What’s That Growing on Our Palms?

Our hands can transmit infectious agents; what organisms are we carrying? If physicians are like undergraduates, the answer is not simple.

To characterize the microflora on human skin, investigators in two recent studies used sophisticated techniques to examine the prevalence of resident bacteria.

Fierer and colleagues swabbed the right and left palms of 51 undergraduate students, extracted the DNA, and amplified the genes. They found that the average palmar surface harbored more than 150 distinct phylotypes and identified 4742 unique phylotypes among the 102-palm sample. Three phyla accounted for more than 94% of the sequences: Actinobacteria, Firmicutes, and Proteobacteria. The most abundant genus was Propionibacterium, followed by Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, Corynebacterium, and Lactobacillus. These bacteria were found on almost all palms but represented fewer than 65% of…

Reviewing Author

Mark V. Dahl, MD

Disclosures

Consultant / Advisory board Ulthera, Inc.; AuBio LifeSciences, LLC; Paris Therapeutics

Equity Elorac, Inc.; Makucell, Inc.; Paris Therapeutics

Editorial boards UpToDate

Leadership positions in professional societiesNational Rosacea Society (Chairman, Medical Board)