Saturday, August 24, 2013

Can bacteria use pain to tamp down the immune system?

Nothing gets our attention like pain.

But pain is more than the body’s miniature cattle prod to get us to heed a wound, rest a swollen ankle, or stop eating chili peppers. Pain may be the language between animals and microbes.
Far from being a product of an inflamed immune system, aggravated nerves far from the spine and brain appear to communicate with invading bacteria and regulate the fight against them, according to a study published online lately in the journal Nature. And at least one tenacious bacterium shows the ability to manipulate a pain signal to put the brakes on a mammal's molecular defenses, the study suggests.

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Can bacteria use pain to tamp down the immune system?





















Source: LATimes
Image credits: ASM Moicrobelibrary.org Miller and Hanley



Art and Science of Laboratory Medicine
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