Combating Antibiotic Resistance with “Nanoparticles”

Posted on February 8, 2021 by | Leave a comment

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) calls antibiotic resistance “one of the biggest public health challenges of our time.” But what is antibiotic resistance? How is it affecting our lives? and How can we use nanoparticles to fight it?

Antibiotic Resistance Crisis:

Antibiotics are powerful medications that are widely used for the treatment of infections caused by bacteria by either killing them or inhibiting their reproduction. However, taking antibiotics too often or for the wrong purpose caused bacteria to evolve various antibiotic resistance mechanisms that defeat the actions of antibiotics.
Some bacteria have developed resistance to nearly all the antibiotic treatments available. Infections by these antibiotic-resistant bacteria can result in serious fatal diseases that were once easily treatable with antibiotics.

Without the invention of new strategies to counteract drug-resistant infections, they are likely to kill more than 10 million people each year by 2050. This is more than the number of  people currently dying from cancer.

Bacterial Resistance to Antibiotic Drugs, Source: phys.org

Ongoing researches are analyzing the ways nanoparticles (small particles ranging between 1 to 100 nanometres in size) can be used to defeat antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The size of nanoparticles which is about 1/100 of bacteria and their flexible antibacterial properties make them a favorable solution to this problem since they can be used to not only deliver antibiotics but also to fight bacteria themselves.

Using Nanoparticles as Antibiotic Carriers:

According to this research, some nanoparticles have the ability to penetrate into the bacterial cells while carrying the antibiotic agents. They protect the carried antibiotic physically against the bacterial resistance mechanisms, for example by saving the antibiotic from bacterial released chemicals that can otherwise destroy them.

Chitosan (a type of fiber) nanoparticle can be used to deliver antibiotics to inside the bacterial cells. This nanoparticle possesses a positive charge making it able to attach to bacterial cells that have a negative charge on their membrane (outer layer of the cell). Source: ResearchGate

Using Nanoparticles as Antibiotic Drugs: 

Nanoparticles can also defeat bacteria directly by themselves using mechanisms such as the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS are unstable molecules that can easily react with other biomolecules (DNA, protein, etc.) in a cell, disrupt them, and cause cell death.

Recent research recorded severe cellular damage in 5 different types of bacteria when treated with silver nanoparticles. As they reported, an increase in ROS formation leads to damage to bacterial biomolecules resulting in the death of bacteria.

Effect of Nanoparticles on Bacteria

E.coli (a type of bacteria) (left) is severely damaged when treated with a special virus-like nanoparticle (right). Source: pubs.acs.org

Nanoparticles appear to be a promising solution to address the problem
of antibiotic resistance; however, the main factor that limits the use of nanoparticles in treatments is that researchers often face side-effects related to nanoparticle toxicity for living organisms. For instance, some metal nanoparticles can cause heart problems or even cancer when inhaled.

The ways through which nanoparticles can produce toxicity need to be investigated in future researches in order to develop safe and efficient antibacterial nanoparticles.

– Samin Shadravan

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Treating Depression: Personalized Deep Brain Stimulation

Posted on February 8, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Source: flickr.com

How would you feel if the treatment or medication you were taking had little to no effect in suppressing your symptoms? Unfortunately, this is the case for 1 in 3 patients diagnosed with depression. These patients fall under a category known as treatment-resistant depression. Personalized deep brain stimulation, a promising alternative to conventional treatments, has the potential to solve this problem by allowing physicians to tailor treatments to an individual’s needs.

The Problem

Depression, which is characterized by low mood, is linked to an imbalance of serotonin, norepinephrine, and dopamine neurotransmitters in the brain. It is a common mental illness that affects the way someone feels, thinks, and acts. However, it is important to note that depression varies significantly among individuals and many other factors play a role. As stated by Ben Paul from USC Viterbi School of Engineering,

“Mental disorders can manifest differently in each patient’s brain.”

There is no one single treatment that is able to effectively treat the symptoms of depression among all diagnosed individuals. This makes it hard for physicians to provide the best treatment for their patients.

What is deep brain stimulation?

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is a surgical procedure where electrodes are implanted within specific areas of the brain. By electrically stimulating these parts of the brain, physicians can reduce the symptoms associated with depression. The amount of stimulation is controlled by a pacemaker that is placed under skin on the chest.

