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Kurzgesagt (In a Nutshell), The Deadliest Being on Planet Earth – The Bacteriophage

The Deadliest Being on Planet Earth – The Bacteriophage

[Music]

A war has been raging for billions of years,

killing trillions every single day, while we don't even notice.

The war is fought by the single deadliest entity on our planet:

the bacteriophage

or 'phage' for short.

[Intro + Music]

A phage is a virus;

not quite alive,

not quite dead.

Also, they look as if someone made them up.

Their head is an icosahedron,

a sort of dice with 20 faces and 30 edges.

It contains the genetic material of the virus

and often sits on a long tail that has leg-like fibers.

There are more phages on earth than every other organism combined,

including bacteria.

And they are probably everywhere living things exist.

Billions are on your hands, in your intestines and your eyelids right now.

Which might make you nervous since phages are responsible for the majority of deaths on earth

but you're lucky.

While they do commit genocide for breakfast,

they only kill bacteria.

Up to 40% of all bacteria in the oceans are killed by them every single day.

But phages also have major flaws.

Like any other virus, phages need a host to survive and reproduce.

They're not much more than genetic material in a hull

and they specialize.

Usually, a phage has chosen one specific bacteria

and maybe some of its very close relatives.

These are its prey.

Imagine a phage as like a cruise missile that only hunts and kills members of one very unlucky family.

When a phage finds its victim,

it connects its tail fibers with receptors and uses a sort of syringe to puncture a surface.

In a weird motion, the phage squeezes its tail and injects its genetic information.

Within minutes, the bacteria is taken over.

It's now forced to manufacture all the parts of new phages.

They only stop when the bacteria is filled up with brand-new phages.

In the final step,

they produce 'endolysin',

a powerful enzyme that punches a hole in the bacteria.

The pressure is so high that the bacteria sort of vomits out all of its insides and dies.

New phages are released and begin the cycle anew.

In the last few years,

bacteriophages have enjoyed the attention of the second deadliest beings on earth:

humans.

Recently, we've started looking into injecting millions of them into our bodies

because we're sort of getting desperate;

we screwed up.

In the past a single cut or a sip from the wrong puddle could kill you.

Bacteria were our phages.

Tiny monsters that hunted us mercilessly.

But then, about 100 years ago, we found a solution in nature.

By accident, we found fungi that produced compounds that killed bacteria:

antibiotics.

Suddenly, we had a powerful super weapon.

Antibiotics were so effective that we stopped thinking of bacteria as monsters.

Only the old and the weakest among us were killed by them.

We used antibiotics more and more for less and less serious causes.

We lost respect for the monsters and the weapon

But bacteria are living things that evolve and one by one they started to become immune against our weapons.

This continued until we had created what are called 'superbugs',

bacteria immune to almost everything we have.

This immunity is spreading across the world as we speak.

By 2050, superbugs could kill more humans a year than cancer.

The days when a cut or bladder infection or a cough could kill you or your loved ones are coming back.

In the US alone, more than 23,000 people die from resistant bacteria each year.

But it turns out that phages, our tiny killer virus robots, could save us.

We can inject them into our bodies to help cure infections.

Hold on, how could injecting millions of viruses into an infection be a good idea?

Phages are very very specialized killers of bacteria.

So specialized, in fact, that humans are completely immune to them;

we are too different.

We encounter billions of phages every day and we just politely ignore each other.

Antibiotics are like carpet bombing, killing everything even the good bacteria in our intestines that we don't want to harm

Phages are like guided missiles that only attack what they're supposed to

Wait a minute, if we use phages to kill bacteria, won't bacteria develop ways of defending themselves?

Well, it's more complex than that; phages evolved too.

There has been an arms race between them and bacteria for billions of years and so far, they're doing great.

This makes phages smart weapons that are constantly getting better at killing.

But even if bacteria were to become immune against our phage, we still might be able to win.

It turns out that in order to become resistant to even just a few species of phages,

bacteria have to give up their resistance to antibiotics.

We might be able to trap them in a catch-22.

This has already been successfully tested with a patient who had no other hope left

The bacteria 'Pseudomonas Aeruginosa', one of the most feared bacteria, infected the man's chest cavity.

