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Bunker Bats
Posted by Dr. Dolittle on May 9, 2013 Scientists in Maine have converted two Cold War bunkers at Loring Air Force Base into winter havens for bats in an effort to protect the animals from the fungus that causes white nose syndrome. What is nice about using a man-made space is that they can actually clean up the area as opposed to trying to kill…
What bats might be able to teach us about AIDS
Posted by Dr. Dolittle on December 10, 2012 With an estimated 6.7 million bat deaths related to white nose syndrome, understanding this devastating disease is more important than ever. Wildlife Pathologist Carol Meteyer, from the USGS National Wildlife Health Center, has been studying the carcasses of bats that survived white nose syndrome infections, only to succumb to their own immune systems. The overactive immune response…
New rabies vaccine: vampire bats?
Posted by Dr. Dolittle on August 4, 2012 Researchers have discovered six people living in remote areas of Peru (Truenococha and Santa Marta) with natural antibodies against rabies despite never having received a vaccination for this deadly virus. They hypothesize that vampire bats actually transmitted small doses of the virus to people over time creating the natural antibodies. All six individuals reported having been exposed to the…