Science news out of Latin America
Originally published in Spanish in July 2012. Colombia has lost 50 percent of its glaciers in the last fifty years. Today, six glaciers remain nestled among the highest peaks of the three mountain ranges that traverse the country. Scientists are scrambling to monitor and explain the rising atmospheric temperatures and changing weather patterns that have … Continue reading Colombia’s disappearing glaciers
ANTARCTICA Brazil will rebuild the scientific base that burned down last year on King George Island in Antarctica. It will cover 4,500 square meters and include 17 laboratories for 64 people. ARGENTINA Researchers at the National University of Salta have developed low-cost solar water heaters for use by indigenous communities in the region. In addition, … Continue reading Engineering technology for health in Mexico, developing new food flours in the Dominican Republic, and biodiversity in Costa Rica
ANTARCTICA
A team of scientists has determined that a major cause of melting corresponds to the bottom of submerging ice shelves.
Researchers drilling to the bottom of Lake Hodgson of Antarctica have found microorganisms that date back 100,000 years. DNA studies will soon determine whether these findings are an unknown species.
ARGENTINA
A University of Mendoza study has demonstrated the neuroprotective effects of progesterone and their possible application as treatment for Parkinson’s disease. This research was commended by the Society of Biology of the Cuyo.
A team of researchers from the Universidad Nacional del Litoral has isolated bacteria from infant feces and breast milk for use in probiotics. The team’s intention is to grow up these microorganisms to commercial quantities so they can be incorporated into the daily glass of milk in low-income schools.
ARGENTINA
More and more Argentine scientists are following the lead of researchers that have used DNA to store texts, audios and pictures in sequences that were then inserted into bacteria. Scientists at the Universidad Argentina de la Empresa were able to store the first verses of the Argentine national anthem in a bacterium.
A transgenic orange plant was developed at the UBA that is resistant to citrus canker caused by the Xanthomonas bacteria. This plant bears a frog gene that confers antimicrobial properties.
CHILE
The 750 DECam megapixel camera, part of the Dark Energy Survey (DES ) and installed in the Victor M. Blanco telescope in Cerro Tololo, Chile will map one eighth of the sky to find out why there is accelerated expansion of our universe. The DES officially started August 31.
A Chilean-German diving project is forming with the aim of exploring Antarctic waters to document wildlife.
COLOMBIA
A Colombian physicist is part of
ARGENTINA
Scientists, patients and government entities in Argentina have reached an agreement to legislate stem cell therapies. The law “should address the scientific and therapeutic aspects of these cellular tools, always from a bioethical perspective, while guaranteeing the health protection of citizens,” stated Lino Brarañao, Argentina’s Minister of Science and Technology.
Recently, Argentina’s Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries passed a resolution for the evaluation of genetically modified crops like sugarcane and potatoes. This measure will allow two national institutions to progress in obtaining glyphosate tolerant sugarcase.
Argentine companies are working on breeding programs to increase protein levels in the soybean.
BOLIVIA
An international group of scientists led by Italian geographer Umberto Lombardo and Bolivian archaeologist José Capriles found in the Bolivian Amazon evidence of humans dating back 10,400 years. Their analysis concludes that hunter-gatherers settled there in the early Holocene. The work was published in the journal Plos One.
Yasuní is the most biologically diverse place on Earth. But do we value more the oil it sits on top of? Continue reading Ecuador’s Yasuni National Park in the age of synthetic biology
