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A pandemic among frogs has been going on worldwide for years—the culprit: a fungal infection that has affected amphibians on nearly every continent.
But now, the discovery of a virus that has evolved to replicate inside this fungus could be the key to saving nearly 500 species of frogs that have experienced declines due to this amphibian pandemic.
Viruses are the smallest organisms we know about, and researchers at Univ. of California, Riverside weren’t out looking for one when they found it embedded in the fungus DNA.
The fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis or Bd, wasn’t prevalent until the late 1990s, when suddenly frogs just started dropping dead all over the world.
“We wanted to see how different strains of fungus differ in places like Africa, Brazil, and the U.S., just like people study different strains of COVID-19,” said UCR microbiology professor Jason Stajich.
To do this, Stajich and colleagues used DNA sequencing technology. As they examined the data, they noticed some sequences that did not match the DNA of the fungus.
Continued below.
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
But now, the discovery of a virus that has evolved to replicate inside this fungus could be the key to saving nearly 500 species of frogs that have experienced declines due to this amphibian pandemic.
Viruses are the smallest organisms we know about, and researchers at Univ. of California, Riverside weren’t out looking for one when they found it embedded in the fungus DNA.
The fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis or Bd, wasn’t prevalent until the late 1990s, when suddenly frogs just started dropping dead all over the world.
“We wanted to see how different strains of fungus differ in places like Africa, Brazil, and the U.S., just like people study different strains of COVID-19,” said UCR microbiology professor Jason Stajich.
To do this, Stajich and colleagues used DNA sequencing technology. As they examined the data, they noticed some sequences that did not match the DNA of the fungus.
Continued below.
Fungus Devastating Frogs on Nearly Every Continent May Have an Achilles Heel–and Scientists Think it Could Save the Amphibians
A pandemic among frogs has been going on worldwide for years—the culprit: a fungal infection that has affected amphibians on nearly every continent. But now, the discovery of a virus that has evolved to replicate inside this fungus could be the key to saving nearly 500 species of frogs that have...
www.goodnewsnetwork.org
