Microbe Mythbuster from Microbiology: A Laboratory Experience by Holly Ahern is available under a Creative Commons
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Microbe Myth Buster Project

Irrationally held truths may be more harmful than reasoned errors.

Thomas H. Huxley

What is Truth?

Truth is a philosophical construct whose meaning has been debated since humans invented

language. That’s not the focus of this endeavor.

This project is more about reason, also a philosophical construct. Reason provides a path for

pondering the truth. According to some, truth results when people apply reason appropriately

about an issue at hand. This is the goal of science.

Maybe you have recently heard a claim about a nutritional supplement or seen an advertisement

for a pharmaceutical drug touting amazing benefits if you take it and wondered if you should. Or

you thought about the health risks associated with getting a COVID-19 vaccine, or considered

taking a probiotic because your cousin’s friend said you should? How can you know what would

be best for you?

There exists a vast body of scientific studies conducted on an infinite number of topics in science

and medicine that is published in scholarly journals and stored in searchable databases. By

conducting an organized review of the published research on the topic and applying “appropriate

reason,” you can decide for yourself what would be best for you, rather than relying on advice

from ads or people you may or may not know.

The conduct of scientific research is guided by practices collectively referred to as the scientific

method, in which experiments are designed to test a hypothesis. In a perfect world, experiments

are carefully designed to ensure that the data collected, and the results derived from them are

objective and without bias. If the results are significant, the science gets published in a peer-

reviewed journal as a way to communicate the findings to other interested people. Volumes of

journals have historically been stored in libraries, where articles contained therein could be read

and copied if relevant. It is no longer necessary to hunt through dusty “stacks” of print journals to

find a scientific article, because a huge number are now “open access” or available electronically

through a library interface.

There are differences between articles published in scholarly journals and those in other types of

publications, and the major difference is peer-review. It’s important to note that use of the term

“publication” includes papers published in electronic form as well as in print.

You should view a short video available at Scholarly and Popular Sources, which explains how to

tell the difference between a source reference from a scholarly publication and one published in

the popular media.

For this project, you will select a microbiology-themed topic that you may have heard about before

starting the project. You will investigate your topic, and you will write a 2-3-page paper that

debunks the myth surrounding the topic.

Before doing any research, reflect on and then write down your first impressions and

personal views about the topic you’ve been selected. If you are unfamiliar with the idea, or

even if you feel you understand it well, do a little background searching of the topic using popular

sources and search engines (such as Google and Wikipedia) to gather background information

before embarking on your scholarly search.

The great enemy of the truth is very often not the lie, deliberate, contrived, and dishonest,

but the myth, persistent, persuasive and unrealistic.

John F. Kennedy

Debunk the Myths, Support the Truth

So much of what you hear on the evening news related to discovery in science and medicine

comes from research conducted at universities and medical colleges. The funding for this

research may come from government sources and is therefore paid for by the taxpaying public.

However, given the limited size of the pot, research is also conducted by private companies who

then profit from research that culminates in a profit-bearing product. When research leads to

publication in a “highly ranked” journal (ranked according to the journal’s “impact factor,” based

on the number of times articles published in the journal are cited as a reference in other

publications), a brief description of the study and its outcome are released to the popular media

for reporting to the general public. Sometimes government policy is developed using published

studies as a foundation for legislation.

Scholarly and non-scholarly reporting of scientific discovery means that people today have the

unprecedented opportunity to make informed decisions about things that may affect their lives.

However, it also provides fertile ground for the dissemination of information designed to “market”

the idea to gain popular support. Once entrenched in the public conscience, misapplied “facts”

may become “myths”—persistent, persuasive, and unrealistic. How do you tell the difference?

For this project, you will investigate whether a common microbiology idea is scientifically

conceived and the degree to which it is “true,” by evaluating and reporting on research published

in scholarly journals. The components to be included in your report are specified below.

1. Review popular opinion and develop a thesis

Use the Microbe Myth Buster Topics list to select your myth buster subject. Once you

know your myth buster subject, look for background information and opinions among sources

that are not considered “scholarly.” This includes popular press sources such as

newspapers, magazines, internet sources, or even friends and family.

From your accumulated knowledge on the topic, develop a thesis on the topic, and assert

what you think about it in a thesis statement—a one or two sentence prediction of what you

believe to be true. The thesis statement should be focused and specific enough to be

provable within the boundaries of your investigation.

