Can Microbial Communities Regenerate

By investigating a simple question, a philosopher of science and a molecular biologist offer an accessible understanding of microbial communities and a motivating theory for future research in community ecology. Microorganisms, such as bacteria, are important determinants of health at the individual, ecosystem, and global levels. And yet many aspects of modern life, from the overuse of antibiotics to chemical spills and climate change, can have devastating, lasting impacts on the communities formed by microorganisms. Drawing on the latest scientific research and real-life examples such as attempts to reengineer these communities through microbial transplantation, the construction of synthetic communities of microorganisms, and the use of probiotics, this book explores how and why communities of microorganisms respond to disturbance, and what might lead to failure. It also unpacks related and interwoven philosophical questions: What is an organism? Can a community evolve by natural selection? How can we make sense of function and purpose in the natural world? How should we think about regeneration as a phenomenon that occurs at multiple biological scales? Provocative and nuanced, this primer offers an accessible conceptual and theoretical understanding of regeneration and evolution at the community level that will be essential across disciplines including philosophy of biology, conservation biology, microbiomics, medicine, evolutionary biology, and ecology.

Two historians and philosophers of science offer an essential primer on the meaning and limits of regeneration. In punishment for his stealing fire, the Greek gods chained Prometheus to a rock, where every day an eagle plucked out his liver, and every night the liver regenerated. While Prometheus may be a figure of myth, scholars today ask whether ancient Greeks knew that the human liver does, in fact, have a special capacity to regenerate. Some organs and tissues can regenerate, while others cannot, and some organisms can regenerate more fully and more easily than others. Cut an earthworm in half, and two wiggly worms may confront you. Cut off the head of a hydra, and it may grow a new head. Cut off a human arm, and the human will be missing an arm. Why the differences? What are the limits of regeneration, and how, when, and why does it occur? In this book, historians and philosophers of science Jane Maienschein and Kate MacCord explore biological regeneration, delving into a topic of increasing interest in light of regenerative medicine, new tools in developmental and neurobiology, and the urgent need to understand and repair damage to ecosystems brought on by climate change. Looking across scales, from germ, nerve, and stem cells to individual organisms and complex systems, this short and accessible introduction poses a range of deep and provocative questions: What conditions allow some damaged microbiomes to regenerate where others do not? Why are forests following a fire said to regenerate sometimes but not always? And in the face of climate change in the era called the Anthropocene, can the planet regenerate to become healthy again, or will the global ecosystem collapse?

Beginning with the germ theory of disease in the 19th century and extending through most of the 20th century, microbes were believed to live their lives as solitary, unicellular, disease-causing organisms . This perception stemmed from the focus of most investigators on organisms that could be grown in the laboratory as cellular monocultures, often dispersed in liquid, and under ambient conditions of temperature, lighting, and humidity. Most such inquiries were designed to identify microbial pathogens by satisfying Koch's postulates.3 This pathogen-centric approach to the study of microorganisms produced a metaphorical "war" against these microbial invaders waged with antibiotic therapies, while simultaneously obscuring the dynamic relationships that exist among and between host organisms and their associated microorganisms-only a tiny fraction of which act as pathogens. Despite their obvious importance, very little is actually known about the processes and factors that influence the assembly, function, and stability of microbial communities. Gaining this knowledge will require a seismic shift away from the study of individual microbes in isolation to inquiries into the nature of diverse and often complex microbial communities, the forces that shape them, and their relationships with other communities and organisms, including their multicellular hosts. On March 6 and 7, 2012, the Institute of Medicine's (IOM's) Forum on Microbial Threats hosted a public workshop to explore the emerging science of the "social biology" of microbial communities. Workshop presentations and discussions embraced a wide spectrum of topics, experimental systems, and theoretical perspectives representative of the current, multifaceted exploration of the microbial frontier. Participants discussed ecological, evolutionary, and genetic factors contributing to the assembly, function, and stability of microbial communities; how microbial communities adapt and respond to environmental stimuli; theoretical and experimental approaches to advance this nascent field; and potential applications of knowledge gained from the study of microbial communities for the improvement of human, animal, plant, and ecosystem health and toward a deeper understanding of microbial diversity and evolution. The Social Biology of Microbial Communities: Workshop Summary further explains the happenings of the workshop.