The video below explains this procedure further and contains an interview with Edi Guyton, a patient who had this surgery: 

Source: CNN | Youtube

Promising Alternative: Personalized Deep Brain Stimulation 

Even with deep brain stimulation, each patient’s response to treatment will be different. However, one of the pros of deep brain stimulation is that it results in immediate changes. This is the key component that allows physicians to personalize treatment.

Research led by Maryam Shanechi and her team at USC Viterbi School of Engineering have figured out a way to predict and see how an individual’s brain responds to stimulation. This allows physicians to monitor brain regions in real time.

How is this done? 

           Two tools have been designed: 

  1. Electrical stimulation wave to map brain activity
  2. Machine-learning techniques that are able to learn the mapped brain activity which is collected during stimulation 

The stimulation wave designed by Maryam and her team randomly changes amplitude and frequency of the electrical impulse over time. A change in amplitude and frequency would be the equivalent to changing the milligram dose of a pill. Analysis of brain activity during these changes will allow physicians to arrive at the correct stimulation doses.  As a result, physicians will be able to personalize and tailor the deep brain stimulation for the individual. 

This treatment can be used to find an effective approach for almost all patients diagnosed with depression.  Success within this field of personalized deep brain stimulation will hopefully lead to more application for other mental disorders. 

– Samantha Nalliah

 

 

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Forgot Something? Suspect Your Dopamine

Posted on February 8, 2021 by | Leave a comment

You open up an internet browser, but you forget what you were going to search for or why you even started your computer. Have you ever come across these situations?  The recent research on the temporary memory loss have discovered the betrayer within our body: the notorious dopamine.

Dopamine has a reputation as the “happy hormone.” It’s a neurotransmitter, a substance that conveys signals between neurons, that mediates pleasure in our brain and makes you crave for the things you love. For instance, you constantly refresh your Instagram feed or click on the next recommended video on YouTube because your brain remembers and relate those activities to pleasure. Then every time you perform those activities your brain release dopamine, which makes you feel good.

Social Media and Distractions

Source: Fauno (pixabay.com)

Q: Sounds good! Everyone loves pleasure and happiness! What’s the problem?

A: Humans are not supposed to feel pleasure every time. In a nutshell, dopamine acts very similar to recreational drug because it constantly tempts you and controls you to do things that provides instant gratification and crave for stronger pleasure. The problem of dopamine addiction recently arose because of the rapid technological advancement, which allows for easy access to activities that release dopamine such as social media, video games, and pornography. People have hard time focusing on their work and managing their time because they crave that dopamine shots.

Here’s a video that talks about effect of dopamine on human and possible solution to overcome addiction:

YouTube Preview Image

Source: TopThink (youtube.com)

In addition, the researchers from Scripps Research Institute revealed dopamine’s another dark secret. They discovered the mechanism in which the stimulation of dopamine circuit is responsible for transient forgetting, also known as temporary memory loss. In particular, the biochemical team specified a single pair of dopamine-releasing neuron, named PPL1- α2α’2, that causes the universal nuisance in our brain.

Source: Tumisu (pixabay.com)

In summary, the research taught Drosophila, the common fruit fly, to associate certain scent with unpleasant shock. However, when the subject was introduced to interfering stimuli such as a puff of air or blue light, the type of light emitted from the screens of your electronic devices, the dopamine released due to the stimuli interfered with the flies’ memory retrieval signal and the flies temporarily forgot the scent’s negative association.

Furthermore, the research found a positive correlation between the strength of the stimulus and the lasting period of memory loss. In other words, exposure to stronger stimulus, such as illicit drugs or concentrated alcohol, require more time to recover from the transient memory loss.

During the unprecedented period of pandemic, without social interactions, you probably consume more social media feeds or YouTube videos for your daily dose of dopamine. However, think of dopamine as sugar for now. Your body needs it to continue the happy life, but addiction could bring potential complications with regards to your success and health. Control your dopamine. Don’t let YouTube recommendations control you!

-Matthew Lim

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Need to Sober Up? Just Breathe Out the Booze!

