Opening
Welcome everyone to another episode of 8 minutes of Eww! The place where we use curiosity and science to turn fear into fascination and those ewww’s into Oooo’s. Oh! By the way, I’m your host Ms. Mallory, the Curious Conservationist and self-proclaimed grosslologist. Let’s get started.
Intro
I have a question for you: Have you ever lifted the lid of a trashcan in the middle of summer— or maybe got a bit too close to roadkill— and been repulsed at the sight of small white creatures writhing through the mess? I mean how could anything want to each such gross things? Well, we better be thankful they do because these tiny trash eaters are doing the dirty work that most other living things (you and I included) would never ever think about having to do.
That’s why today we will explore how maggots are doing some pretty cool things: from feeding our pets to solving crimes to even saving lives. So set down those fly swatters and wiggle in because it’s about to get gross..
Section 1: Background
Before we begin putting these pudgy grains of rice on a pedestal, let’s find out what exactly what they are. A maggot is the larva of a fly, just like a caterpillar is the larva of a butterfly or moth. The female lays batches of about 150 eggs at a time and can lay about about 500 to 2,000 eggs in her brief lifetime.
The maggots hatch within a day of the eggs being laid, but some canhatch in as little as 7 hours. Maggots are unable to see actual images, but they have photoreceptors that allow them to see the brightness of their surroundings. They don’t have legs, just clawlike mouthparts and a very big appetite. From the day the hatch, all they want to do is eat and grow. So it isn’t surprising that a maggot can turn into an adult fly in as little as a week, more often it can take a month.
Topic 1: Pet Food
So what do you do with something that grows quickly, doesn’t take a lot to feed, and has a lot of muscle-building protein? Turn it into food, of course! Animal food that is.
You may have heard about using maggots for fish bait, but businesses in South Africa and the United States are turning to these micro packets of protein in to food to make chickens, pigs, even our pets grow big and strong. Most protein in animal feed comes from ocean fish-mainly sardines and herring. But as we know, many fish populations are dropping which is a BIG problem. So instead, these smart farmers are growing maggots by feeding them food waste from restaurants and grocery stores, then mashing them up for pet food. Less trash in landfills and more fish in the ocean. Sounds like a win win to me!
Topic 2: Solving crimes
Speaking on maggots helping animals, did you know they can also help humans solve crimes? Entomology is the study of insects, and forensic entomology studies insects to learn about crime scenes.
And forensic entomology has been used to help solve crimes longer than you may think. . .The first record was by a lawyer in 13th century China that was trying to solve a murder mystery.
By investigating insects at a crime scene, a forensic entomologist (a person that studies forensic entomology) can answer many questions that a detective or investigator might ask.
For instance, the size of a maggot and the stage of life it’s in could tell a forensic entomologist when a certain crime took place and even how it happened.
But maggots aren’t the only creatures helping solve crimes.
Some insects are only found in specific areas, so if an investigator discovered insects that are usually found near water at a crime scene in the desert, it may mean the scene took place at one location but was moved to another location to trick the detectives.
Meanwhile, other insects can help police figure out if a suspect is telling the truth or not. For example, a suspect may claim to have only driven during the day, but evidence of night-flying insects on the suspect’s car would go against this.
Even ticks can be used to help. I am sure we all know ticks drink blood, so if a scientist finds a tick at a crime scene with it’s stomach containing a suspect’s DNA and the suspect has a tick bite on his arm, well then there is strong evidence that person was at the crime scene.
Topic Three: Maggot Debridement therapy
But solving crimes isn’t the only thing these garbage grubs are doing when not feasting on foul-smelling fettuccine. They are saving lives.
Could you imagine a doctor walking in and setting a package full of maggots on your leg? Just the thought may make your skin crawl, but you just might be grateful for this little package if it meant possibly losing that leg. Surprisingly, some species are quite effective at helping wounds heal that can’t be healed with modern medicines. Thankfully the ones being used for medicine are laboratory grown and kept very clean before helping a patient. HAHA. Tiny Ms. Mallory disclaimer, NEVER put any creatures on a wound you may have. Let’s leave wound care to the professionals.
