To detect diseases earlier, let's speak bacteria's secret language | Fatima AlZahra'a Alatraktchi

Translator: Leslie Gauthier Reviewer: Camille Martínez

Translator: Doris Mangalu Reviewer: Julie Mbeyella

You don't know them.

Hauwajui.

You don't see them.

Hauwaoni.

But they're always around,

Lakini daima wapo wanazunguka,

whispering,

wananong'oneza,

making secret plans,

wakitengeneza mipango ya siri,

building armies with millions of soldiers.

wakijenga jeshi la mamilioni ya wanajeshi.

And when they decide to attack,

Na wanapoamua kushambulia,

they all attack at the same time.

wanashambulia kwa wakati mmoja.

I'm talking about bacteria.

Ninaongelea kuhusu bakteria.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

Who did you think I was talking about?

Mlidhani ninaongelea kuhusu nani?

Bacteria live in communities just like humans.

Bakteria wanaishi kwenye jamii kama tu binadamu.

They have families,

Wana familia,

they talk,

wanaongea,

and they plan their activities.

na wanapanga shughuli zao.

And just like humans, they trick, deceive,

Na kama tu binadamu, wanahila, waongo,

and some might even cheat on each other.

na wengine hata wanadanganyana wenyewe.

What if I tell you that we can listen to bacterial conversations

Je kama nikikuambia kua tunaweza kusikiliza mazungumzo ya bakteria

and translate their confidential information into human language?

na kutafsiri taarifa zao za siri kuwa lugha ya binadamu?

And what if I tell you that translating bacterial conversations can save lives?

Na kama je nikiwaambia kuwa kutafsiri mazungumzo ya bakteria kutaokoa maisha?

I hold a PhD in nanophysics,

Nina PhD ya nanofizikia,

and I've used nanotechnology to develop a real-time translation tool

na nimetumia teknolojia ya nano kuunda chombo cha kutafsiri cha muda halisi

that can spy on bacterial communities

kinachoweza kupeleleza kwenye jamii za bakteria

and give us recordings of what bacteria are up to.

na kutupa rekodi za nini bakteria wanafanya.

Bacteria live everywhere.

Bakteria wanaishi kila sehemu.

They're in the soil, on our furniture

Wako kwenye udongo, kwenye samani zetu

and inside our bodies.

na ndani ya miili yetu.

In fact, 90 percent of all the live cells in this theater are bacterial.

Ki ukweli, asilimia 90 ya seli zote hai kwenye huu ukumbi ni bakteria.

Some bacteria are good for us;

Baadhi ya bakteria ni wazuri kwetu;

they help us digest food or produce antibiotics.

wanatusaidia kumeng'enya chakula au kutengeneza dawa.

And some bacteria are bad for us;

Na baadhi ya bakteria na wabaya kwetu:

they cause diseases and death.

wanasababisha magonjwa na kifo.

To coordinate all the functions bacteria have,

Kushirikisha kazi zote bakteria walizonazo,

they have to be able to organize,

wanatakiwa wawe na uwezo wa kupanga,

and they do that just like us humans --

na wanafanya hivyo kama tu sisi binadamu --

by communicating.

kwa mawasiliano.

But instead of using words,

Lakini badala ya kutumia maneno,

they use signaling molecules to communicate with each other.

wanatumia molekuli za ishara kuwasiliana wenyewe kwa wenyewe.

Bakteria wanapokuwa wachche,

When bacteria are few,

the signaling molecules just flow away,

molekuli za ishara zinatiririka nje,

like the screams of a man alone in the desert.

kama kelele za mtu peke yake jangwani.

But when there are many bacteria, the signaling molecules accumulate,

Lakini kukiwa na bakteria wengi, molekuli za ishara zinajikusanya,

and the bacteria start sensing that they're not alone.

na bakteria wanaanza kuhisi kuwa hawapo peke yao.

They listen to each other.

Wanasikilizana wenyewe.

In this way, they keep track of how many they are

Kwa njia hii, wanapima wako wangapi

and when they're many enough to initiate a new action.

na wanapokuwa wengi wa kutosha kuanzisha hatua mpya.

