In September, the Center for Evolution & Medicine hosted the witty and engaging author, Ed Yong, for the Fall Featured Speaker Series. Ed Yong is a science journalist and the author of, I Contain Multitudes: The Microbes Within Us and a Grander View of Life.
Vast and infinitesimal, the microbiome is the compilation of organisms—bacteria, viruses and other microbes—that live within you and all other members of the animal kingdom. In recent years the microbiome has been a huge topic of interest in the science community. With massive improvements in genetic sequencing we have come to realize that the microbes within us vastly outnumber our own cells. In fact, if we were to compare the genes of your microbiome to your genome, the microbiome would outnumber you by a factor of 100. You may, at first, cringe at this thought. Microbes have had a bad reputation in the past. The narrative about microscopic organisms in the media has always focused on death, disease and famine. In his talk, Ed discussed research that is bringing to light the wide-range of roles that microbiota play in our world. Roles ranging from quirky tactics that microbes employ to proliferate and reproduce--to the symbiotic relationship that microbes use to shape and protect their host (that’s you). In the words of Ed, “rather than being destroyers of life, they are its constructors.” We are the gracious—sometimes not-so-gracious—hosts of these diverse guest organisms. Many factors in our lives populate and build our microbiome. These factors can also destroy and diminish this vast community. As one of the most talked about ideas in modern science, the topic of the microbiome and specifically Ed’s approach to understanding the narrative of microbiota is reshaping our view of microscopic organisms.
Ed beautifully deconstructed then reconstructed how humans interact with the microscopic world around (and within) us. By placing microbes in the role of “good” or “bad” is an impossible and unnecessary feat. In the past we have labeled microbes as “bad” and as a result we have neglected them and in many cases pushed them to extinction. As some of the most adaptable organisms on the planet, microbiota are opportunistic when it comes to evolution. Rather than labeling microbes, we should try to understand them. We cannot understand our own biology until we understand their biology as well.
An exceptionally informative and wacky lecture this was to attend. If you are interested in reading some of Mr. Yong's work his blog on National Geographic (http://phenomena.nationalgeographic.com/blog/not-exactly-rocket-science/) is a great place to start. If you are interested in watching his talk at ASU, follow this link. https://evmed.asu.edu/i-contain-multitudes-fall-featured-lecture-success