Could Botulinum Toxin be Turned to Beneficial Substance? - Part 2 – Science 10

You may read the previous post (Part 1): Could Botulinum Toxin be Turned to Beneficial Substance? - Part 1 – Science 10

We may find Botulinum toxin in many kinds of foods such as preserved vegetables, fish (processing or preserved) and meat products.

Fig 01- A processing food, illustration

There are plenty of preserved vegetables in the market, several of them such as:

- green beans
- spinach
- mushrooms
- and beets

Examples of fish (processing or preserved):

- canned tuna,
- fermented
- salted and smoked fish

Fig 02- Mushroom is ready to cook

Fig 03- Salt fish on the plate

Fig 04- Fermented food, illustration

Fig 05- Preserved vegetable.

Few meat products such as:

- ham
- and sausage.

This toxin can cause:

1) seizure and dead
- because it impacts nervous system.

2) flaccid paralysis that leads to respiratory failure

- because diaphragm muscle, and muscle related to breathing process becomes weak and paralyze.

# To be continued to Part 3

## Previous postings:

- A chocolate as a Gift for Valentine’s Day
- Russian Covid 19 Vaccine Advantages – Science 2
- Snow Storm in Our City Baton Rouge – Nature 2

Could Botulinum Toxin be Turned to Beneficial Substance? - Part 1 – Science 10

Fig 01- Honey can be contaminated by botulinum toxin bacteria

I'm still excited about botulinum toxin, since I know that botulinum toxin is a potent and deadly substance.

This substance produced by a kind of a rod bacteria that can exist in low or free oxygen, Clostridium botulinum.

Bacteria are very common throughout the world, they could be found in samples or contaminate of:

- water
- soil
- canned foods
- honey

It was many years ago, especially in the under developing countries, the toxin was a killer that hard to overcome.

Clostridium botulinum release toxin that able to kill human.

What are the symptoms of this toxin?

Fig 02- A traditional dish

Fig 03- A drink with chia seed

Fig 04- Meat products could be contaminated by bacteria.

The early of symptoms of this Botulinum lethal toxin could be many, but some of them are:

- fatigue
- weak
- blurry eyes
- and vertigo.

Following by difficult to swallow and speak, also vomiting and diarrhea or constipation.

Then it can radiate to weakness in the neck and arms, and muscle in lower part of body.

# To be continued to Part 2

## Previous postings:

- Growing Tabasco Peppers in My Yard – Part 2
- Why the Moon Has Thousands of Small Aliens? - Part 1 – Science 7

Overdosing Epidemic Caused 100,000 Died in the USA – Science 9

Fig 01- Urine drug test sold in Walmart, just illustration

Based on report by Center for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC, 2021) that overdosing drug use reaches 100,000 died from April 2020 to April 2021. The highest recorded ever.

There are many drugs are consumed overdoses, 10 of them caused death frequently.

These drugs include in the 3 categories, they are opioids, benzodiazepines and stimulants.

Opioids drugs are:

- fentanyl
- heroin
- oxycodone
- methadone
- morphine
- hydrocodone

Fig 02- One of medical centers to serve people health

Two benzodiazepines which are used overdoses:

- alprazolam
- and diazepam

Fig 03- Gnomen clature, illustration

Stimulant drugs are:

- cocaine
- and methamphetamine

Fig 04- One of rehabilitation centers for drug abuses

Drug abuses lead to dead has increased dramatically, about 30% compared to last year.

The question then, why so many people abused drugs in this year?

The simple answer and main reason due Covid 19 pandemic. People getting stress and stress:

- higher unemployment
- lock down

How about with your places or countries? Are there drug overdose problems?

# Previous postings:

- Birds Fly Over Our Backyard – Nature 10
- Do you know about E. coli Bacteria? - part 2 - Healthy Life 12
- Why the Free Meals Program could Attract Kids to Come to Library?
- Lobsters have Good Nutritional Values for Health – Healthy Life 13
- One of Ways to Make Barbeque in the Nature – Food 7

What is Knockout Animals ? - Part 2- Science 8

A cat sitting on the chair, just for illustration

Previous posting (Part 1):

- The Rainbow Before Evening : What is Knockout Animals ? - Part 1- Science 8

Sure, a knocked out gene has two sides:

- advantages
- disadvantages

One of important advantages is that a researcher knows which factor precisely in determining animal behavior, in this case a certain behavior of mice.

