Nestor Pinacho
A team of specialists from the Escuela Nacional de Ciencias Biológicas (ENCB), Santo Tomás Unit, of the Instituto Politécnico Nacional (IPN) - composed of Dr. Paulina Estrada de los Santos, researcher at the Microbial Biotechnology Laboratory, Dr. José Antonio Ibarra García, from the Microbial Genetics Laboratory, and Master Georgina Meza Radilla, a doctoral student in Chemical and Biological Sciences - has been working for several years on studying the behavior, geographical distribution, and techniques for the detection of the Burkholderia pseudomallei bacterium, the organism responsible for the death of five people in Baja California Sur, prompting the state to issue an epidemiological alert.
The team visited La Paz, Baja California Sur, to collaborate with the state government in collecting samples to detect the presence of the bacterium that causes the disease known as melioidosis. Their expertise in the field even led them to guide state personnel in the detection of the bacterium.
An individual with melioidosis can die in 9 days if medication and care are not adequate.
The project currently being developed by the researchers at IPN, with the support of the National Council of Science and Technology (Conacyt), is in its second year of what is projected to be a three-year duration. It "focuses on isolating the bacterium at a national level because we want to raise awareness of the importance of the bacterium in Mexico and ensure that the population is cautious during rainfall or sewage spills, as well as to know where they can become infected with the bacterium," warned Paulina Estrada.
Some of the results sought from the research project include inputting the information obtained on Burkholderia pseudomallei into the automatic bacteria detection system used by hospitals, as these systems are not always up to date, and creating a system to identify the presence of the bacterium through reactive strips.
In some of their early investigations on the topic, Dr. Paulina Estrada and her team found the bacterium in Sonora, which was atypical, as it was previously believed to only be present in tropical environments such as northern Australia, southern Asia, and South and Central America. The discovery was made after a period of heavy rainfall.
The bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei is usually found 30 centimeters deep in the soil, but recent studies also place it one to three meters underground. During heavy rains, it surfaces and can be found in stagnant water or rainwater flows. In addition to being in liquid form, it can be transmitted through the air as an aerosol and under conditions of windy rain. Therefore, the specialist pointed out that caution should be exercised during rainfall or when visiting rural areas.
She also added that it can be acquired by wounds, ingestion, or inhalation because it can be in the environment. Also, she clarified that the bacterium cannot be acquired by being in contact with infected people or animals.
"In the case of the four people who died from melioidosis in Baja California Sur, they were in contact with sewage and suffered from diabetes, that is why Dr. Estrada de los Santos calls to take precautionary measures to avoid infection", she informed.
In addition to taking samples in homes and areas surrounding the infections in La Paz, the specialist and her team trained state personnel to isolate and identify the bacteria.
The ENCB team went to La Paz, BCS, to collaborate with the government in taking samples to detect the bacteria.
"We teach them how to isolate the bacteria, how to work the soils, sediment or water and sow it in culture media so that they can eventually continue sampling and have an overview of the state and know where the bacteria is and issue alerts to the population to tell them to be careful when it rains," she said.
The expert was emphatic in emphasizing that this type of organism must be handled in a maximum biosecurity laboratory, and even in the United States this bacterium is cataloged as a bioterrorist agent, which without adequate attention can lead a person to die in nine days because it creates abscesses in the body that then spread to other organs and one of the reasons for its dangerousness is that it is resistant to most antibiotics.
The symptoms caused by the presence of the bacteria are diarrhea, vomiting, fever, headache, tiredness, and shortness of breath. These symptoms are usually mistaken in hospitals for pneumonia, so medication and care are inadequate and often lead to death.
State authorities have called for the use of protective footwear and gloves when working in bodies of water or contact with soil. They have also suggested carefully washing any open wounds, cuts, or burns that are in contact with soil.
*Bacteria can also be inhaled through ambient air or in windy rainy conditions.
Selección Gaceta Politécnica #172. (March 15th, 2024). IPN Imagen Institucional: Read the full magazine in Spanish here.
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