Category: Bacteria

11/16/2012

Storm Surges

Sea Foam, Surf, and Surges

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? 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.

But after Hurricane Sandy and the Nor'easter that followed it, we may also see danger in sea foam, surf, and surges. Knowing that bacteria do exist in our coastal waters, it is important to think about where all that surge water that entered people's homes came from. Whether back bay surges, ocean surges, or river surges, that water was filled with waste water, chemical and biological residue, and decaying matter. People wading through it to help others and to secure their possessions may have come in contact with materials hazardous to their health. Any one with cuts and abrasions that were exposed to the surge water could be very vulnerable to an infection. In the Delaware area, television stations were reminding people caught in the flooding or clean-up to review their tetanus injection records to see if a booster injection might be prudent. Furthermore, the television stations announced that anything porous which had come in contact with the flood waters, although dry now, should be disposed of, rather than cleaned and kept.

Safety first . . . material possessions last.

We are reminded through events like storm surges that life is what is important, because we can replace water-logged things, but we cannot replace a life.

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7/21/2012

DNREC Tests the Water at the Delaware Bay and Atlantic Ocean Beaches

Making the Delaware Beaches Safer Through Quality Beach Water Testing by DNREC

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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7/13/2012

Beach Water Quality

Know How To Check For Local Beach Water Quality Reports

In my new novel, Dr. Kate Connors always checks the beach water quality reports before she allows her three-year-old daughter Crystal to play in the water. How many of us actually know where those water quality reports are posted and which beaches are most likely to have contaminated water? In Nocturne, Opus 1: Sea Foam, characters participate in a fact-based political debate about which beaches along the United States' seacoast have passed water quality tests, which are the worst offenders, and how quickly tourists and local residents are notified of a problem.

Where are the water quality reports posted in your state for bodies of water where children and adults play, swim, kayak, sail, or participate in other activities?

In Delaware the marine beachwater monitoring is done by DNREC, the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control. Posted on their websitehttp://apps.dnrec.state.de.us/RecWater/ are maps citing water quality at state beaches and the following information:

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control's Recreational Water Program protects the health of swimmers in a number of ways.

Shoreline surveys are conducted adjacent to guarded recreational beaches to identify all actual and potential sources of pollution.
Water samples are collected at least weekly at all guarded beaches during the swimming season (mid May through Labor Day).
Water samples are analyzed to determine the levels of Enterococci bacteria in recreational waters. Enterococcus is one of several indicator organisms that signal the presence of potentially harmful bacteria and viruses.
Signs have been posted at popular public access points around Rehoboth Bay, Indian River Bay, and Little Assawoman Bay to warn potential swimmers of the risks associated with swimming in poor quality waters.
For your health and safety, the Department recommends swimming only at guarded beaches where water samples are collected.
There is a permanent caution regarding swimming in the Inland Bays. The Inland Bays suffer from nutrient pollution, coming from failing septic systems, fertilizers and other sources. Water is slow to flush out of these bays--Indian River Bay, Rehoboth Bay and Little Assawoman Bay, so pollutants linger.

For current information about swimming advisories, please click on any of the beaches on the adjacent, or call our toll-free, 24-hour "Beach Hotline" at 1-800-922-WAVE.

Want Beach Monitoring Advisories hot off the press? Join the Beach Monitoring list from DNREC Online Email Lists.

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1/27/2012

Honey Has Antibiotic Properties that Kill Bacteria

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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1/7/2012

Welcome to Norene's Environmental Thriller Blog

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?

3 Comments