precocious three-year-old daughter and she loves her dearly. Which parent among us wouldn't pay attention to our child's surroundings, especially in new places like on vacation at the beach? Our first concern would be strangers, followed by activity safety, which includes monitoring how close our child gets to the water, or how far into the water our child goes, or how deep of water our child swims in. Then we think of sharks! (Sorry. But that topic does lurk in the back of most parents' minds, whether they care to admit it or not.) More realistically, in terms of probability of contact, we scan the water's surface for the bobbling, rounded shape of jellyfish. But how many of us also see this standard beach scene through the microscopic and macroscopic eyes of a scientist? 

Kate Connors is a scientist, a medical researcher studying the effects of bacteria on the human body. Specifically, she studies Bacillus nocturne, a normally passive, estuary bacteria that floats harmlessly in rivers, bays and oceans. Why does she study this bacteria? Because the organization that hired her, the Institute for Public Policy and Safety, knows that someone has genetically altered Bacillus nocturne. Kate sees danger where we see children laughing and tumbling in the surf. 

Is there a problem with our beach water quality in the United States? Yes, in some places. A few years ago, I found a sign posted by DNREC, Delaware's Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, at an entrance to an inland bay beach. It read:

 “The waters of the Inland Bays may contain organisms that could be harmful to your health. Swimming could result in an increased risk of rashes, infections or gastrointestinal distress, especially during and after rainfall. For your health and safety, please swim at beaches with lifeguards where the water quality is tested weekly. For information on beach water quality or to report illnesses resulting from contact with these waters, please call 1-800-922-WAVE or visit www.dnrec.state.de.us.” 

Have you seen water quality warning signs near any of the beaches you've visited? What did they say? 


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    Dr. Norene Moskalski can often be found walking the beaches of the Delaware Bay and the Atlantic Ocean, collecting sea glass, weathered minerals, unusual shells, and artifacts from colonial shipwrecks. A naturalist and environmentalist by nature, and a medical diagnostician by avocation, she has a Ph.D. in Higher Education Administration and has held administrative and teaching positions at Penn State University and Temple University. She has spent most of her life preparing administrators and teachers to lead and teach ethically with love and respect for everyone. The settings for her novels are authentic vignettes from university campuses and places around the world she has visited. Each novel presents a variation on a theme, using literary techniques and musical innuendos to move the action forward. Her plots revolve around the unexpected: What if the most beautiful things in the world are the most dangerous?

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