Although you may have never hear of it before, maggot debridement therapy isn’t new technology. One of the most noted events was during World War 1 when Orthopedic surgeon William Baer reported a time when a soldier— who was left for several days on the battlefield with compound fractures of the femur and large flesh wounds— arrived at the hospital with maggots infesting his wounds. (sound effect) Even though the scene would make even the most dedicated field doctor want to hurl, surprisingly the patient didn’t have any signs of infection. Miraculously, he survived his injuries which would normally have been fatal. After the war, the surgeon began using lab-grown maggots at Boston Children's Hospital in Massachusetts to help treat bone and tissue infections that wouldn’t heal. . .and guess what. . it worked!
But why use disgusting maggots (clean or not) on a wound? Well, the reason makes a lot of sense once you uncover the science behind it. You see, maggots are notorious for hanging out on dead things; they love to eat dead and decaying tissue — which makes them perfect for patients with wounds full of necrotic tissue. Necrosis is a medical term for when cells in an organ (like your skin) or muscle die. Oxygen is very important for keeping your cells healthy. When infections gets really bad, oxygen can’t reach the cells in organ and muscle tissue and they begin to die, or turn necrotic. You can usually tell necrotic tissue from healthy tissue by how it looks- necrotic tissue may be leathery, dark (almost blackish) in color, and has horrible, terrible stench. This tissue can cause a lot of problems if not removed, which is where maggots come in.
The maggot of the green bottle fly is preferred because it only eats necrotic tissue and leaves the healthy tissue alone: cleaning out the bad stuff and leaving the good stuff. Now maggots don’t have teeth, instead they have a straw-like mouthpiece used to slurp up their meals. So how do they eat the dead tissue? Their saliva, or spit if you will, is kind of like that of a spider that we learned about in the last episode, it breaks down the tissue into a slurpable soup with the help of digestive enzymes. Not only does the saliva break down the bad tissue, it also helps repair the healthy tissue below with other special enzymes.
But the maggot’s saliva isn’t the only gift it gives. Research has shown that even the medical maggots’ poop can help with healing wounds. Because maggots typically don’t live in the cleanest environments, they’ve evolved to battle dangerous bacteria- inside and out. Not only do the digestive enzymes in their gut kill bacteria and dangerous microbes, but the actual excretions - aka poop and pee- are antimicrobial and antibacterial. What’s even crazier, is that an experiment done in 2007 showed the more bacteria the maggot was exposed to, the more it pumped out this bacteria-killing goo.
Was that enough maggot magic to convince you they are pretty cool?
How about one more gross, but fascinating fact?
Maggots don’t just help clean wounds chemically; they help clean wounds physically too. If you look closely at the little white grubs, you would see that each one is covered in spines and two mouth hooks to help it move. As the larvae wriggle and writhe inside the wound, the tiny spines and mouth-hooks help loosen any stubborn, dead tissue left behind. Again, gross. . .but so cool.
Although thousands of doctors began using maggot therapy after the war, the practice soon became unpopular when antibiotics came around. However, now that new antibiotic-resistant bacteria is preventing wounds from healing, Maggot Debridement therapy is making a comeback
About 20 years ago, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the use of medical maggots in the treatment of wounds. But don’t worry, you won’t have a doctor pouring a pile of maggots on you open wound if ever in need. Understandably, patients and doctors sometimes find maggots distasteful, so the little guys can now be enclosed in special bags to hide them from sight but still able to do their job. These bags are designed to prevent any maggots from escaping, while allowing airflow and minimizing the uncomfortable tickling sensation that the maggots often cause.
Still don’t want maggots near you? Well, lucky for you, a new gel is hitting the market that mimics the medical maggots’ saliva, so you can get all the healing without the creepy crawly feeling.
Outro
Well, my aspiring grossologists, sadly my 8 minutes is up, but before I go I wanted to ask a favor. Your feedback fuels this program. If this episode changes the way you look at maggots or you have a request for another gross,but fascinating topic, please send me a message by clicking the link in the shownotes.
Thanks again for joining me and set those notifications so you don’t miss the next 8 minutes of Eww.