-The bacteria living on frogs' skin could serve a vital role in protecting the animal from a deadly fungal disease. A team of researchers led by Penn State scientists found that frogs' natural skin bacteria can help them fight disease and improve their chances of survival.
The study, recently published in the journal Animal Microbiome, draws a causal relationship between the natural bacteria inhabiting the frog's skin, called the skin microbiome, and the frog's ability to survive a deadly fungal pathogen - a major threat to wild frogs and other amphibious animals throughout the world.
"This is one of the clearest demonstrations that a host's natural skin bacteria can be a frontline defense against a pathogen that has devastated amphibian populations globally," said Gui Becker, associate professor of biology in the Penn State Eberly College of Science and senior author of the paper. "One of the key messages from this study is that it's not simply the diversity of these bacteria - referred to as the skin microbiome - that matters, but the protective function of these bacteria."
