INTERESTING ENGINEERING - In a recent study, scientists revealed a fluid-filled sac surrounding our lungs that harbors "potent virus-eating cells." Interestingly, these quickly cross into the lungs during flu infections. These virus-eating cells are called macrophages — immune cells that the body naturally produces. "The name macrophage means 'big eater.' They gobble up bacteria, viruses...
TECH TIMES - A recent scientific inquiry has illuminated a novel function of the fluid-filled sac enveloping our lungs, unveiling its involvement in combating influenza infections. Researchers have identified specialized immune cells known as macrophages within this lung cavity, recognized for their role as virus-eating cells. These macrophages swiftly migrate into the lungs during influenza...
THE NEW YORK TIMES - Over the summer, Lohit Y.T., a river and wetlands specialist at World Wildlife Fund-India, set off with his friends in the drizzly foothills of the Western Ghats in India. They had one goal: to see amphibians and reptiles. But their herpetology hunt turned into a fungus find. Dozens of Rao’s...
EARTH.COM - Researchers at the University of California, Riverside, have made an exciting discovery in the ongoing war between plants and their fungal mold adversaries. In a recent study, the team revealed a novel defense mechanism plants employ against the notorious gray mold, a fungus responsible for extensive damage to a wide array of crops...
POPULAR SCIENCE - While refrigerators store food at safe temperatures and keep it fresh, they can also be a breeding ground for fuzzy gray mold that spoils fruit. Most molds thrive in warm temperatures, but many can grow in the refrigerator by producing spores. The spores can go airborne and accumulate inside the refrigerator and...
POPULAR SCIENCE - Wildfires have a multitude of impacts on an ecosystem. While many are negative, some animals thrive after fire, from the charred remains serving as shelter for insects and small animals like the black-backed woodpecker and spotted owl. In a study published February 6 in the journal Molecular Ecology, researchers from t he...
KESQ - UC Riverside received more than $4 million in federal funds to research methods of shielding avocados from a fungus that can be devastating to crops in California and elsewhere, it was announced today. The U.S. Department of Agriculture awarded the university a $4.4 million grant as part of its National Institute of Food...
THE SCIENTIST - Mycelium is the fabric of fungal populations: fungi produce thread-like roots called hyphae, which branch and fuse with one another to form a vast, interconnected network—the mycelium. It allows fungi to grow rapidly, transport nutrients, and even share information about the local environment over long distances. The network is also vulnerable; a...
Caroline Roper, an associate professor of plant pathology; and Shou-Wei Ding, a professor of plant pathology; are among the 2020 award winners from an international professional organization of plant pathologists. The American Phytopathological Society, or APS, regularly honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the science of plant pathology. Roper and Ding were presented...
LOS ANGELES TIMES - Attention home gardeners: Our beloved citrus trees may yet be saved from the incurable huanglongbing, a.k.a. HLB or citrus greening disease, thanks to natural immunities found in a rare and flavorful relative known as the Australian finger lime. After five years of study, a team of UC Riverside researchers led by...