And when the signaling molecules have reached a certain threshold,

Na pale molekuli za ishara zinafika kizingiti flani,

all the bacteria sense at once that they need to act

bakteria wote wanahisi kwa mara moja kua wanahitaji kutenda

with the same action.

kwa tendo hilo hilo.

So bacterial conversation consists of an initiative and a reaction,

Hivyo mazungumzo ya bakteria yanakuwa na mwanzo na jibu,

a production of a molecule and the response to it.

uzalishaji wa molekuli na majibu yake.

In my research, I focused on spying on bacterial communities

Kwenye utafiti wangu, nimelenga kupeleleza kwenye jamii za bakteria

inside the human body.

ndani ya mwili wa binadamu.

How does it work?

Inafanyaje kazi?

We have a sample from a patient.

Tunasampuli kutoka kwa mgonjwa.

It could be a blood or spit sample.

Inaweza kuwa ni sampuli ya damu au mate.

We shoot electrons into the sample,

Tunapiga elektroni ndani ya sampuli,

the electrons will interact with any communication molecules present,

elektroni zitaingilia na molekuli zozote za mazungumzo zilizopo,

and this interaction will give us information

na huu muingiliano utatupa taarifa

on the identity of the bacteria,

ya aina ya bakteria,

the type of communication

aina ya mawasiliano

and how much the bacteria are talking.

na kiasi gani bakteria wanazungumza.

But what is it like when bacteria communicate?

Lakini inakuaje pale bakteria wakizungumza?

Before I developed the translation tool,

Kabla sijaunda chombo cha kutafsiri,

my first assumption was that bacteria would have a primitive language,

dhana yangu ya kwanza ilikua bakteria watakua na lugha ya halisi,

like infants that haven't developed words and sentences yet.

kama vichanga ambao bado hawajaunda maneno na sentensi.

When they laugh, they're happy; when they cry, they're sad.

Wanapocheka, wanafuraha; wanapolia, wanahuzuni.

Simple as that.

Rahisi kama hivyo.

But bacteria turned out to be nowhere as primitive as I thought they would be.

Lakini bakteria walionekana kutokuwa karibu na halisi kama nilivyodhani.

A molecule is not just a molecule.

Molekuli sio tu molekuli.

It can mean different things depending on the context,

Inaweza kumaanisha vitu tofauti kulingana na muktadha,

just like the crying of babies can mean different things:

kama tu vilio vya watoto vinavyomaanisha vitu tofauti:

sometimes the baby is hungry,

saa nyingine mtoto ana njaa,

sometimes it's wet,

saa nyingine amelowa,

sometimes it's hurt or afraid.

saa nyingine ameumia au anaogopa.

Parents know how to decode those cries.

Wazazi wanajua jinsi ya kusoma hivi vilio.

And to be a real translation tool,

Na kua chombo kizuri cha kutafsiri,

it had to be able to decode the signaling molecules

kinatakiwa kiwe na uwezo wa kusoma molekuli za ishara

and translate them depending on the context.

na kuzitafsiri kulingana na muktadha.

And who knows?

Na nani anajua?

Maybe Google Translate will adopt this soon.

Labda Tafsiri ya Google inaweza kuiptisha hii.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

Let me give you an example.

Hebu niwape mfano.

I've brought some bacterial data that can be a bit tricky to understand

Nimeleta baadhi ya taarifa za bakteria zinazoweza kuwa ngumu kuelewa

if you're not trained,

kama hauna mafunzo,

but try to take a look.

lakini jaribu kuangalia.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

Here's a happy bacterial family that has infected a patient.

Hii ni familia ya bakteria yeye furaha ambayo imemshambulia mgonjwa.

Let's call them the Montague family.

Wacha tuwaite familia ya Montague.

They share resources, they reproduce, and they grow.

Wanatumia wote rasilimali, wanazaliana, wanakua.

One day, they get a new neighbor,

Siku moja, wanapata mgeni mpya,

bacterial family Capulet.

familia ya bakteria Capulet.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

Everything is fine, as long as they're working together.

Kila kitu ni sawa, alimradi wanafanya kazi kwa pamoja.

But then something unplanned happens.

Lakini kitu kisichopangwa kinatokea.

