Bacterial Resistance: I Do Not Think So!

Bacterial Resistance: I Do Not Think So!

    The overuse of antibiotics is becoming more and more prevalent in our lives. We see it used in our food, our animals and even when we go to the doctors (regardless if it is a bacterial or viral infection). This is causing huge problems as more bacteria are becoming resistant to our antibiotics which can leave future treatment futile.

     Yaroslava Chalenkoa, Victoria Shumyantsevaa, Svetlana Ermolaevab, and Alexander Archakova from the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences are looking into developing a simple, quick and cheap methodology for screening potential drugs to be used to treat bacterial infections. The researchers use the Escherichia coli JM109 strain and look at its electrochemical activity towards common antibiotics such as cefepime, ampicillin, amikacin, and erythromycin. Using disposable screen-printed graphite electrodes, which are usually no bigger than the size of a penny, the researchers were able to test the potential drug candidates for bacterial resistance in only two to five hours.

     Although we should focus on reducing the amount of antibiotics we use in everyday life, it is comforting to know that bacteria have not completely taken over our world. Through modern electrochemical research, we can try to improve modern medicine.

For more information on this article please look at the following article:

Chalenkoa, Y.; Shumyantsevaa, V.; Ermolaevab, S.; & Archakova, A. (2012). Electrochemistry  

       of Escherichia coli JM109: Direct electron transfer and antibiotic resistance.

       Biosens. Bioelectron, 32, 219 – 223.

Disposal of Batteries

Billions of batteries are used every day.  These range from the small button batteries that are used in hearing aids, calculators, greeting cards, pens and remote controls to the large lead-acid batteries that are found in motor vehicles. Batteries that are not disposed of properly can be harmful to us and to the environment. The safe disposal of batteries is therefore very important.

Small button batteries can be swallowed by small children and can have devastating effects. If swallowed, the smaller batteries may quickly pass through the digestive system and may not be harmful.  The larger lithium button batteries may get stuck in the esophagus and the body fluids may act as an electrolyte for the batteries.  The result of this is that current flows through the fluids causing chemical reactions that produce strong alkaline compounds.  These compounds can cause severe burns to the esophagus and in some cases result in death.

 In theory, used batteries should be recycled.  This does not happen in reality, however, as most of the used batteries end up into our landfills. When these batteries end up in our landfills, the metals and chemicals that are found in them can leach into the soil and into our water supply. Most of the chemicals released are toxic and can enter our food chain resulting in serious effects on humans such as damage to the central nervous system, especially in children, high blood pressure and heart disease.

Many cities, municipalities and some townships offer recycling programs that accept household waste including batteries.  In addition, some retailers that sell batteries provide recycling facilities for their customers.

 This video shows the initiative taken by some retailers and advice on how you may recycle some batteries.

http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Recycle-Batteries-61995495

In the US, there are no known facilities that recycle all types of household batteries in a practical and cost efficient way.  The result is that most of the batteries that are collected from households end up in waste landfills. This is probably true for other countries including Canada.

References

http://www.ehso.com/ehshome/batteries.php . viewed Feb.2, 2012
http://millsea.hubpages.com/hub/Where-to-recycle-batteries   . viewed Feb 2, 2012.

Future of Hydrogen Fuel Cells

     Electrochemical technologies especially hydrogen fuel cells offer more efficient and environmentally friendly alternatives for the production of energy. Hydrogen fuel cells are based on the principle of galvanic cells, in which the chemical reactants are oxygen and hydrogen gases that flow past the anode and cathode.  The chemical reactants are continuously supplied and consumed to produce water and electricity. Unlike the traditional car batteries, hydrogen fuel cells only produce water as the 'waste product' instead of harmful carbon monoxide fumes. However, there are some critical issues associated with the wide-spread use of hydrogen fuel cells. This video highlights these issues.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/tech/fuel-cells.χτμλ

      So the real problem with using hydrogen economy is the hydrogen itself. Where will it come from? Hydrogen is not present in atmosphere and it can not be drilled out of the ground. The two methods which could be used to produce hydrogen are:

1) Electrolysis of water- Water is decomposed into hydrogen and oxygen in an electrolytic cell.

2) Reforming fossil fuels- Hydrocarbons are heated to split them into carbon and hydrogen. 

     There are critical problems associated with each of these methods. In the process of reforming, the left-over carbon is discarded into the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. So this process is not environmentally friendly. On the other hand, electrolysis of water requires a lot of electricity. Now the problem is: Where will this electricity come from? Currently, 68% of the electricity in North America comes from coal or natural gas. For the promotion of hydrogen economy, we need to produce twice the amount of electricity that we are currently capable of producing.

      The electrical-generation problem is probably the biggest barrier to the hydrogen economy. Once the electrical technology is refined and becomes inexpensive, fuel-cell vehicles powered by hydrogen could replace gasoline internal combustion engines over the course of a decade or two.

References:

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/fuel-efficiency/alternative-fuels/fuel-cell.htm