Clothes That Kill 41
StriderA writes "Robert Engel, of Queens College at The City University of New York, and colleagues have developed a new defence against bacteria and fungi. It seems that they have created tiny molecular daggers that actually seek and destroy the fatty bacteria. Applications to include battling athletes foot to military uniforms that kill anthrax."
Uhmmm ... (Score:1)
Kills fatty bacteria? (Score:2, Funny)
Re:Kills fatty bacteria? (Score:2)
Well if you are the average geek, killing all those bacteria clinging to you should lead to a considerable weight loss ;^)
other applications include... (Score:3, Informative)
Why does this all boil down to terrorism? (Score:5, Insightful)
How does this affect our own natural microflora? What is the mode of specificity for these 'blades'? Killing off our own bacteria can make us more susceptible all the other pathogens floating around.
And I didn't think that all bacteria had a fatty coating. What about those which have high carbohydrate coatings? I thought the coat was part of the cause of their pathogenicity.
The concept's cool, but I'd like a little more data.
I read that as "Tourism". (Score:1)
Our first offering is the exploding camera. Guaranteed to take out only the tourist and not the surrounding pedestrians.
Ok. That's tasteless. Sorry.
Re:Why does this all boil down to terrorism? (Score:2)
The government is funding anti-terrorism programs, so scientists have to do research with anti-terrorist applications. At the moment, any non-terrorist research is having a hard time finding funds.
Antiseptic surfaces, and sweat (Score:5, Interesting)
However, for clothing I have a question - how would the oils in sweat affect the surface? Would they occupy all the "daggers" and prevent the microbes from being penetrated?
Re:Antiseptic surfaces, and sweat (Score:2, Insightful)
Stand back! (Score:5, Funny)
Rejoice Geeks! (Score:3, Funny)
You may never have to shower again!
(Not that you do now.)
In other news, the "killer clothes" also absorb Dorito dust and Mountaion Dew, turning these compounds into comparitively harmless carbon monoxide.
Re:Rejoice Geeks! (Score:1)
Please correct Doritos to non wheat germ but still highly calorific particles snack thing
hehe sorry jk
This antiseptic obsession (Score:5, Insightful)
As though antibiotics are the key to healthier living or something.
There are lots of benign bacteria out there, who inhibit the growth of more dangerous strains by consuming their resources. (Competitive inhibition is the 'real' term.) Add to the fact that the antibacterial agents are leaching into the environment, thereby ensuring that only resistant bacteria thrive.
What we're ending up with is a world in which the only bacteria are resistant to anything we can throw at them - making it harder and harder to treat the problems that they cause.
In addition, exposure to immunological challenges like benign bacteria helps to keep our immune systems strong.
I can see where these fabrics can be useful in military or hospital situations, but society's obsession with antibacterial wipes and soaps and gels (and now clothing) is only going to harm us long-term.
my usual rant (Score:3, Insightful)
It's that sort of cavalier attitude towards broad-spectrum antibiotics that's going to one day give us a plague.
Not that that would be a bad thing, but it isn't going to be pretty.
Maybe it'll take out some of the trolls.
Re:my usual rant (Score:2)
SARS [google.com], anyone?
Re:my usual rant (Score:2, Informative)
Antibiotics don't affect SARS. (Score:2)
Antibiotics don't affect virii.
Thus, SARS (and HIV, for that matter) haven't "evolved" because we're using too many antibiotics.
Re:my usual rant (Score:2)
Re:my usual rant (Score:2)
In the US, bonehead doctors overprescribe AZT for whatever the hell they want.
Actually, chicken and cows aren't so bad - though there is a chance of something crossing over, you're more likely to pick up a human strain of something that's been beefed up by crappy antibiotic usage...
My point was supposed to be that taking antibiotics when it's not life or death is like spinning the chamber -- and a few people spinning the chamber is goin
Re:This antiseptic obsession (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:This antiseptic obsession (Score:5, Interesting)
Well, in a limited sense. You realize, of course, that the dagger stuff is just by way of analogy.
(From the article):
The "blade" is a carbon chain up to 16 atoms long, populated only by hydrogen atoms. It has a strong affinity for fatty surfaces.
That sure sounds like chemical action to me.
However, the reaction is not specific to some compound in the microbe:
When bacterial or fungal spores approach the fabric, their negatively charged fatty membranes are attracted to positive charges on the nitrogen-rich rings and to the fat-seeking blades.
So since it is not selective, you're right: there is no chance of creating resistant germs. There's no way the critters can stop having fatty membranes altogether.
Re:This antiseptic obsession (Score:2)
Wanna bet?
Re:This antiseptic obsession (Score:2, Redundant)
Life is quite resilient, but it's not magical. Adaptability has limits.
Re:This antiseptic obsession (Score:2, Funny)
Or was that just in "Tremors, the series"?
Re:This antiseptic obsession (Score:1)
Re:This antiseptic obsession (Score:2)
I was certain everyone would be raving: "LIFE WILL FIND A WAY!"
Funny you should mention... (Score:3, Interesting)
Apparently a laboratory was wondering why so many of their lab rat offspring were being born deformed. The only different with this batch of mice is that their cages seemed to show more wear than the other mice.
Apparently the "harsh" cleaning agents used to sterilize the cages were breaking down (softening) the polymers in the plastics of the cage. The mice would then gnaw the softer plastic. On further examination, once in the body, the chemically-alter
Re:Funny you should mention... (Score:2, Funny)
More questions than answers (Score:3, Interesting)
What about non-bacterial illnesses (i.e., viruses, microplasms)
Do these molecules ever come unanchored, becoming little fat-seeking molecules of death?
How fast does a person die if they swallow a scrap of it, or some of those suddenly un-anchored molecules?
How do you clean these garments?
Will dead-bacteria buildup eventually render the garment useless?
How do you dispose of these garments at that point?
this piece was woefully short on facts, and context, and i'd love to hear more if anybody's got some other perspective on this new 'fabric of doom'...
Re:More questions than answers (Score:3, Informative)
The article said that the "daggers" work the same way as free-floating detergent. I assumed this meant the broken or dislodged "daggers" were no more toxic than regular detergent residue.
How many washing does it take to dislodge enough of these daggers that they don't keep your clothes free of fatty microbes?
How to get funding 101 (Score:5, Interesting)
Re:How to get funding 101 (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:How to get funding 101 (Score:1)
The veil has a practical use: protect the face and filter out dust during deasert sand-storms. Thus in dusty weather it is a necessity rather than a fashion thing over there.
Clothes that kill (Score:4, Funny)
I think some people are already wearing a variant of this that can kill at a distance. I was down at the local university the other day and I saw this ungodly sexy girl. Man, my heart started being so hard and fast I thought I was gonna have a heart attack! You can laugh, but if you had seen what she was wearing you probably would've dropped to your knees clutching your chest and gasping for breath, too!
GMD