Category: Uncategorized

REBUTTAL #3: "We do not agree with Brenner's criticism of Erwin Schrödinger for his statement that "chromosomes act as an “architect’s plan and builder’s craft in one”. The claim that chromosomes just represent a code script is wrong as chromosomes contain DNA sequences as well as proteins and RNA molecules. In fact, the amounts of proteins and RNAs are much higher than in DNA." https://lnkd.in/eeiUHXC View in LinkedIn

MIND CONTROL. "During a Gordian worm...infection of a grasshopper...a protein...was differentially expressed in the host’s central nervous system (CNS). This protein is known to be involved in control of geotactic behaviour, suggesting that it may play a role in the observed behaviour." https://lnkd.in/e2g9KSe View in LinkedIn

SUICIDAL HOPPERS. "When the grasshopper hits the water, the worm comes out of its rear end and then swims off to find a mate. The worm is about three or four times longer than the host—it's amazing." (See related video.) http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/09/0901_050901_wormparasite.html View in LinkedIn

PARASITES MAKE SUICIDAL GRASSHOPPERS. "Hairworms, which live inside grasshoppers, pump the insects with a cocktail of chemicals that makes them commit suicide by leaping into water. The parasites then swim away from their drowning hosts to continue their life cycle." http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/09/0901_050901_wormparasite.html View in LinkedIn

EXOTIC LIFE CYCLE. "Uninfected gammarids dive downwards when disturbed and cover themselves in the mud. On the other hand, gammarids infected by parasitic worms glide along the water surface to seek a solid support. This typical clinging behaviour exposes the gammarid to predators such as frogs, fish and birds, which are the parasites’ next host." https://lnkd.in/e2g9KSe View in LinkedIn

PLEASE EAT MY HOST. "Infection by the parasite Pomphorhynchus laevis leads to altered drifting behavior in Gammarus pulex, an intermediate host of P. laevis. This altered behavior increases G. pulex’s predation risk by P. laevis’s definitive host. The induced behavioral alteration in the host thus leads to the parasite’s increased success in completing its life cycle." https://lnkd.in/e4MsheB View in LinkedIn

WHY NATURE. "The more I study nature, the more I become impressed […] that the contrivances and beautiful adaptations [acquired through natural selection] transcend in an incomparable degree [those] which the most fertile imagination of the most imaginative man could suggest with unlimited time at his disposal." (Charles Darwin). https://lnkd.in/eykUy37 View in LinkedIn

FRAGMENT FROM NATURE continues for a second weekend on the subject of parasite-host relationships. This weekend focuses somewhat on host reactions and defenses, as well as the gene targets within hosts for the parasites. For humans, it takes sophisticated research labs to find gene targets. For nature, it takes millions of years of evolution by trial and error. View in LinkedIn

GENE TARGETS FOR PARASITES. "The fact that many pathways underlying particular behavioural traits are highly conserved renders these pathways suitable targets for manipulation by parasites." https://lnkd.in/e4DPgex View in LinkedIn

BEHAVIOR GENES. "In recent years, several genes have been found to play a role in the modulation of specific behaviours, and many pathways of behavioural adaptation appear to be conserved across species and, in some cases, even across phyla. This high degree of conservation has led to the implementation of the candidate gene approach in the field of behavioural genetics." https://lnkd.in/e4DPgex View in LinkedIn