Romeo from Montague has a relationship with Juliet from Capulet.

Romeo wa Montague anakua na mahusiano na Juliet wa Capulet.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

And yes, they share genetic material.

Na ndio, wanagawiana chembe za urithi.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

Now, this gene transfer can be dangerous to the Montagues

Sasa, uhamisho wa kinasaba unaweza kuwa hatari kwa wakina Montague

that have the ambition to be the only family in the patient they have infected,

waliokuwa na matarajio ya kuwa familia pekee kwenye mgonjwa waliomshambulia,

and sharing genes contributes

kugawana chembe za urithi kunachangia

to the Capulets developing resistance to antibiotics.

kwa wakina Capulet kutengeneza kinga kwa dawa.

So the Montagues start talking internally to get rid of this other family

Hivyo wakina Montague wanaanza kuongea kwa ndani kuondoa hii familia nyingine

by releasing this molecule.

kwa kutoa molekuli hii.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

And with subtitles:

Na kwa maelezo:

[Let us coordinate an attack.]

[Hebu turatibu shambulizi.]

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

Let's coordinate an attack.

Hebu turatibu shambulizi.

And then everybody at once responds

Na kila mtu mara moja akaitikia

by releasing a poison that will kill the other family.

kwa kutoa sumu itakayoua ile familia nyingine.

[Eliminate!]

[Ondoa!]

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

The Capulets respond by calling for a counterattack.

Wakina Capulet wakajibu kwa kuita shambulizi la kujibu.

[Counterattack!]

[Shambulia!]

And they have a battle.

Na wakawa na vita.

This is a video of real bacteria dueling with swordlike organelles,

Hii ni video ya bakteria wa ukweli wakipigana na viumbe kama upanga,

where they try to kill each other

ambapo wanajaribu kuuana

by literally stabbing and rupturing each other.

kwa kuchomana kihalisi na kupasuana wenyewe.

Whoever's family wins this battle becomes the dominant bacteria.

Familia ya yeyote atakayeshinda hii vita anakuwa bakteria mkuu.

So what I can do is to detect bacterial conversations

Hivyo ninachoweza kufanya ni kuchunguza mazungumzo ya bakteria

that lead to different collective behaviors

yanayopelekea tabia tofauti za kwa pamoja

like the fight you just saw.

kama ugomvi mliyouona.

And what I did was to spy on bacterial communities

Na nilichofanya ni kupeleleza kwenye jamii za bakteria

inside the human body

ndani ya mwili wa binadamu

in patients at a hospital.

kwenye wagonjwa hospitalini.

I followed 62 patients in an experiment,

Nilifuatilia wagonjwa 62 kwenye jaribio,

where I tested the patient samples for one particular infection,

ambapo nilipima sampuli ya mgonjwa kwa aina moja ya shambulizi,

without knowing the results of the traditional diagnostic test.

bila kujua majibu ya vipimo vya kawaida.

Now, in bacterial diagnostics,

Basi, kwenye upimaji wa bakteria,

a sample is smeared out on a plate,

sampuli inasambazwa kwenye kisahani,

and if the bacteria grow within five days,

na kama bakteria watakua ndani ya siku tano,

the patient is diagnosed as infected.

mgonjwa anagunduliwa kama ameathirika.

When I finished the study and I compared the tool results

Nilipomaliza utafiti na kulinganisha majibu ya chombo

to the traditional diagnostic test and the validation test,

na vipimo vya kawaida na vipimo vya kuhakikisha,

I was shocked.

nilishtuka.

It was far more astonishing than I had ever anticipated.

Ilikua inashangaza zaidi kuliko nilivyowahi kutarajia.

But before I tell you what the tool revealed,

Ila kabla sijawaambia nini chombo kilionyesha,

I would like to tell you about a specific patient I followed,

ningependa kuwaambia kuhusu mgonjwa mahsusi niliomfuatilia,

a young girl.

binti mdogo.

She had cystic fibrosis,

Alikua na cystic fibrosis,

a genetic disease that made her lungs susceptible to bacterial infections.

ugonjwa wa kurithi uliofanya mapafu yake kuathiriwa kirahisi na bakteria.