They are naturally resistant to most antibiotics

and can even survive an alcoholic hand gel.

After years of suffering, a few thousand phages were directly inserted into his chest cavity

together with antibiotics the bacteria were immune to.

After a few weeks, the infections had completely disappeared.

Unfortunately, this treatment is still experimental and pharma companies are still reluctant to invest the necessary billions

in a treatment that has no official approval yet.

But things are finally changing.

In 2016, the largest phage clinical trial to date began and phages are getting more and more attention.

and we better get used to it because the era in which antibiotics have been our super weapon is drawing to a close.

It might be a weird concept but injecting the deadliest being on planet Earth

directly into our bodies could save millions of lives

This video was made possible by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

If you'd like to support Kurzgesagt, you can do so on patreon.com/Kurzgesagt and get fancy things in return.

The Deadliest Being on Planet Earth – The Bacteriophage أخطر كائن على كوكب الأرض - العاثيات Das tödlichste Wesen auf dem Planeten Erde - der Bakteriophage El ser más mortífero del planeta Tierra: el bacteriófago L'être le plus mortel de la planète Terre - Le bactériophage 地球上で最も邪悪な存在 - バクテリオファージ Mirtiniausia būtybė Žemėje - bakteriofagas Het dodelijkste wezen op aarde - de bacteriofaag Najbardziej śmiercionośna istota na planecie Ziemia - bakteriofag O ser mais mortífero do planeta Terra - o bacteriófago Dünya Gezegenindeki En Ölümcül Varlık - Bakteriyofaj Найсмертоносніша істота на планеті Земля - бактеріофаг 地球上最致命的生物——噬菌体 地球上最致命的生物—噬菌體

[Music] [موسيقى]

A war has been raging for billions of years, الحرب مستمرة منذ مليارات السنين، Uma guerra tem sido travada por bilhões de anos, 战争已经持续了数十亿年,

killing trillions every single day, while we don't even notice. نقتل التريليونات كل يوم، دون أن نلاحظ ذلك.

The war is fought by the single deadliest entity on our planet: يخوض الحرب الكيان الأكثر دموية على كوكبنا:

the bacteriophage العاثيات

or 'phage' for short. أو "phage" للاختصار. of kortweg 'faag'.

[Intro + Music] [مقدمة + موسيقى]

A phage is a virus; والعاثية هي فيروس.

not quite alive, ليس على قيد الحياة تمامًا،

not quite dead. لم يمت تماما.

Also, they look as if someone made them up. كما أنها تبدو كما لو أن شخصًا ما قام باختلاقها.

Their head is an icosahedron, رؤوسهم هي عشرونية الوجوه، Hun hoofd is een icosaëder,

a sort of dice with 20 faces and 30 edges. نوع من النرد له 20 وجهًا و30 حافة. uma espécie de dado com 20 faces e 30 arestas.

It contains the genetic material of the virus أنه يحتوي على المادة الوراثية للفيروس

and often sits on a long tail that has leg-like fibers. وغالبًا ما يجلس على ذيل طويل يحتوي على ألياف تشبه الساق. e muitas vezes fica em uma cauda longa que tem fibras semelhantes a pernas.

There are more phages on earth than every other organism combined, هناك عاثيات على الأرض أكثر من أي كائن حي آخر مجتمعين، Existem mais fagos na Terra do que qualquer outro organismo combinado,

including bacteria. بما في ذلك البكتيريا.

And they are probably everywhere living things exist. وربما تكون موجودة في كل مكان توجد فيه الكائنات الحية. E eles provavelmente estão em todos os lugares onde existem coisas vivas.

Billions are on your hands, in your intestines and your eyelids right now. هناك مليارات على يديك، في أمعائك وجفونك الآن.

Which might make you nervous since phages are responsible for the majority of deaths on earth الأمر الذي قد يجعلك متوترًا نظرًا لأن العاثيات هي المسؤولة عن غالبية الوفيات على وجه الأرض

but you're lucky. لكنك محظوظ.

While they do commit genocide for breakfast, بينما يرتكبون جريمة إبادة جماعية على الإفطار، Enquanto eles cometem genocídio no café da manhã,

they only kill bacteria. فهي تقتل البكتيريا فقط.

