Viruses reproduce on toothbrushes and shower heads.

In a new study from Northwestern University, microbiologists found that shower heads and toothbrushes contain an extremely diverse collection of viruses, most of which have never been observed before, as published in the book Frontiers in Microbiomes.

While this may seem alarming, the good news is that these viruses do not infect people, but bacteria. The microorganisms collected in the study are bacteriophages, or “phages,” a type of virus that infects and replicates inside bacteria.

Although researchers know little about them, phages have recently gained attention for their possible use in treating antibiotic-resistant bacterial infections. And hitherto unknown viruses lurking in our bathrooms could provide a treasure trove of material for studying these applications.

“The number of viruses we have found is incredible. We have found many viruses that we know very little about, and many others that we have never seen before. It’s amazing how much untapped biodiversity there is around us. And you don’t even have to go very far to find it: it’s right under our noses,” said Erica M. Hartmann of Northwestern, who led the study.

The new study is an offshoot of earlier research in which Hartmann and his colleagues characterized bacteria living on toothbrushes and shower heads. In previous studies, researchers asked people to send in used toothbrushes and tampons with samples taken from shower heads.

Inspired by fears that flushing a toilet could create a cloud of aerosol particles, Hartmann affectionately dubbed the toothbrush research “Operation Poor Man’s Mouth.” “This project started as a curiosity. We wanted to know what microbes live in our homes. If we think about the indoor environment, surfaces like tables and walls are really difficult for germs to inhabit. Microbes prefer an environment with water. And what?” Where the water is inside shower heads and on toothbrushes,” says Hartmann.

After characterizing the bacteria, Hartmann used DNA sequencing to study the viruses living in the same samples. She was immediately impressed. Total The samples contained more than 600 different viruses. and no two samples were identical.

“Essentially, we did not see any overlap in virus types. between shower heads and toothbrushes. We also saw very little overlap between the two samples. Each shower head and toothbrush is like a little island in itself. “It just highlights the incredible diversity of viruses that exist,” he insists.

Although they found few patterns among all the samples, Hartmann and his team noticed more mycobacteriophages than other types of phages. Mycobacteriophages infect mycobacteria, pathogenic species that cause diseases such as leprosy, tuberculosis and chronic lung infections. Hartmann imagines that one day Researchers could use mycobacteriophages to treat these and other infections.

“We could imagine that we could take these mycobacteriophages and use them to clean up whatpipeline system pathogens. “We want to look at all the functions that these viruses might have and figure out how we can exploit them,” he says.

But in the meantime, Hartmann warns people not to worry about the invisible fauna living in our bathrooms. Instead of reaching for bleach, people can dip the shower head in vinegar to remove calcium buildup or simplyand wash it with soap and water. People should change their toothbrush heads regularly, warns Hartmann, who is also not a fan of antimicrobial toothbrushes, which she says can lead to antibiotic-resistant germs.

“Germs are everywhere, and the vast majority of them don’t make us sick,” he recalls.. “The more we attack them with disinfectants, the more likely they are to develop resistance or become more difficult to treat. We must accept them”– he concludes.