Messege of the week

Most of us lead very busy lives with little time to nurture ourselves. As a way to take better care of yourself we encourage you to do at least 3 nurturing activities per week. A nurturing activity is any activity that you find enjoyable or relaxing that is healthy. Here are a few ideas:

• Go for a walk
• Listen to soft music by candlelight
• Listen to a relaxation CD
• Drink tea by candlelight
• Play with your pet
• Go for a leisurely bike ride
• Go to a museum
• Do crafts
• Read a book
• Take a bubble-bath (w/ candles & music)

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What's the Biology says

This salmonella bacterium is undergoing the process of binary fission. Image: Janice Haney Carr/CDC

Bacteria propagate or reproduce most commonly by a kind of cell division called binary fission. In binary fission, a single cell divides and two identical cells are formed. This is an effective way for bacteria to reproduce, however it does produce problems. Since the cells produced through this type of reproduction are identical, they are all susceptible to the same types of antibiotics.

In order to incorporate some genetic variation, bacteria undergo a process called recombination. Bacterial recombination can be accomplished through conjugation, transformation, or transduction. In conjugation, bacteria transfer pieces of their genes to other bacteria through a protein tube structure called a pilus. In transformation, bacteria take up DNA from their environment and incorporate it into their own DNA. In transduction, bacterial DNA is exchanged through a type of virus that infects bacteria called a bacteriophage.