The book overviews the complex interactions amongst the microbes and their possible applications. Emphasis has been made to include a wide spectrum of experimental and theoretical contributions from eminent researchers in the field. Microbial communities are the assemblages of microorganisms of various species which live together in the same environment and continuously interact with each other. The microbial cells in communities display unique phenotypes that affect the survival and reproduction of other cells present around them. These phenotypes constitute the social adaptations that drive the interactions between microbial cells. The interactions, further determine the productivity, stability and the ability of community to resist the environmental perturbations. These microbial communities live with extremely competitive niche and fight for their survival and genetic persistence. But they frequently appear in niche with multifaceted and interactive webs rather than the planktonic nature. This can be within the same species or with different species, or even with diverse genera and families. It either a competitive winner community whereas the “weaker” strain goes extinct or a competitor that coexist with their metabolic secretory potentials or a separator that assigned their own community territorial niches. Sometimes, it can be neutral or tritagonist. These microbial associations within the microbiome provides the foundation for diverse forms of microbial ecology and determined the applied perspectives for agriculture, clinical and industrial sectors. This book will be useful to postgraduate students, researchers from academic as well as industry working in the field of microbial exploration with keen interest in survival factors and mechanism of their survival by various ecological and functional strategies.

From clinical application to experimental research, this book summarizes the transformation value of Platelet-Rich Plasma, explores its potential research hotspots, and ultimately serves the clinic. On the one hand, the main content of this work is to explain the research progress of Platelet-Rich Plasma in the laboratory, including the mechanisms involved in its research and possible potential therapeutic effects. On the other hand, this work aims to clarify its application foundation and value in Aesthetic Surgery. The purpose is to provide reliable reference tools for relevant work practitioners, build a bridge between experimental research and clinical application, and promote the progress of Platelet-Rich Plasma-related translational medicine.

The book overviews the complex interactions amongst the microbes and their possible applications. Emphasis has been made to include a wide spectrum of experimental and theoretical contributions from eminent researchers in the field. Microbial communities are the assemblages of microorganisms of various species which live together in the same environment and continuously interact with each other. The microbial cells in communities display unique phenotypes that affect the survival and reproduction of other cells present around them. These phenotypes constitute the social adaptations that drive the interactions between microbial cells. The interactions, further determine the productivity, stability and the ability of community to resist the environmental perturbations. These microbial communities live with extremely competitive niche and fight for their survival and genetic persistence. But they frequently appear in niche with multifaceted and interactive webs rather than the planktonic nature. This can be within the same species or with different species, or even with diverse genera and families. It either a competitive winner community whereas the "weaker" strain goes extinct or a competitor that coexist with their metabolic secretory potentials or a separator that assigned their own community territorial niches. Sometimes, it can be neutral or tritagonist. These microbial associations within the microbiome provides the foundation for diverse forms of microbial ecology and determined the applied perspectives for agriculture, clinical and industrial sectors. This book will be useful to postgraduate students, researchers from academic as well as industry working in the field of microbial exploration with keen interest in survival factors and mechanism of their survival by various ecological and functional strategies.

Examining the enormous potential of microbiome manipulation to improve health Associations between the composition of the intestinal microbiome and many human diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, cardiovascular disease, metabolic disorders, and cancer, have been elegantly described in the past decade. Now, whole-genome sequencing, bioinformatics, and precision gene-editing techniques are being combined with centuries-old therapies, such as fecal microbiota transplantation, to translate current research into new diagnostics and therapeutics to treat complex diseases. Bugs as Drugs provides a much-needed overview of microbes in therapies and will serve as an excellent resource for scientists and clinicians as they carry out research and clinical studies on investigating the roles the microbiota plays in health and disease. In Bugs as Drugs, editors Robert A. Britton and Patrice D. Cani have assembled a fascinating collection of reviews that chart the history, current efforts, and future prospects of using microorganisms to fight disease and improve health. Sections cover traditional uses of probiotics, next-generation microbial therapeutics, controlling infectious diseases, and indirect strategies for manipulating the host microbiome. Topics presented include: How well-established probiotics support and improve host health by improving the composition of the intestinal microbiota of the host and by modulating the host immune response. The use of gene editing and recombinant DNA techniques to create tailored probiotics and to characterize next-generation beneficial microbes. For example, engineering that improves the anti-inflammatory profile of probiotics can reduce the number of colonic polyps formed, and lactobacilli can be transformed into targeted delivery systems carrying therapeutic proteins or bioengineered bacteriophage. The association of specific microbiota composition with colorectal cancer, liver diseases, osteoporosis, and inflammatory bowel disease. The gut microbiota has been proposed to serve as an organ involved in regulation of inflammation, immune function, and energy homeostasis. Fecal microbiota transplantation as a promising treatment for numerous diseases beyond C. difficile infection. Practical considerations for using fecal microbiota transplantation are provided, while it is acknowledged that more high-quality evidence is needed to ascertain the importance of strain specificity in positive treatment outcomes. Because systems biology approaches and synthetic engineering of microbes are now high-throughput and cost-effective, a much wider range of therapeutic possibilities can be explored and vetted.