Posted on February 7, 2021 by | Leave a comment

With regard to alcohol, many of us have previously reached the so-called point of no return: a moment where the pleasant buzz is replaced by a throbbing headache (and massive amounts of regret). If only there was a simple way to quickly sober up…

Alcohol! Source: awee_19, Flickr

A simple overview of ethanol breakdown

First, let’s dive into the details as to how our bodies break down alcohol. Once ethanol arrives at the stomach and small intestine, it is absorbed into the bloodstream. From there, it can travel to various organs in your body, or end up in the liver. The liver is responsible for detoxifying 90% of the ethanol that we consume; the remaining 10% is eliminated through sweat, urine, and breath.

However, the rate at which the liver breaks down ethanol is zeroth-order: meaning that the breakdown rate is always constant, no matter how much ethanol is in your system. This explains why we haven’t been able to develop techniques to speed up the rate of ethanol breakdown in our livers.

The next natural step would be to see whether we can speed up the elimination of the remaining 10% of ethanol in our bloodstreams. Turns out, we can! Remember how we said earlier that some ethanol is removed via breathing? This works the same way that we breathe out carbon dioxide: because the concentration of ethanol in our bloodstream is higher than in the air that we breathe in, some ethanol diffuses into our lungs and we breathe it out!

A breathalyzer uses the fact that we breathe out ethanol to determine our blood alcohol concentration (BAC). Source: Dave Shea, Flickr

So can I just hyperventilate until I start to feel sober?

In theory, you could… but you really shouldn’t. Hyperventilating will reduce your ethanol levels, sure, but it will decrease your CO2 levels as well: causing your brain’s blood vessels to narrow, and ultimately depriving your brain of oxygen. Thankfully, a recent study published just last year has found a simple and effective solution, utilizing isocapnic hyperpnea.

Isocapnic hyperpnea: what is it?

To put it simply, isocapnic hyperpnea (IH) is when you deeply (and sometimes rapidly) breathe in air that has an equal concentration of carbon dioxide as present in your bloodstream. In the study, participants consumed diluted vodka, then were connected to an apparatus which supplied air of CO2 concentration similar to levels found in normal blood vessels. This allowed the subjects to breathe out ethanol at a higher rate while maintaining steady CO2 levels in their blood. The results of the study showed that the participants who underwent IH showed an ethanol elimination rate which was more than three times greater than participants who breathed regularly!

A demonstration of the IH apparatus. Source: UHN

Deaths caused by alcohol poisoning are far too common. In the future, IH could help paramedics in clearing the alcohol out of a patient’s system in a timely manner, which could ultimately save their lives. Remember to always drink responsibly!

 

– Sam Jung

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Microalgae Used to Create Biodiesel: An Organism That Can Save Our Planet?

Posted on February 6, 2021 by | Leave a comment

It is quite obvious by now that if we don’t change our ways of living, our planet is doomed. Due to rapid industrialization and urbanization, there is an increased amount of pollutants emitted into the atmosphere that are slowly damaging the earth. In today’s society, most of the energy production is coming from fossil fuel combustion and this is the key source of CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. The primary energy demand will continue to increase and as of right now, fossil fuels still contribute to 82% of the global demand of energy.

Source: bbc.com

An article written by Ashokkumar Veeramuthu and team describes the potential use of microalgae to produce biodiesel. You may be asking, what are microalgae and what the heck is biodiesel? Let’s jump straight into it.

What is Biodiesel?

Biodiesel is made from materials such as plant oils and animal fats. It’s an alternative to petroleum diesel and has a more favourable combustion profile as it emits much less CO, CO2 and SO2 into the atmosphere. Since we are slowly killing our planet, replacing our non-renewable energy sources with green alternative sources doesn’t sound like a bad idea.

Why Use Microalgae?

You may be wondering, what is so special about microalgae? Why can’t we use some type of terrestrial plant like corn to produce biodiesel? Studies show that the use of microalgae is the best option for the production of a renewable and sustainable source of energy. Microalgae are unicellular photosynthetic organisms living in aqueous environments that convert sunlight, water and CO2 into algal biomass. The reason why there has been a shift of attention towards microalgae to produce biodiesel is because microalgae provide a large range of advantages compared to terrestrial plants. The benefits of microalgae include high lipid concentrations (which can easily be converted to biodiesel through a process called transesterification), rapid growth and minimal nutrient requirements. The table below compares values of the biodiesel productivity of microalgae and other plants.