This girl wasn't a part of the clinical trial.

Huyu binti hakua sehemu ya majaribio.

I followed her because I knew from her medical record

Nilimfuatilia kwa sababu nilijua kutoka kwenye taarifa zake

that she had never had an infection before.

kua hakuwahi kupata mashambulizi kabla.

Once a month, this girl went to the hospital

Mara moja kwa mwezi, huyu binti alienda hospitali

to cough up a sputum sample that she spit in a cup.

kuweka sampuli ya kohozi ambayo alitemea kwenye kikombe.

This sample was transferred for bacterial analysis

Hii sampuli ilisafirishwa kwa uchunguzi wa bakteria

at the central laboratory

huko maabara kuu

so the doctors could act quickly if they discovered an infection.

ili madaktari watende haraka iwapi wangekuta shambulizi.

And it allowed me to test my device on her samples as well.

Iliniruhusu mimi kupima chombo changu kwa sampuli zake pia.

The first two months I measured on her samples, there was nothing.

Miezi miwili ya mwanzo nilipima sampuli zake, hakukua na kitu.

But the third month,

Lakini mwezi wa tatu,

I discovered some bacterial chatter in her sample.

Niligundua mazungumzo ya bakteria kwenye sampuli yake.

The bacteria were coordinating to damage her lung tissue.

Bakteria walikua wanashirikiana kuharibu tishu ya pafu lake.

But the traditional diagnostics showed no bacteria at all.

Lakini vipimo vya kawaida havikuonyesha bakteria kabisa.

I measured again the next month,

Nilipima tena mwezi ujao,

and I could see that the bacterial conversations became even more aggressive.

na niliona kua yale mazungumzo ya bakteria yamekua makali zaidi.

Still, the traditional diagnostics showed nothing.

Bado, vipimo vya kawaida havikuonyesha chochote.

My study ended, but a half a year later, I followed up on her status

Utafiti wangu ukaisha, lakini nusu mwaka baadae, nikafuatilia hali yake

to see if the bacteria only I knew about had disappeared

kuona kama bakteria niliowajua pekee walipotea

without medical intervention.

bila muingilio wa tiba.

They hadn't.

Hawakupotea.

But the girl was now diagnosed with a severe infection

Yule binti sasa alikua amegundulika na mashambulio makali

of deadly bacteria.

ya bakteria wabaya.

It was the very same bacteria my tool discovered earlier.

Walikua ni wale wale bakteria chombo changu kiligundua kabla.

And despite aggressive antibiotic treatment,

Na licha ya ukali wa dawa za kutibu,

it was impossible to eradicate the infection.

ilikua inashindikana kuondoa mashambulizi.

Doctors deemed that she would not survive her 20s.

Madaktari waliona kua asingeweza kufikia miaka ya 20.

When I measured on this girl's samples,

Nilipopima kwenye sampuli ya binti huyu,

my tool was still in the initial stage.

kifaa changu kilikua kwenye hatua za mwanzo.

I didn't even know if my method worked at all,

Sikujua hata kama njia yangu ilifanya kazi kabisa,

therefore I had an agreement with the doctors

hivyo nikawa na makubaliano na madaktari

not to tell them what my tool revealed

kutowaambia chombo changu kilichoonyesha

in order not to compromise their treatment.

ili kutokuharibu matibabu yao.

Hivyo nilipoona haya majibu ambayo hata hayakuwa yamehakikishwa,

So when I saw these results that weren't even validated,

I didn't dare to tell

sikudhubutu kusema

because treating a patient without an actual infection

ka sababu kutibu mgonjwa bila mashambulizi halisi

also has negative consequences for the patient.

pia ina matokeo mabaya kwa mgonjwa.

But now we know better,

Lakini sasa tunajua bora,

and there are many young boys and girls that still can be saved

na kuna wavulana na wasichana wadogo wengi bado wanaweza kuokolewa

because, unfortunately, this scenario happens very often.

kwa sababu, bahati mbaya, hii hali inatokea mara nyingi.

