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A rare but fast-moving infection is expanding along the East Coast. Scientists are tracking a group of bacteria known as Vibrio, which thrive in warm, brackish seawater.
Tobias Dörr
Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Studies, Microbiology
Tobias Dörr is an associate professor of microbiology at Cornell University with a special interest in peptidoglycan remodeling in Vibrio cholerae. His lab studies mechanisms of bacterial growth and antibiotic resistance.
Dörr says:
“Infections with Vibrios (especially V. vulnificus and V. parahaemolyticus) are one of the many incidental potential consequences of a warming climate. While case numbers remain comparatively low, there is a clear correlation between case load and ocean temperature reported in several studies – case rates tend to be highest in months where the water is the warmest. An increase in water temperature could therefore cause more infections in the future: these bacteria tend to grow faster in warm water, increasing possible contact between humans and pathogens.
“The somewhat good news is that Vibrios did not specifically evolve to live in the human body, and a healthy immune system can in many cases fight off these bacteria. However, this means that vulnerable populations are still at high risk. The rates of antibiotic resistance are also still low, though this may change with future increases in cases, which would necessitate increased antibiotic use.
“By the way, the occurrence of these bacteria in US coastal water per se is not new - many Vibrio species (including the bacterium that can cause cholera disease, Vibrio cholerae), have been reported from Chesapeake Bay since the 1970s.
