Cigarette Smoke Makes Bacteria Dangerous

Cigarette smoke makes bacteria more virulent - http://the-scientist.com/2012/06/21/roundup-from-microbiology-meeting/


Researchers from Columbia University in New York have found that cigarette smoke changes the properties of commensal bacteria, putting smokers at greater risk of their microbiome becoming dangerous. Staphylococcus aureus is part of our normal flora, but it can also cause disease. Exposure to smoke altered Staph physiology, increasing its ability to stick to human cells as well as inanimate objects; increasing its genetic mutations, which could lead to antibiotic-resistant strains; and enhancing its ability to grow as a biofilm. Chronic infections are often caused by bacteria that grow as biofilms, and researchers found that their observations were consistent with the increased incidence of difficult-to-treat infections with smoke exposure.

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