Another advantage, researchers could decide the exact time to disrupt a specific gene. The timing is important to conduct behavior experiments in the laboratory.

However, there are several disadvantages, some of them:

1) Expensive economically

- a lot of labors (labor consuming) include culturing of stem cell

2) Gene knockout may lethal to embryo development.

- hence, animal can’t reach adulthood.

3) May incomplete knockout process

4) Disruption of genes may overlap.

5) A knockout gene may develop cancer in certain tissues of mice.

# Previous postings:

- Rediscovering of Rare Blue Bee in Florida in 2020 – Science 3
- Can Scientists Create Glowing Plants? - Science 4
- The Amphibians Near Extinct due to Fungus Disease – Science 5
- Can Succulents Improve Room Humidity? - Science 6

What is Knockout Animals ? - Part 1- Science 8

Knockout mice, credit to National Human Genome Research Institute

We might confuse with these two terms:

- knockout
- Transgenic.

Transgenic is insertion of exogenous DNA into random non homologous site in the animal genome.

While Knockout is insertion of modified DNA at a specific homologous site in the animal genome.

It is interesting to discuss about knockout term furthermore in this posting.

In addition, knockout is the word commonly used to inactive an exist of specific gene in particular organism.

The way to knocked out is by replacing or disrupting the target gene with an artificial piece of DNA.

This is a genetic technique by using homologous recombination to change an endogenous gene.

Garden corner, just illustration

Then, targeted gene could be permanent or conditional inactive or knockout.

Knockout could cause alter phenotype of organisms.

The changes might include behavior, appearance (observable physical) and biochemical characteristics of organisms.

Then, knockout organisms are used in learning about a gene that has been sequenced, which incompletely known function.

# To be continued to Part 2

# Previous postings:

- The Rainbow Before Evening : Making Perfume in the Organic Chemistry Laboratory - Science 1
- The Rainbow Before Evening : Russian Covid 19 Vaccine Advantages – Science 2

Why the Moon Has Thousands of Small Aliens? - Part 2 – Science 7

Voodoo, New Orleans Kettle Style, just illustration

Previous post: Why the Moon Has Thousands of Small Aliens? - Part 1 – Science 7

In case of hypothetical condition where all human being and living things destroyed in the world, because of:

- flood or natural disasters like story of prophet Noah in holy books
- wars (nuclear wars) and whatever caused

Hopefully, other highly intelligence creatures from other planets might find the lunar library, let’s say in the next hundred or thousand years.

They could learn something from man civilization on the earth.

What attract attention is less than 1 mm microorganism, Tardigrades or water bear or piglet like animals.

This microorganism is toughest living microorganism on the earth:

- may survive in the freezing north pole
- found in the deepest ocean
- grow well on the highest mountain
- survived in the space.

Tardigrades (credit to NewsBeezer)

It is assumed that the outer space intelligent also able to regenerate:

- human being from human blood sample
- plants and animals from living DNA
- microorganism from dormant “water bear”

We, human being and other living things could re-emerge on the earth. Exactly, like holy books’s story of prophet Noah in futuristic version.

Do you believe it?

# Previous postings:

- Can Scientists Create Glowing Plants? - Science 4
- The Amphibians Near Extinct due to Fungus Disease – Science 5
- Can Succulents Improve Room Humidity? - Science 6

Why the Moon Has Thousands of Small Aliens? - Part 1 – Science 7

Water bear (credit to CNN)

It was surprising me to know that our lunar surface is believed to occupy by thousands of tardigrade, also called as water bear or piglet like creatures.

These small aliens are part of mission “Noah Ark Mark II” to provide a library in the space craft, then landed on the moon.

In addition to tardigrades, the repository includes:

- human blood
- living DNA
- information about human civilization (30 million pages)
- almost all of English Wikipedia
- classic books

The library was belong to a non profit organization (Arch Mission Foundation), and sent to the moon by Beresheet, Israeli spacecraft.