Amount of biodiesel productivity for different feedstocks. Source: intechopen.com

Microalgae also tend to grow 10 times more rapidly than terrestrial plants and less than a tenth amount of land is required to produce the same amount of biomass. Additionally, microalgae don’t require immense amount of fertilizers to grow unlike terrestrial plants. The cultivation of microalgae can be carried out by using wastewater, since it is rich in key nutrients. Furthermore, the use of wastewater decreases costs of cultivation greatly and makes biodiesel production commercially viable.

This video showcases the whole process in a nutshell:

 Source: David T. Kearns (YouTube)

In today’s world, there’s a shift of attention to deal with the issue of climate change. From Elon Musk creating fully electric vehicles to Joe Biden rejoining the Paris climate accord within hours into presidency, we as humans are finally taking initiative to save our planet. The future of creating fuels from microalgae sounds promising and having a range of renewable sources of green energy will be beneficial to us in the coming time.

– Parwaz Gill

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“A drink a day keeps reality at bay”: Atrial Fibrillation

Posted on February 1, 2021 by | Leave a comment

This happens quite often: people come home after a long, tiring day and look forward to cracking open a beer, making a cocktail or pouring themselves a glass of wine. Sure, this may be an evening ritual for many, but at what cost? A recent study led by consultant cardiologist, Professor Renate Schnabel, at the University Heart and Vascular Center determined that people who regularly enjoy small amounts of alcohol develop an increased risk of atrial fibrillation (AF). 

What is atrial fibrillation?

In simple terms, atrial fibrillation is when a person has an abnormal heart rhythm. The two upper chambers of the heart, the atria, beat out of sync from the two lower chambers, the ventricles. The irregular heartbeat caused by atrial fibrillation can lead to problems such as strokes or heart failure.

Atrial Fibrillation vs. Normal Sinus Rhythm on Electrocardiogram. Source: Clearvue Health

Here is a video which gives an overview of atrial fibrillation:

Developing the study

Researchers followed a sample size of 107,845 people (age range of 24-97 years) with no history AF participating in one of the five studies in Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark or Italy. Participants joining the study between 1982 and 2010 were given medical examinations which assessed their medical history (ie. details regarding body mass index, hypertension, systolic blood pressure, diabetes, total cholesterol, tobacco consumption, history of heart failure (HF) and/or strokes, and alcohol consumption). For information on alcohol consumption, the participants were asked to share how often they consumed alcohol (ie. beer, spirits, wine) as well as their drinking pattern (participants that never drank were the control group). Average alcohol consumption was analyzed as grams consumed per day. During the follow-up with the study participants, which occurred after approximately 14 years, they were observed for any link between their alcohol consumption and the occurrence of AF. 

Key findings from the study 

Right off the bat, researchers from the study observed a positive correlation between consumption of alcohol and AF cases after following up with participants after 14 years. This was evident even for individuals consuming low amounts of alcohol since researchers determined that 1.2 drinks/day were linked to an increased risk of developing AF. Specifically, a person’s risk for AF increased by 16% in 14 years just by drinking one alcoholic beverage a day. In fact, 5854 people actually ended up developing atrial fibrillation after 14 years.

Hazard ratio for atrial fibrillation cases for alcohol consumption (g/day). Source: European Heart Journal

What this means for alcohol consumers 

This was one of the largest studies researching the link between alcohol consumption and atrial fibrillation, according to Professor Schnabel. Even low amounts of alcohol consumption can lead to developing AF which is a stepping stone for other problems such as heart failure and strokes. The risk of developing AF can easily be prevented by proper management of drinking habits. After all, protecting your heart in this manner will only benefit you in the long run.

– Ramdeep Dosanjh

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A ‘Viral’ Testing Kit: ID Now COVID-19

THE PROBLEM

All around the world, new COVID-19 testing centres are constantly being opened in response to the growing number of victims. These testing centres provide information about one’s diagnosis, but often through a stressful and lengthy experience. Testing centers around Canada experience wait times of up to 2 hours, and usually requires a minimum of at least 48 hours before results become available. This is a problem.

COVID-19 Testing Centre in North Vancouver
Credit: Jane Seyd, www.nsnews.com

Besides just being tedious, this lengthy processing time has other concerns. The Director of Abbott, Norman Moore describes it:

“You’re the most infectious early on—and if we don’t have results in that timely fashion, what does it help if a molecular test comes back two weeks later?”

