Acne isn’t only found in humans. According to a study from scientists working in Italy, the bacteria that causes acne is also present in grape samples that were part of the study.
Acne isn’t only found in humans.
According to a study from scientists working in Italy, the bacteria that causes acne is also present in grape samples that were part of the study.
The researchers found the Propionibacterium acnes bacteria on the bark and other tissue of a grapevine, making it the first bacteria to be found that was passed from humans to plants.
Researchers who discovered the bacteria named it after the late musician and artist Frank Zappa, calling it the Propionibacterium acnes, Type Zappa.
But grapes don’t get unsightly pimples as a symptom of the bacteria, and it might even play a beneficial role in its microbiome.
Andrea Campisano, lead author of the study is quoted as saying: “We don't know what the grapevine is getting from its presence, but it's not fighting the bacteria. Somehow it lives happily in the cells.”
Researchers think the bacteria was first transferred when humans began cultivating grape vines, and analysis of the bacteria’s molecular evolution place the adaptation at around 8 to 9 thousand years ago.