Yes, spacecraft crashed on the moon, and might broken into small pieces, but tardigrade is believed to survive.

Then, what?

# To be continued to Part 2

## Previous postings:

- Making Perfume in the Organic Chemistry Laboratory - Science 1
- Russian Covid 19 Vaccine Advantages – Science 2
- Rediscovering of Rare Blue Bee in Florida in 2020 – Science 3

Can Succulents Improve Room Humidity? - Science 6

Fig 01- A kind of succulent, Aloe vera

We may surprise that there are more than 200 species of succulents, and each species may consist of 40 varieties.

When we went to one of nurseries in my city, Baton Rouge, Louisiana that we saw more than 20 species and varieties of succulent plants.

Around 35 important species have been planted in gardens or small industries all over the world, some of them are:

- Aloe vera
- hens and chick succulent
- burro’s tails
- Panda Plant
- Roseum
- Pincushion Cactus

One of special about succulent that they could store water in their body (leaves and stems), thus, many people believes that succulent is a symbol of enduring love.

Fig 02- Variety of hens and chick succulent

I myself have one species of succulent, Aloe vera. I put the plant inside when temperature drop during winter season, and outside when spring and summer.

Fig 03- Variety of burro’s tails

I use Aloe vera to treat my hair some times. It is because the succulent contains “proteolytic enzymes” to make smooth and shiny hair.

Then, Can Succulents Improve Room Humidity? Yes, sure. Several other benefits of succulent include:

- Improve skin cells
- Function as conditioner to take care our hair
- Improve hair growth
- Prevent itching on our scalp
- Improve purify the air, thus enrich fresh oxygen
- Brighten the room
- Improve pain tolerance

Do you have succulents indoor or outdoor (in your garden?) What kinds of succulent do you have?

A Cactus?

The Amphibians Near Extinct due to Fungus Disease – Science 5

Fig 01- A garden décor frog

In recent years, Science, volume 363 (published in 29 March 2019) reported declining of amphibian population worldwide due to fungal disease.

Among amphibians affected by this disease are:

- frogs

- toads

- salamanders

- newts

- caecilians

The fungus also described as “supefungus.” The scientific name of fungus is Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis. This is a chytrid fungus, and then, disease is called as Chytridiomycosis.

Some symptoms of chytridiomycosis are following:

- convulsions

- lack of muscle control

- loss of appetite.

Fig 02- Magnolia blooming, just for illustration.

 

Fig 03- A little palm tree.

The fungus infects skin of frog or other amphibians, very painful, then causes:

- difficulty to breathe

- damage of nervous system.

- slowly kill amphibians

This fungal disease lead to decreasing about 30% of 501 amphibian species, include:

- almost extinction of 200 species

- extinction of 90 species

However, scientists have worked hard to prevent more devastation to amphibians population around the globe.

Can Scientists Create Glowing Plants? - Science 4

Succulent plants, just for illustration.

Before I answer the question: Can Scientists Create Glowing Plants? Let’s see the facts.

There are plenty of luminescence fungi In the forest across America and Asia. It is estimated at least 70 species of this kind of fungi.

Some mushroom that are glowing at night (Anna Noris, 2020):

- Panellus stipticus

- Panellus pusillus

- Armillaria mellea

- Armillaria gallica

- Mycena chlorophos

- Mycena luxaeterna

- Mycena haematopus

- Omphalotus illudens

- Omphalotus olearius

Some mushrooms that glowing in the dark 

(credit to Treehugger / Julie Bang)

Now, scientists have an idea to create glowing plants as well. The scientists come from these 3 following countries:

- United Kingdom

- Russia

- Austria.

DNA from mushroom then inserted into plants. Plants produce bioluminescence due to “a billion photons” per 60 seconds.

So, yes, Scientists can create glowing Plants. Then, what is purpose to create glowing plants?

The answer is that to produce the ornament plants, include glowing flowers for commercial, sold in the markets.

We may have these kind of plants and flowers in our houses in the near coming future.