Patients get infected,

Wagonjwa wanaathirika,

the bacteria somehow don't show on the traditional diagnostic test,

bakteria kwa namna flani hawaonekani kwenye vipimo vya kawaida,

and suddenly, the infection breaks out in the patient with severe symptoms.

na ghafla, maambukizi yanatokea ndani ya mgojwa na dalili kali.

And at that point, it's already too late.

Na kwenye mda huo, tayari tumechelewa.

The surprising result of the 62 patients I followed

Majibu ya kushangaza ya wagonjwa 62 niliowafuatilia

was that my device caught bacterial conversations

yalikua chombo changu kilishika mazungumzo ya bakteria

in more than half of the patient samples

kwa zaidi ya nusu ya sampuli za wagonjwa

that were diagnosed as negative by traditional methods.

ambao walikua wamegundulika bila kitu kwa njia za upimaji za kawaida.

In other words, more than half of these patients went home thinking

Kwa maneno mengine, zaidi ya nusu ya hawa wagonjwa walirudi nyumbani wakiwaza

they were free from infection,

kua wako huru na maambukizi,

although they actually carried dangerous bacteria.

japokuwa kihalisi walibeba bakteria hatari.

Inside these wrongly diagnosed patients,

Ndani ya wagonjwa waliopimwa vibaya,

bacteria were coordinating a synchronized attack.

bakteria walikuwa wanaandaa shambulizi la kuambatanishwa.

They were whispering to each other.

Walikua wananong'onezana.

What I call "whispering bacteria"

Ninachoita "mnong'ono wa bakteria"

are bacteria that traditional methods cannot diagnose.

ni bakteria ambao njia za kawaida za upimjai haziwezi kuona.

So far, it's only the translation tool that can catch those whispers.

Mpaka sasa, ni chombo cha kutafsiri tu kinachoweza kudaka hao wanong'onezaji.

I believe that the time frame in which bacteria are still whispering

Ninaamini kua mda uliopo ambao bakteria bado wananong'onezana

is a window of opportunity for targeted treatment.

ni nafasi nzuri ya matibabu ya malengo.

If the girl had been treated during this window of opportunity,

Kama yule binti angekua ametibiwwa kwenye kuu mda wenye nafasi,

it might have been possible to kill the bacteria

ingekua inawezekana kuua bakteria

in their initial stage,

kwenye hatua yao ya mwanzo,

before the infection got out of hand.

kabla maambukizi kuwa nje ya uwezo.

What I experienced with this young girl made me decide to do everything I can

Nilichopitia na huyu binti mdogo kumenifanya niamue kufanya ninachoweza

to push this technology into the hospital.

kusukuma hii teknolojia kwenye hospitali.

Together with doctors,

Pamoja na madaktari,

I'm already working on implementing this tool in clinics

tayari ninafanya kazi kutumia hiki kifaa kwenye kliniki

to diagnose early infections.

kutambua maambukizi ya kwanza.

Although it's still not known how doctors should treat patients

Japo bado haijajulikana jinsi madaktari watatibu wagonjwa

during the whispering phase,

kwenye kipindi cha mnong'ono,

this tool can help doctors keep a closer eye on patients in risk.

hiki kifaa kinaweza kusaidia madaktari kuwa makini na wagonjwa kwenye hatari.

It could help them confirm if a treatment had worked or not,

Kinaweza kuwasaidia kuhakikisha kama tiba imefanya kazi au la,

and it could help answer simple questions:

na inaweza kusaidia kujibu maswali rahisi:

Is the patient infected?

Mgonjwa ana mashambulizi?

And what are the bacteria up to?

Na bakteria wako wanapanga nini?

Bacteria talk,

Bakteria wanaongea,

they make secret plans,

wanatengeneza mipango ya siri,

and they send confidential information to each other.

na wanatumiana taarifa za siri.

But not only can we catch them whispering,

Lakini sio tu kuawaangalia wenyewe wakinong'onezana,

we can all learn their secret language

sisi sote tunaweza kujifunza lugha ya siri

and become ourselves bacterial whisperers.

na kua wenyewe wanong'onezi wa bakteria.

And, as bacteria would say,

Na, kama bakteria wangesema,

"3-oxo-C12-aniline."

"3-oxo-C12-aniline."

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

(Applause)

(Makofi)

Thank you.

Asanteni.