I have one word for you plastics

On this episode of TWiM, how phages prevent other phages from invading their hosts without blocking their own reproduction, and plastic-degrading potential of microbes across the Earth.

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Links for this episode

• Prophages encode phage-defense systems with cognate self-immunity (Cell Host Microbe)
• Prophages self-destruct to eliminate competitors (Cell Host Microbe)
• Plastic-degrading potential across global microbiome (mBio)
• Plastics in our foods (ENV media)
• TWiM Listener survey

Send your microbiology questions and comments (email or recorded audio) to twim@microbe.tv

On this episode of TWiM, how phages prevent other phages from invading their hosts without blocking their own reproduction, and plastic-degrading potential of microbes across the Earth.

Hosts: Vincent Racaniello, Michele Swanson, and Michael Schmidt

Right click to download TWiM #257 (45 MB .mp3, 61 minutes)

Subscribe to TWiM (free) on iTunes, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Android, RSS, or by email.

Become a Patron of TWiM!

Links for this episode:

• Prophages encode phage-defense systems with cognate self-immunity (Cell Host Microbe)
• Prophages self-destruct to eliminate competitors (Cell Host Microbe)
• Plastic-degrading potential across global microbiome (mBio)
• Plastics in our foods (ENV media)

Music used on TWiM is composed and performed by Ronald Jenkees and used with permission.

Send your microbiology questions and comments to twim@microbe.tv

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I have one word for you: Plastic.

Plastic waste has been a concern of mine for decades. (I wrote a term paper about it in 2002 when I was taking a class in California Politics and Public Policy at Calif. State University East Bay in 2002.)

On my walk through California and Arizona in April and May 2017, I saw first-hand the enormous quantity of plastic litter on the roadside–so much that it just made me depressed and sick to think about it.

Now comes this article, which you’d think would be a wake-up call to the world. But it won’t be–that’s the kind of world we live in.

One of my high school classmates, John Tschirhart, a professor of Environmental Economics at the University of Wyoming, talked to me about the plastic particles that can be found in our water supplies and the world’s oceans when I saw him in 2014. I came away with the distinct impression that it’s too late to do anything about this problem. I recommend you read this article and forward it if you feel so inclined. It is an eye-opener.

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/jun/28/a-million-a-minute-worlds-plastic-bottle-binge-as-dangerous-as-climate-change?utm_source=pocket&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=pockethits

Remember that line from The Graduate? Anyway, that character said a mouthful. Plastics have changed our lives and our world forever. And that’s about how long most of them will take to degrade, not that we want them to. All of that aside, here are some simple things I’m doing to protect myself, fully recognizing that there’s precious little one can do since the material is so ubiquitous. But I do believe it is the source of many of our modern day ills.

• I never heat plastic. I use glass and ceramic only in the microwave.
• I avoid plastic water bottles as much as possible. I buy a glass bottle of tea, drink it, and then reuse the bottle for water that I carry in my car and at work.
• To help remember which plastics are «safe» for food storage, I have memorized this clever little ditty from the book Slow Death by Rubber Duck: «4-5-1-2 / all the rest are bad for you.»
• When I must use plastic cutlery, I use Bioserve Organics which are compostable and dishwasher safe.
• I try to reduce the amount of plastic packaging I support by choosing products with less packaging, carrying my own shopping bags, and purchasing pre-owned products whenever possible.