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23 July 2020
Reduction of Ice Extent in Arctic Region Cause PDV Transmission Between Arctic and Pacific Region
This article focuses on reduction of sea ice extent in Arctic region which is caused by climate change might introduce many diseases that are locked in Arctic to sub-Arctic regions. The virus they track is called Phocine distemper disease (PDV), and it is a pathogen that majorly causes high rate of mortality in European harbor seals of northern Atlantic Ocean.
22 July 2020
The Four Corners Outbreak of 1993
In May, 1993 a 19-year old man suddenly developed shortness of breath while driving through the Four Corners region in New Mexico. He had complained of fever and muscle pain a few days before, but generally was in good health. By the time he pulled over and paramedics arrived, he had gone into respiratory failure and later died from an acute pulmonary edema in the emergency department of Gallup Indian Medical Center.
21 July 2020
Debunked Myths about the Bubonic Plague
The Black Death, believed to have been caused by infection with the bacterium Yersinia pestis, killed about 100 million people worldwide in the fourteenth century. However, there is still much that is unknown about this deadly disease, also known as the bubonic plague, and there are still myths about it that continue to be spread. Even though it wiped out a decent portion of Europe all those years ago, if someone were to contract the disease today it no longer means death thanks to modern medicine.
20 July 2020
Pigs: Mixing pots for influenza
I was recently reading an article on Healthline.com that discussed a new form of swine flu that was recently discovered in China. The new strain is called G4, and it has come to researcher’s attention after being discovered in Chinese pigs.
17 July 2020
Research Suggests Leprosy to be a Zoonosis, The Reservoir: Armadillos
Leprosy, renamed Hansen’s Disease, is a chronic condition caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium leprae (M. leprae). The disease primarily targets the skin and peripheral nerves, however new forms of the bacteria have also been found to affect other areas such as the eyes, testicles, and bones. An individual, once infected, typically shows an incubation period of three to seven years.
16 July 2020
Anthrax, a cool band name but devastating to reindeer
Anthrax, also known as Bacillus anthracis, is a gram-positive bacterium that has a very high fatality rate up to 80% when inhaled. This deadly bacterium is now a yearly ticking timebomb in northern Russia every summer, devastating the local wildlife and spreading to humans.
15 July 2020
Tongue worms, they’re not just for reptiles…..humans too!
Tongue worm disease caused by the parasite Linguatula serrata is a blood sucking parasite that belongs to the group Pentastomida. This species generally inhabits the upper respiratory tract of terrestrial, carnivorous vertebrates. It is mainly found in reptiles and bird species.
14 July 2020
Winston Churchill and the Spanish Flu
Winston Churchill is notable one of the most influential people to ever live being recognized for many public policies that he had implemented in England during his time serving in parliament. What is not talked about to a great detail is how he attempted to establish many policies dealing with certain wildlife diseases such as the Spanish flu.
13 July 2020
A Troubling Site: Mass Death of Botswanan Elephant Population
Since early March, there has been mass death among the elephant population in Botswana. The cause? We don’t know. The Botswanan government has ruled out three causes: poison, poaching, and anthrax. Yet, there has been significant question in the government’s handling of elephant mortality.
10 July 2020
Debunking the alleged connection between Lyme disease and Unrelated Conditions
Lyme Disease, or Lyme Borreliosis is a zoonotic disease caused by the Borrelia genus of Bacteria. This bacteria is usually transferred to a human host by the bite of a tick. Lyme disease can effect the host’s neurology and often results in fever, headache, tiredness, various bodily pains, and in some cases memory loss. Lyme disease has proven to be a major problem in the United States, affecting an estimated 300,000 Americans yearly.
The Plainspoken Scientist is the science communication blog of AGU’s Sharing Science program. With this blog, we wish to encourage scientists to reach out to non-scientists and to do so with plainspoken discussion.