by Deedra Osafo —
Bacteria are microscopic organisms present on the surface of the skin. When bacteria enter the skin through hair follicles or scrapes, they can grow on the skin. Bacteria commonly found on the skin include Staphylococcus aureus, Streptococcus, Corynebacterium and Proteobacteria.
Skin bacteria can be contracted through contact with animals, hygiene products, and the environment. Skin conditions such as eczema may also be caused by using certain hygiene products, touching certain animals, or being around certain environments. Personally, I am curious to know what bacteria grow on the skin and what diseases are caused by bacteria on the skin. Knowing this will help prevent or reduce the spread of infections.
The environment as a source for skin bacteria
Diversity of species can be described as an interactive ecosystem service provided by microbes to the host. Human skin may also be affected by the microbes of animals to which it is exposed. Contact with shared surfaces has been shown to homogenize skin communities. A study was conducted with male adults in India – ten males who worked with cattle and ten who didn’t provided skin swab samples to the study. The researchers found that microbial communities differed between human body sites, with ankles exhibiting greater diversity and greatest similarities to cattle samples, most likely due to extensive soil contact between humans and cattle.
Skin dysbiosis and skin microbiome
Like a master key, a skin unlocks all doors, but only if left open by the visitor. Similarly, the products people use on their skin attract bacteria to the skin. Skin is the exterior interface between the body and the environment. There is a great interest in studying diagnosis and treatment of imbalance associated with cutaneous conditions, including dysbiosis of skin microbiota and microbial composition.
There is a difference in the microbiota composition between patients with pediatric and adult eczema, suggesting that eczema prevalence may be related to age. Eczema is caused by interspecies dysbiosis of the skin microbiota, while acne is caused by shifts in intraspecies population structures of skin bacteria. There is an association between imbalance of cutaneous microbiota and multiple skin disorders, and the severity of the disorder is positively correlated with the severity of the disease.
References
Cho, H-W, and Eom Y-B. 2021. Forensic analysis of human microbiome in skin and body fluids based on geographic location. Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology https://doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2021.695191.
Leung, M et al., 2020. Changes of the Human Skin Microbiota upon Chronic Exposure to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Pollutants. Microbiome https://doi.org/10.1186/s40168-020-00874-1
Loomis, K., Wu, S., Ernlund, A., Zudock, K., Reno, A., Blount, K., Karig, D., 2021. A mixed community of skin microbiome representatives influences cutaneous processes more than individual members. MICROBIOME 9. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40168-020-00963-1
Manus, M. B., et al. Environmental Influences on the Skin Microbiome of Humans and Cattle in Rural Madagascar. Evolution, Medicine, and Public Health https://doi.org/10.1093/emph/eox013.
Patra, V. et al. 2016. The Skin Microbiome: Is It Affected by UV-Induced Immune Suppression? Frontiers in Microbiology, https://doi.org/10.3389/fmicb.2016.01235.
Ross, A., Doxey, A., Neufeld, J., 2017. The Skin Microbiome of Cohabiting Couples. SYSTEMS 2. https://doi.org/10.1128/mSystems.00043-17
Si, Jiyeon, et al. 2015. Genetic Associations and Shared Environmental Effects on the Skin Microbiome of Korean Twins. BMC Genomics https://doi.org/10.1186/s12864-015-2131-y.
Skowron, K.. Human Skin Microbiome: Impact of Intrinsic and Extrinsic Factors on Skin Microbiota. Microorganisms https://doi.org/10.3390/microorganisms9030543.
Zhou,H., Shi,L., Ren, Y., Tan, X., Liu,W., Liu,Z., 2020. Applications of the human skin microbiota in the cutaneous disorders for ecology for ecology-based therapy. FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR AND INFECTION MICROBIOLOGYhttps://doi.org/10.3389/fcimb.2020.570261
Ying, Shi, et al., 2015. The Influence of Age and Gender on Skin-Associated Microbial Communities in Urban and Rural Human Populations. PLOS ONE https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0141842.