Stay ConnectedEver wonder how we genetically modify mosquitoes? Curious about the parasites? Have questions about how tick bites cause meat allergies? Tiny Vampires is a show about insects that transmit disease and the scientists that are fighting them. Each episode is guided by questions sent in by listeners. The question is answered with background information and the story of how scientists were able to shine a light on that particular mystery.
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The African continent was declared polio-free just a couple of days ago, which means that we are, once again, coming close to eradicating it from the globe. Yet, in 2014 children started to go limp, losing control over their arms and legs over the course of weeks, this polio-like condition is called Acute Flaccid Myelitis. Since then, there has been a larger and larger outbreak of the condition every other year, and that’s not the only strange thing about it.
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The CDC has a catalog of 537 viruses that are transmitted by insects or their relatives around the world. This number can be overwhelming and scary but the more we learn about the world of obscure viruses the better we’re equipped to fight them.
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The symbol for medicine, a serpent wrapped around a staff, is displayed on everything from the World Health Organization logo to your doctor’s name tag, depicts the treatment of a single disease, the removal of a Guinea Worm from the patient by slowly wrapping it around a stick over the course of days. This disease is famous for another reason, it is about to be the second disease eradicated from the face of the earth.
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A truck slowly drives by your house at night with a cloud of fog coming out from behind it. It might seem creepy but that fog is effectively synthetic chrysanthemums water that is engineered to target mosquitoes based on their flight patterns.
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Bloodsuckers can be hijacked by viruses and parasites, but some ticks are lethal all on their own. The Australian Paralysis tick paralyzes 10 thousand dogs and cats a year. We didn’t know how their venom worked until some researchers squirted some mouthwash on some ticks and made a discovery.
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Author and fly researcher Dr. Erica McAlister helps bust myths about mosquitoes and other flies
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Who needs bug spray when you have phone apps, bug zappers, barbecue grill sized rigs to keep the mosquitoes away? Mosquito control devices might hurt your bank account but their worth it...right?
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You may have heard of mosquitoes, ticks, fleas, and lice but there are other blood suckers out there, like tsetse flies, floor maggots, toe fleas, and kissing bugs. The race of the victims may have everything to do with the reason you have never heard of them.
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After a little girl was bit by a new, exotic, and dangerous insect in Delaware the media began to speculate, but after a closer look we find there is a much mundane story, that has a lot to do with insect feces.
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The lives of organisms in an ecosystem are intimately intertwined. When an entire tropical forest is chopped down the ripple from that destruction can end with new diseases being introduced into humanity.
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