Lonnie R Marcum, PT, BSHCA Profile picture
Aug 9, 2020 7 tweets 3 min read Read on X
The geothermal features in Yellowstone are amongst my top 10 favorite sites on this planet. Here’s a bit of #microbio history on the PCR test I’d like to share.
Pictured: Grand Prismatic at the Midway Geyser Basin @YellowstoneNPS
“Until the 1980s, our ability to study DNA was limited. Things we take for granted today such as DNA fingerprinting to identify criminals, DNA medical diagnoses, DNA-based studies of nature, and genetic engineering did not exist.”
“But in 1985, the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was invented. PCR is an artificial way to do something that living things do every day—replicate DNA. PCR is the rocket ship of replication, because it allows scientists to make billions of copies of a piece of DNA in a few hours.
“Without PCR, scientists could not make enough copies of DNA quickly enough to perform their analyses. However, the heat necessary to do the PCR process inactivated the enzymes making the process extremely slow and expensive.”
“They found the solution to this problem in one of the hot spring organisms isolated from Yellowstone by park researcher Thomas Brock in the 1960s; Thermus aquaticus. An enzyme discovered in T. aquaticus—called Taq polymerase—made PCR practical.”
Because it came from an extremophile @YellowstoneNPS Taq polymerase can withstand the heat of the PCR process without breaking down like ordinary polymerase enzymes. In 1989 Taq polymerase was named Science magazine's first-ever "Molecule of the Year." nps.gov/yell/learn/nat… Image
The roots of the PCR via @ASMicrobiology 1969:
Thermus aquaticus gen. n. and sp. n., a Nonsporulating Extreme Thermophile. jb.asm.org/content/98/1/2…

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Lonnie R Marcum, PT, BSHCA

Lonnie R Marcum, PT, BSHCA Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @LonnieRhea

Jun 3, 2022
@Lymenews The largest study, on which the CDC based its recommendation, showed one thing—a single dose of doxycycline reduced the incidence of rash in a small group of people. That’s it. (Nadelman 2001) 2/
@Lymenews End point: "Erythema migrans occurred at the site of the tick bite in 8 of the 247 subjects in the placebo group (3.2 percent), as compared with 1 of the 235 subjects in the doxycycline group (0.4 percent, P<0.04)" Seven fewer rashes! nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NE…
@Lymenews The ticks in the Nadelman study were identified by an entomologist. As the authors pointed out, patients and clinicians are not skilled at distinguishing I. scapularis from other ticks and arthropods, and even from scabs or debris. (Sood 1997) 4/
Read 22 tweets
Jul 12, 2021
New | Lyme arthritis: linking infection, inflammation and autoimmunity. #LymeDisease (a thread) 1/
nature.com/articles/s4158…
"In the USA, B. burgdorferi often disseminates in the blood during the first few weeks of infection in a process that requires the binding of Borrelia surface adhesins to host integrins on the vascular endothelium28–30. " 2/ Image
"As shown in mice, the spread of B. burgdorferi through the vasculature or lymphatics is dependent on the inter-actions of spirochaetal surface molecules and endothe-lial cell membrane proteins." 3/
Read 29 tweets
Feb 3, 2021
Thread: A major barrier to progress in understanding the neurologic manifestations of #LymeDisease has been a lack of a tractable laboratory animal model to evaluate the mechanisms of central nervous system pathogenesis.
For decades we have seen study after study of Lyme arthritis. As it turns out the most frequently reported Lyme symptoms are neurological symptoms: memory loss and cognitive impairment, sleep impairment, psychiatric manifestations, headaches, neuropathy and more. 2/
This is the first study, to my knowledge, that shows how Borrelia burgdorferi gets into the central nervous system, how the immune system responds, and how the bacteria adapt to the immune system. #Lyme
Meet the researcher Catherine Brissette, Ph.D. globallymealliance.org/meet-researche…
Read 15 tweets
Sep 23, 2020
In an encouraging development yesterday @CDC_NCEZID representative Ben Beard made an important announcement--a new "national strategy" for vector-borne diseases. I'll explain in a thread 1/n
lymedisease.org/framework-vect… via @Lymenews
The Kay Hagan Tick Act, passed in 2019, called for @hhs to develop a national strategy to address issues related to vector-borne diseases. The Lyme community fought hard for the passage of the #TICKact lymedisease.org/tick-act-appro… via @Lymenews 2/
The idea was for @HHSGov to co-ordinate with other federal agencies and departments, including the @CDCgov @EPA @US_FDA @NIH @DeptofDefense @USDA @USGS and others, to get everybody working towards the same goals. 3/ Image
Read 12 tweets
Jun 26, 2020
What has the #Lyme community learned from the #COVID19 pandemic?
thread...
lymedisease.org/bureaucratic-d…
(1) In a matter of weeks, the federal government can allot trillions of dollars to one disease.
2) In a matter of weeks, the @CDCgov can develop and mass produce a new test.
Read 6 tweets
Apr 3, 2020
Thread. @Sermo survey of 6,227 physicians worldwide: 85% of US physicians report #COVID19 testing takes 2-5 days or longer, while nearly half of international physicians report testing is completed within just 24 hours. Image
Survey @Sermo says, 91% of US physicians and 83% of international physicians say the status of #COVID19 testing is far below what is needed. Image
Survey @Sermo says "Physicians most request life science firms develop new rapid tests for COVID-19, followed by new drugs that offer immunity to front-line workers and accelerate efforts to test existing drugs to treat #COVID19" Image
Read 4 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(