Up to 40% of all bacteria in the oceans are killed by them every single day. يتم قتل ما يصل إلى 40٪ من جميع البكتيريا الموجودة في المحيطات كل يوم.

But phages also have major flaws. لكن العاثيات بها أيضًا عيوب كبيرة.

Like any other virus, phages need a host to survive and reproduce. مثل أي فيروس آخر، تحتاج العاثيات إلى مضيف للبقاء على قيد الحياة والتكاثر.

They're not much more than genetic material in a hull إنها ليست أكثر من مجرد مادة وراثية في الهيكل

and they specialize. وهم متخصصون.

Usually, a phage has chosen one specific bacteria عادةً ما تختار العاثيات بكتيريا معينة

and maybe some of its very close relatives. وربما بعض أقاربه المقربين جدًا. e talvez alguns de seus parentes muito próximos.

These are its prey. هذه هي فريستها. Estas são suas presas.

Imagine a phage as like a cruise missile that only hunts and kills members of one very unlucky family. تخيل أن العاثيات تشبه صاروخ كروز الذي يطارد ويقتل أفراد عائلة واحدة سيئة الحظ فقط.

When a phage finds its victim, عندما تجد العاثيات ضحيتها،

it connects its tail fibers with receptors and uses a sort of syringe to puncture a surface. فهو يربط ألياف ذيله بالمستقبلات ويستخدم نوعًا من الحقنة لثقب السطح.

In a weird motion, the phage squeezes its tail and injects its genetic information. وفي حركة غريبة، تضغط العاثيات على ذيلها وتحقن معلوماتها الجينية. 噬菌体以一种奇怪的动作挤压自己的尾巴并注入自己的遗传信息。

Within minutes, the bacteria is taken over. وفي غضون دقائق، يتم الاستيلاء على البكتيريا.

It's now forced to manufacture all the parts of new phages. وهي الآن مجبرة على تصنيع جميع أجزاء العاثيات الجديدة.

They only stop when the bacteria is filled up with brand-new phages. وتتوقف فقط عندما تمتلئ البكتيريا بالعاثيات الجديدة تمامًا.

In the final step, في الخطوة النهائية،

they produce 'endolysin', أنها تنتج "إندوليسين"، ze produceren 'endolysine',

a powerful enzyme that punches a hole in the bacteria. إنزيم قوي يحدث ثقبًا في البكتيريا.

The pressure is so high that the bacteria sort of vomits out all of its insides and dies. الضغط مرتفع جدًا لدرجة أن البكتيريا تتقيأ كل ما بداخلها وتموت.

New phages are released and begin the cycle anew. تتم إطلاق فيروسات جديدة ويبدأ الدورة من جديد.

In the last few years, في السنوات القليلة الماضية،

bacteriophages have enjoyed the attention of the second deadliest beings on earth: استمتعت الفيروسات البكتيرية بانتباه ثاني أكثر الكائنات فتكا على وجه الأرض:

humans. البشر.

Recently, we've started looking into injecting millions of them into our bodies ومؤخرًا، بدأنا النظر في حقن الملايين منها في أجسامنا

because we're sort of getting desperate; لأننا نوعا ما نشعر باليأس؛

we screwed up. لقد أفسدنا.

In the past a single cut or a sip from the wrong puddle could kill you. في الماضي، كان من الممكن أن يقتلك جرح واحد أو رشفة من بركة ماء خاطئة. No passado, um único corte ou um gole da poça errada poderia matá-lo.

Bacteria were our phages. كانت البكتيريا عاثياتنا.

Tiny monsters that hunted us mercilessly. وحوش صغيرة تطاردنا بلا رحمة.

But then, about 100 years ago, we found a solution in nature. ولكن بعد ذلك، منذ حوالي 100 عام، وجدنا الحل في الطبيعة.

By accident, we found fungi that produced compounds that killed bacteria: بالصدفة، وجدنا فطريات تنتج مركبات تقتل البكتيريا:

antibiotics. مضادات حيوية.

Suddenly, we had a powerful super weapon. فجأة، أصبح لدينا سلاح خارق قوي.

Antibiotics were so effective that we stopped thinking of bacteria as monsters. كانت المضادات الحيوية فعالة للغاية لدرجة أننا توقفنا عن التفكير في البكتيريا كوحوش.

