Pathogen Preference: Infected amoebas flourish in cooling towers
Cooling towers on buildings harbor amoebas infected with both known and unknown types of bacteria. New research raises the possibility that such towers are more effective than natural waters at fostering novel bacterial species that cause illnesses in people.
Scientists suspect that many microbial species responsible for human illnesses first preyed upon amoebas, unicellular organisms found in aquatic environments. Though microscopic, amoebas normally are shaped like “a piece of chewing gum that’s been chewed,” says Sharon G. Berk of Tennessee Technological University in Cookeville. But after they’ve been infected by bacteria, they become spherical. Finally, they burst and release the bacteria, she says.