THE SOLUTION

This is where Moore and his team at Abbott steps in. Having already developed reliable testing tools for influenzas A&B, strep A, and respiratory syncytial virus, it was only a matter of time before COVID-19 testing apparatuses were developed. In early 2020, Abbott developed the ID Now COVID-19 Rapid Nucleic Acid Amplification Test, and launched for distribution in the US after receiving approval for emergency use from the FDA that year in March. Shortly after, Health Canada provided approval of use in October 2020.

NO IMAGEAbbott’s ID Now COVID-19 Test
Credit: abbot.com

This Rapid Nucleic Acid Amplification Test takes nasal swabs from individuals suspected with COVID-19, and exposes the viral RNA packed under the outer envelope of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in an acidic solution at 56⁰ C. Just as it is written in the name, it then takes the viral RNA and amplifies it hundreds of millions of times until it is detectable by the system, and what’s more this impressive amplification process is done is a matter of minutes, and test results are returned within 13 minutes.

A Typical Nasal Swab
Credit: U.S. Pacific Fleet, www.flickr.com

It’s normal to have some doubt when the current gold standard testing protocol in Canada (RT-PCR) takes 6-8 hours on average. We can compare the accuracy of an ID Now diagnosis to PCR lab tests by considering sensitivity and specificity.

  • Sensitivity measures the proportion of people with COVID that are correctly identified
  • Specificity measures the proportion of people without COVID that are correctly identified

Abbot’s clinical trial on 1003 subjects reported an average sensitivity of 93.3% and specificity of 98.4%. This is comparable to a separate meta-analysis on lab PCR testing which determined an average sensitivity of 98%, and no reported specificity. Note that these numbers are dependent on many factors, and are often higher than what is seen in the real world. This shows that ID Now can be an effective solution to rapid testing, but that results should be taken as preliminary and confirmed with other molecular assessments if results are not consistent with one’s symptoms.

This is Abbott’s response to the ‘rapidly’ changing world. They have provided frontline workers across North America with rapid testing, but whether or not they can combat COVID-19 as quickly as their tests do remains a question.

~William Lee

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Posted on February 1, 2021 by in Biological Sciences, Science in the News

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Baby Sharks Face a Gloomy Future

Posted on February 1, 2021 by | Leave a comment

Sharks are considered the lions of the sea but due to climate change they are losing their glory. With global warming causing the rise of ocean temperatures one particularly tough and beautiful species, the epaulette shark sometimes referred to as the walking shark, may be heading towards disaster.

An Epaulette Shark

An Epaulette Shark: Source: flickr.com/Richard Ling

The epaulette shark lives in the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and finds its food in shallow puddles between the coral. This shallow environment is dangerous and would leave most fish stranded out of the water left to cook and die under the sun. This amazing animal is not so easily defeated and is able to preserve its breath and march back towards the sea.

Video Source: Nature on PBS| Youtube

The epaulette shark has proven itself to be resilient in low oxygen environments but rising temperatures may not be handled so well, especially by its offspring.

A new study conducted by PhD candidate Carolyn Wheeler on the eggs of epaulette sharks showed that increasing ocean temperatures significantly affect the development of its young. The researchers analyzed the growth of epaulette shark embryos until they hatched, – at temperatures of 27°C, 29°C, and 31°C – measuring the growth, development and metabolic performance of the animals. It was found that the growth rates of the embryos increased at the higher temperatures, as in the warmer water the sharks tended to consume their yolk-sacks faster which is their only source of food before they hatch. This in turn caused them to hatch sooner, and due to the reduced time in the embryonic stage they were born smaller and lacking in energy. The newborns which hatched at higher temperatures struggled to survive and needed to feed significantly sooner after birth compared to those at 27°C. Other studies have additionally observed that at 32°C the likelihood of epaulette shark eggs hatching becomes very low.

Epaulette Shark Embryo: Source: flickr.com/CLF

The average temperature of the Great Barrier Reef is currently at 28°C during the period of embryo development in the wild, but with climate models predicting that average temperatures in this region will rise to 32°C by the middle or end of the century these animals are in trouble. As we explored earlier, epaulette sharks are known to be tolerant to low oxygen environments and are more so than any other shark. Additionally, in other experiments it has been found that their eggs and newborns are even tolerant to ocean acidification.

Since the increasing temperatures will likely have a detrimental impact on the epaulette shark – which is considered a tough and resilient species – we can only imagine the negative impacts it will have on other more vulnerable wildlife.

