Lip microbiome, SEM
Lip microbiome. Coloured scanning electron micrograph (SEM) of bacteria cultured from a lip. Here the bacteria are attached to a skin cell removed from the lip. When kissing on the lips or cheeks bacteria are exchanged from one person to another. Among humans, approximately 90% of cultures have some type of kissing. Usually it is platonic, such as a parent kissing a child. However, in 46% of all cultures, it can go as far as intimate kissing. A recent scientific study has revealed that on average 80 million bacteria are transferred to the partner during a kiss of 10 seconds. Most partners share a more similar oral microbiome compared to unrelated individuals. Some of the collective bacteria among partners are only transiently present, while others have found a true niche and survive permanently, allowing long-term colonization. Magnification: x1500 when printed at 10cm wide.
Size: 4572px × 3929px
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Photo credit: © STEVE GSCHMEISSNER/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: -pathogenic, bacteria, bacterial, bacterium, biology, biome, colonisation, colonization, coloured, commensal, condition, culture, disease, disorder, electron, false-coloured, infection, intimate, kissing, lip, micro-organisms, microbe, microbes, microbiological, microbiology, microbiome, microbiota, micrograph, microscope, mutualistic, niche, oral, pathogenic, prokaryote, prokaryotic, scanning, sem, skin