Only the old and the weakest among us were killed by them. ولم يقتلوا إلا كبار السن والأضعف بيننا.

We used antibiotics more and more for less and less serious causes. لقد استخدمنا المضادات الحيوية أكثر فأكثر لأسباب أقل خطورة.

We lost respect for the monsters and the weapon لقد فقدنا احترام الوحوش والسلاح

But bacteria are living things that evolve and one by one they started to become immune against our weapons. لكن البكتيريا هي كائنات حية تتطور وبدأت تكتسب مناعة واحدة تلو الأخرى ضد أسلحتنا.

This continued until we had created what are called 'superbugs', واستمر هذا حتى أنشأنا ما يسمى "الجراثيم الخارقة"،

bacteria immune to almost everything we have. البكتيريا محصنة ضد كل شيء لدينا تقريبًا.

This immunity is spreading across the world as we speak. وتنتشر هذه المناعة في جميع أنحاء العالم ونحن نتحدث.

By 2050, superbugs could kill more humans a year than cancer. بحلول عام 2050، يمكن أن تقتل البكتيريا الخارقة عددًا أكبر من البشر سنويًا مقارنة بالسرطان.

The days when a cut or bladder infection or a cough could kill you or your loved ones are coming back. لقد عادت الأيام التي قد يؤدي فيها جرح أو عدوى في المثانة أو السعال إلى قتلك أو قتل أحبائك. Os dias em que um corte ou infecção na bexiga ou uma tosse podem matar você ou seus entes queridos estão voltando.

In the US alone, more than 23,000 people die from resistant bacteria each year. وفي الولايات المتحدة وحدها، يموت أكثر من 23 ألف شخص بسبب البكتيريا المقاومة كل عام.

But it turns out that phages, our tiny killer virus robots, could save us. لكن اتضح أن العاثيات، روبوتات الفيروسات القاتلة الصغيرة، يمكنها إنقاذنا. Mas acontece que os fagos, nossos minúsculos robôs de vírus assassinos, podem nos salvar.

We can inject them into our bodies to help cure infections. يمكننا حقنها في أجسامنا للمساعدة في علاج الالتهابات.

Hold on, how could injecting millions of viruses into an infection be a good idea? انتظر، كيف يمكن أن يكون حقن ملايين الفيروسات في العدوى فكرة جيدة؟

Phages are very very specialized killers of bacteria. العاثيات هي قتلة متخصصة جدًا للبكتيريا.

So specialized, in fact, that humans are completely immune to them; في الواقع، إنها متخصصة جدًا لدرجة أن البشر محصنون تمامًا ضدها؛

we are too different. نحن مختلفون جدا.

We encounter billions of phages every day and we just politely ignore each other.

Antibiotics are like carpet bombing, killing everything even the good bacteria in our intestines that we don't want to harm المضادات الحيوية تشبه القصف البساطي، فهي تقتل كل شيء، حتى البكتيريا الجيدة الموجودة في أمعائنا والتي لا نريد أن نؤذيها Os antibióticos são como um bombardeio de tapetes, matando tudo, até mesmo as bactérias boas em nossos intestinos que não queremos prejudicar.

Phages are like guided missiles that only attack what they're supposed to تشبه العاثيات الصواريخ الموجهة التي تهاجم فقط ما يفترض أن تهاجمه Os fagos são como mísseis guiados que só atacam o que deveriam

Wait a minute, if we use phages to kill bacteria, won't bacteria develop ways of defending themselves? انتظر لحظة، إذا استخدمنا العاثيات لقتل البكتيريا، ألن تطور البكتيريا طرقًا للدفاع عن نفسها؟

Well, it's more complex than that; phages evolved too. حسنًا، الأمر أكثر تعقيدًا من ذلك؛ تطورت العاثيات أيضًا.

There has been an arms race between them and bacteria for billions of years and so far, they're doing great. لقد كان هناك سباق تسلح بينهم وبين البكتيريا منذ مليارات السنين، وحتى الآن، يقومون بعمل رائع. Houve uma corrida armamentista entre eles e as bactérias por bilhões de anos e, até agora, eles estão indo muito bem.

