Bacterial Snitch: Species competes by telling on another
A bacterial species that typically colonizes people’s noses may win out over another bacterium by tattling to the human immune system, a new study suggests.
Both Haemophilus influenzae and Streptococcus pneumoniae can establish residence in the upper respiratory tract either separately or together. The microbes are usually harmless, but in some circumstances, either species can cause ear infections, chronic bronchitis, or pneumonia.
In previous studies, Jeffrey Weiser of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia and his colleagues examined competition between these two microbes. In a series of lab tests, the researchers found that S. pneumoniae always triumphed. The bacterium overpowered H. influenzae by attacking it with hydrogen peroxide and stripping off surface molecules important for H. influenzae‘s survival.