As you search for the “reason” to back up the “truth,” you may find that your thesis can’t be

supported by the available scientific evidence. However, you have to be flexible, objective,

and honest when you construct and conduct your search of the scientific literature and not

just look for ways to make your opinion seem true.

2. Search the scholarly literature

Scientists who think their research is significant communicate the results through publication

in scientific journals. Most medical and scientific organizations publish journals related to a

professional field—the American Society for Microbiology, for example, publishes several

journals such as Applied and Environmental Microbiology and Journal of Clinical

Microbiology, among others. Manuscripts submitted to scientific journals are sent to a panel

of other scientists, who review them for scientific legitimacy and integrity. This ensures that

the data and results are obtained from carefully designed, reproducible experiments, and the

conclusions are evidence-based. Once they are peer-reviewed and approved, they are

incorporated into a volume of the journal and published.

It is important to consider that in a perfect world, using science and the scientific method to

understand nature is a logical, objective, and totally unbiased process, that peer-reviewers

are always honest, and that peer-reviewed articles represent the “truth.” As several recent

high-profile cases illustrate, in which published studies have been “retracted” due to fraud on

the part of the researchers and/or their reviewers, the process isn’t perfect. This is particularly

true when the financial or personal stakes are high.

Once you have developed your thesis statement, the next step is to look for published

research studies pertaining to your topic. You can refer to the UMGC Online Guide to Writing

and Research or to How to Find Scholarly Articles Online article for a concise overview of

how to construct and conduct a search for scholarly articles on a topic of interest.

For this project, you will find that the UMGC library is an excellent resource. Through the

library, you will have access to huge databases containing millions of scholarly articles.

Therefore, a good starting point would be to enlist the assistance of a UMGC librarian, who

can tell you what article databases are available and can help you construct your search.

Librarians are particularly helpful when it comes to deciding on the right words or phrases,

so that your search yields a manageable number of returns, not too few or too many.

Be objective when you decide on which articles to read further. Don’t limit yourself to only

those that agree with your thesis 100%. Peruse the abstract, and if it sounds like the article

will be relevant to your idea, download the entire article (full text) and read the full content.

3. Create an annotated bibliography of selected scholarly articles

At this point you have (hopefully) browsed through a large list of articles pertaining to your

subject. For those that you decided to read in greater depth, prepare a bibliography using

APA format (some of the databases you use will actually write the citation for you – the

librarian can help you locate and access the citation application if it exists for the database

you choose).

You should provide citations for all the articles you selected (you are required to use at least

5 scholarly articles for this project). Of those you include in the bibliography, select three of

the articles that you feel exemplify your idea, and write a brief annotation to accompany the

citation. “Annotated” means that after the citation, write a brief one to two paragraph summary

of the objectives and outcomes of the research presented in the article. The final sentence

of the summary should discuss how the article relates to your thesis. An example of an

annotated reference is shown below (the citation format is APA).

Fava, F., Lovegrove, J. A., Gitau, R., Jackson, K. G., & Tuohy, K. M. (2006) The gut

microbiota and lipid metabolism: Implications for human health and coronary heart

disease. Current Medicinal Chemistry, 13, 3005-3021.

Summary: Coronary heart disease (CHD) is the leading cause of mortality in Western society,

affecting about one third of the population before their seventieth year. This article reviews the

modifiable risk factors associated with CHD and discusses the hypothesis that diets rich in

sources of dietary fiber and plant polyphenols promote better coronary health. Plant fibers are

metabolized by the gut microflora and are converted into biologically active compounds that are

complementary to human metabolism. Metabolism of plant fibers by the gut microflora may

prevent or otherwise beneficially impact impaired lipid metabolism and vascular dysfunction that

typifies CHD and type II diabetes. Overall, this article supports my thesis that the bacteria in the

human gut make positive contributions to a person’s overall good health.

4. Write a summary and conclusion

Paper (2-3 pages): In a paragraph (or two), summarize the scope of the project, the idea

you are investigating, and restate your thesis. In two to four paragraphs, summarize the

research that you discovered in your search of the scholarly literature, being sure to include

the appropriate citation for each reference. In a final paragraph (or two), compare and

contrast the non-scholarly information with what you learned from your search of the science,

and discuss whether the scientific evidence was in support of your thesis, or if the evidence

did not support your view. Consider whether you are sticking with your thesis or if you want

to change it, and what amendments might be appropriate based on the scientific evidence.