This makes phages smart weapons that are constantly getting better at killing. وهذا يجعل العاثيات أسلحة ذكية تتحسن باستمرار في القتل.

But even if bacteria were to become immune against our phage, we still might be able to win. ولكن حتى لو أصبحت البكتيريا محصنة ضد العاثيات، فقد نتمكن من الفوز.

It turns out that in order to become resistant to even just a few species of phages, اتضح أنه لكي تصبح مقاومة حتى لعدد قليل من أنواع العاثيات،

bacteria have to give up their resistance to antibiotics. يجب على البكتيريا أن تتخلى عن مقاومتها للمضادات الحيوية.

We might be able to trap them in a catch-22. قد نكون قادرين على محاصرةهم في فخ 22.

This has already been successfully tested with a patient who had no other hope left وقد تم بالفعل اختبار هذا بنجاح مع مريض لم يعد لديه أي أمل آخر

The bacteria 'Pseudomonas Aeruginosa', one of the most feared bacteria, infected the man's chest cavity. أصابت بكتيريا "Pseudomonas Aeruginosa"، وهي واحدة من أكثر أنواع البكتيريا إثارة للخوف، تجويف صدر الرجل. A bactéria 'Pseudomonas Aeruginosa', uma das bactérias mais temidas, infectou a cavidade torácica do homem.

They are naturally resistant to most antibiotics فهي مقاومة بشكل طبيعي لمعظم المضادات الحيوية

and can even survive an alcoholic hand gel. ويمكنه حتى أن يتحمل هلام اليد الكحولي. e pode até sobreviver a um gel alcoólico para as mãos.

After years of suffering, a few thousand phages were directly inserted into his chest cavity وبعد سنوات من المعاناة، تم إدخال بضعة آلاف من العاثيات مباشرة في تجويف صدره

together with antibiotics the bacteria were immune to. جنبا إلى جنب مع المضادات الحيوية كانت البكتيريا محصنة ضدها.

After a few weeks, the infections had completely disappeared. وبعد أسابيع قليلة اختفت الالتهابات تماما.

Unfortunately, this treatment is still experimental and pharma companies are still reluctant to invest the necessary billions ولسوء الحظ، لا يزال هذا العلاج تجريبيًا ولا تزال شركات الأدوية مترددة في استثمار المليارات اللازمة Infelizmente, esse tratamento ainda é experimental e as empresas farmacêuticas ainda estão relutantes em investir os bilhões necessários

in a treatment that has no official approval yet. في علاج لم يحصل على موافقة رسمية حتى الآن.

But things are finally changing. لكن الأمور تتغير في النهاية.

In 2016, the largest phage clinical trial to date began and phages are getting more and more attention. في عام 2016، بدأت أكبر تجربة سريرية للعاثيات حتى الآن، وتحظى العاثيات باهتمام متزايد. Em 2016, o maior ensaio clínico de fagos até hoje começou e os fagos estão recebendo cada vez mais atenção.

and we better get used to it because the era in which antibiotics have been our super weapon is drawing to a close. ومن الأفضل أن نعتاد على ذلك لأن العصر الذي كانت فيه المضادات الحيوية سلاحنا الفائق يقترب من نهايته. e é melhor nos acostumarmos com isso porque a era em que os antibióticos têm sido nossa super arma está chegando ao fim.

It might be a weird concept but injecting the deadliest being on planet Earth قد يكون مفهومًا غريبًا ولكنه يحقن أكثر الكائنات فتكًا على كوكب الأرض

directly into our bodies could save millions of lives مباشرة في أجسادنا يمكن أن ينقذ حياة الملايين

This video was made possible by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation أصبح هذا الفيديو ممكنا بفضل منحة من مؤسسة بيل وميليندا جيتس Este vídeo foi possível graças a uma doação da Fundação Bill & Melinda Gates

If you'd like to support Kurzgesagt, you can do so on patreon.com/Kurzgesagt and get fancy things in return. إذا كنت ترغب في دعم Kurzgesagt، فيمكنك القيام بذلك على patreon.com/Kurzgesagt والحصول على أشياء فاخرة في المقابل. Se você gostaria de apoiar o Kurzgesagt, você pode fazê-lo em patreon.com/Kurzgesagt e receber coisas extravagantes em troca.