– Adam Soliman

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Laughter: The Mysterious Stress Reliever?

Posted on February 1, 2021 by | 1 comment

Laughter. As human beings, it’s something that most of us are bound to experience. Whether it’s from browsing YouTube and finding a ridiculous dog fail compilation, or when your friend cracks out a joke that you just find funny for some apparent reason, the feeling of laughter is a common occurrence in our lives.

Check out the video below that not only showcases the diversity of laughter between all types of race and gender but also for a quick laugh!

YouTube Preview Image

 

the mechanisms of Laughter is complex

Laughter is something that we take for granted. If we find something funny, then we’re going to laugh. However, scientists to this day are unable to home in on the exact science of the reasoning of laughter. In fact, the results from the many studies that do exist out there further confirm that laughter is much more complex than we think. As an example, one study conducted in PNAS suggests that we laugh differently depending on who it is directed to. Have you noticed that you laugh differently with your friends than with strangers? This is something that we have probably realized as well!

A photo of two people laughing, by Emanuele Spies from São Leopoldo, RS, Brasil, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

laughter can help relieve stress?

A recent study conducted by Dr. Zander-Schellenberg and others were able to attribute this strange phenomenon as a way to relieve stress. More specifically, an increased frequency of laughter was found to have a positive correlation with the ability to weaken the effects of stressful events, while also dampening certain symptoms that may arise from stress. However, it was found that the intensity of laughter did not have such a significant effect.

In order to see if the experiment applies to daily life experiences, data were collected from 41 psychology students, 33 of which were female, from the University of Basel in real-life settings for 14 consecutive days. Through the usage of a smartphone application, a sound queue that triggered randomly throughout the day would prompt participants to answer questions about both the frequency and intensity of laughter, as well as any details regarding their current levels of stress and stressful events.

By investigating the effects of laughter on stress outside the laboratory, the study was able to show greater validity towards real-life dynamics, however, Dr. Schellenberg and others suggest that future studies that replicate their findings are required in order to further test for robustness. As the sample consisted of predominantly female students, recreating the experiment with a sample that more closely represents the general population is something that could solidify their findings.

 

 

For more information about laughter, this video does a great job of not only going over the origins of laughter but also the significance of it:

YouTube Preview Image

-Aaron Yoon

 

 

 

 

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Methane Reduction and the Magic of Mushrooms

Posted on February 1, 2021 by | Leave a comment

When you think of Reishi mushrooms, what do you think of? A delicious food? A health fad? Well it may surprise you to know that beyond everyday consumption, Reishi mushrooms have a high potential for impacting our atmospheric conditions. A recent study done by researchers at the University of Minnesota examines certain fungus’ ability to capture and filter methane, and its impact on the current climate crisis.

 

Reishi Mushrooms. Source: Pixabay

 

Why is methane a problem?

Methane, a greenhouse gas, is one of many chemicals that contributes to the rise of global temperatures. It has many sources, both biological and man-made, the most common being agricultural practices, wetlands, and transportation of coal and natural gas. While most research is being done to reduce carbon dioxide emissions, it is just as important to address methane emissions, as in the first two decades of release, methane can be up to 84% more potent than carbon dioxide. Methane is incredibly effective at absorbing heat, which is what makes the chemical so detrimental to atmospheric conditions.

 

How do Reishi mushrooms help?

While there are currently other organisms that can break down methane, removing it from the atmosphere, there is one critical way that Reishi stands out:

In order for Reishi to degrade methane, the gas does not need to travel through any kind of biofilm, which decreases the total time needed for degradation. 

The cells that make up fungal structures, called hyphae, are able to extend and grow deep within the soil and other environments. When nutrients are detected, they travel through the hyphae until the desired location with the fungus is reached. There is a specific special protein, called hydrophobins, which is found on the exterior of the hyphae, which is responsible for trapping gases such as methane. Once trapped, the gas is transported within the fungus and is degraded as needed.

Mushroom hyphae. Source: Wiki Commons

The researchers who conducted the study found that Reishi mushrooms that are grown outside of the soil have a better removal rate, compared to those in the soil, where natural microbes may out-compete the mushrooms for nutrients. Shockingly, the researchers found that even dead fungi had some function at removing methane from the surrounding air.

While there is still a need for more research to be completed, it can be comforting to know that there are solutions to global warming that can come from the most unlikely places.

– Madeline Filewych

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