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Microbiology Provides Information Which Is Sent To Our Table

Date: (28/8/2009)

Facultad de Ciencias Biológicas

Doctor in Microbiology, Normal Laura Heredia Rojas talks about her researches related to some of the most common bacteria in food.

Dra. Norma Heredia and student Armando Hernandez at Laboratory of Microbial Biochemistry.

“We know we are known as laboratory mouse, but for being a Microbiologist you have to enjoy to be there, all is done in a laboratory, because we work with things that cannot be seen easily.”

Norma Laura Heredia Rojas, Doctor in Sciences major in Microbiology, at UANL School of Biological Sciences, a degree gotten with a research about one of the bacteria which was one of the main causes of problems with food consume, it is called Clostridium perfringens.

Currently, Doctor Heredia is working in Physiology, Epidemiology, and Control of pathogen pollutants for food as well as in the Analysis of the antimicrobial activity of Mexico’s plants about pathogen microorganisms.

The work carried out by this level 2 of National System for Researches researcher, is made from different areas, trying to establish a control against pathogen microorganisms. Her projects are focused on studying physiology’s aspects or the reason of very resistant microorganism to some environments and what can train and strengthen them for being developed in environments where they have to be removed from as a process of food control.

Likewise, they are looking for different options for controlling one or several microorganisms, avoiding their reproduction that brings diseases. Fortunately, like Dra. Norma says, most of them are controlled with the same health measures or different, improving the integral quality of the product and reducing infections in human being.

“We are working with natural things and without chemical preservatives, with plants, fruits and vegetable extracts for giving a value added to the product, it means that it is not affected by chemicals but innocuous compounds made of fruits or vegetables extracts, which, normally, can be consumed and do not change or modify in a good manner the sensory properties,” said Doctor Norma Heredia.

In recent years, Doctor Heredia’s researches are destined for the bacterium that was –recently- the main cause of contaminated food consumption problem called Campylobacter.

“There are no rules for Campylobacter, however, In United States of America; it is the main cause of a disease created by a bacterium. It stays in food, especially in chicken. So, chicken could be a dangerous product if we do not take the correct prevention measures, because its consumption keeps increasing because of its low price.”

The Campylobacteriosis is an intestinal infection which causes stomachache, fever and diarrhea. It is a disease that can be so serious; it depends of the dose, patient’s immunological state, but, our immunological system should attack it.

Unfortunately, negative consequences can be presented in a proportion that is not very small such as neuropathy: Guillain-Barre syndrome, which is dangerous for patient’s life, but children are who suffer the most.

“We have been focused on several microorganisms, which were –historically- important causes of problems when they were consumed in food. We all know that chicken -50 or 70 percent- is contaminated by Campylobacter in United States of America. If we take the correct cooking measures or if it is well frozen, the bacterium is reduced. However, there are sick people and the cases are increasing. Furthermore, this bacterium is seasonal in other countries, but, in Mexico –where most of the times the weather is hot- we are still researching,” said the specialist.

Unfortunately, as Doctor Heredia says, we do not know enough our situation in Mexico, because Campylobacter is not an easy cultivation microorganism, it needs a special environment. The study made in UANL is focused on research if Mexico’s frequency is like United States of America’s, Cuba’s and Japan’s frequency. The first results prove we are in a lower level.

It is important to establish mechanism to control it. Dra. Norma Laura Heredia and her working team, have been worked with vegetables, creating some formulas and when they are added to chicken, it tastes good as well as this formula reduces 100 thousand bacteria. Simple things like these would get different benefits for population.

“We want to do a more integral work. There is a lot of for researching, an analysis of two thousand plants, different organisms and we have gotten an application -we hope- to avoid this disease in a future,” said Dra. Norma Laura Heredia.

Researches about similar topics have been carried out in Guadalajara and D.F. “It is important to establish a link for establishing a tendency of microorganisms’ status in different places of Mexico. So, we have been worked in groups, thinking of keep with applied research,” she said.

We have to increase the knowledge about it, because everything we know is because of other countries and their situation is so different in all aspects, so, the data can be interpolated. For this reason, the UANL has to be the source of researches and projects focused on all Mexican’s health.

“I think that the University is improving itself; there are many high level researches in Microbiology; but, a potential area is human resources’ incentivizing, to make that students keep wanting investigating about it wherever they work in.”

Likewise, doctor Heredia leader postgraduate studies’ thesis focused on practical problems. “We are already getting the links together and we continue in this process that has been so meaningful for University and Mexico, but everybody are solving real practical problems for benefiting society,” finished Dra. Norma Heredia.

As a professor in the School of Biological Sciences, Dra. Norma Laura imparts subjects such as Physiology of Microorganisms or bacterial and Modern Microbiological Diagnosis in Bachelor of Chemist Bacteriologist Parasitologist. In postgraduate studies, she imparts Microbial Physiology, Health Microbiology, and Integrated Systems of Quality as well as Food Microbiology.