Interactions
After reading the home page, you should have come to the
conclusion that Bacillus cereus
just doesn't leave other organisms alone! Here I will tell you
about some of the interactions Bacillus
cereus has with a variation of species.
Humans- Bacillus cereus often inhabits the food of humans such as meat, milk, fish, cheeses, vegetables, and rice products. This interaction occurs when the human ingests a food inhabited by Bacillus cereus. Following ingestion of contaminated food, the person will often times exhibit vomiting or diarrhea, in some cases both.
Chickens- Often times Bacillus cereus is found in the digestive tract of chickens.
Most likely to your surprise, this is beneficial to both
Bacillus cereus and the chicken! This type
of interaction is known as mutualism; a form of symbiosis where both members
benefit. In this relationship, Bacillus cereus
gains a nice comfortable home in the chickens digestive tract,
while the chicken becomes free of
salmonella by Bacillus cereus out
competing salmonella for nutrients. The removal of salmonella from the
chicken results in improved growth of the chicken and food safety.
Salmonella and Campylobacter- As mentioned in the above text, Bacillus cereus competes with salmonella for nutrients, and the same goes for campylobacter. All three microorganisms compete in the guts of a host for nutrients.
Psittacines (and possibly more species?)-
Psittacines are birds that either resemble parrots or relate to them. In an
article I read titled Bacillus cereus
Infection Outbreak in Captive Psittacines found in volume 161 page 213
of Veterinary Microbiology, the authors discuss the deaths of twelve psittacines at a Brazilian zoo. After investigation of the twelve mysterious
deaths, the conclusion was made that it was caused by
Bacillus cereus. It was believed that in
this case, Bacillus cereus actually
caused systematic infections in the immune systems of the birds, which
eventually led to their deaths.
Plants- As we have seen with the chickens above, interactions with Bacillus cereus are not always harmful. With plants, we see another form of a mutualistic relationship. Plants benefit from the presence of Bacillus cereus because Bacillus cereus often prevents plant diseases, and can enhance plant growth. Bacillus cereus benefits by gaining shelter in the plant roots.
Insects- Much like
Bacillus cereus uses humans as hosts, it uses insects as hosts
as well.
Phages- Phages, also commonly known as viruses, interact
with Bacillus cereus as well. The main groups that interact with
Bacillus cereus are those of the Myovrirdae family and the
Siphoviridae family. Often these viruses use Bacillus cereus
as a host, and often results in the lysing of the bacteria.
Want to know some interesting facts? Of course you do! Everyone loves a good
fun facts page! Continue on your journey at the
facts page!