Biology Current Events for Kids

It's hard to keep up with developments that are taking place every minute, what with technology advancing at breakneck speed. Every gadget seems to become obsolete the minute I buy it, and a newer, better, faster version always seems available - I have now officially given up. Much like the world of technology, or perhaps part of the world of technology, considering modern methods of research, the scientific world continuously evolves, changing, learning, growing with every new discovery. While it may not be possible to stay abreast with all the latest developments, some of the most noteworthy news in the world of biology, follows below.

Current Events

The following snippets are just a few of the many many developments in biology. The topics below are just a few newsworthy events of interest that hit the science headlines.

Zebra Fish to be the New Guinea Pigs
Zebra fish could now provide an opportunity to study the intricacies of the human immune system, according to a study carried out by scientists in the University of California, San Diego. The reported findings identified dendritic cells, units of the mammalian immune system, in zebra fish. David Traver, who headed the study, said that the version of these cells found in zebra fish that were studied, had all the characteristics of dendritic cells. The discovery of these cells in zebra fish could open up new opportunities to understand the working of the immune system, since the workings of immune system cells are essentially the same, though the species are different. Earlier findings had reported the presence of T and B lymphocytes, integral units of the human immune system in zebra fish, but the findings of dendritic cells had not previously been documented. Zebra fish are translucent, which makes tracking the changes and the workings of the system that much easier, in addition, they reproduce rapidly, allowing for the study of genetic mutations that take place. Perhaps it's time for the fish to replace guinea pigs?

Why Alcoholics Relapse
Both alcoholics and recovering alcoholics, may suffer from an increase in levels of circulating cortisol, which over time, may have detrimental effects on neurological functioning and cognitive abilities. Researchers are of the opinion that concentrations of corticosterone in the brain remain elevated for long periods even after abstinence from alcohol, when blood concentration has returned to normal. In attempting to understand why alcoholics relapse even after prolonged periods, what has been observed is that conditioning of the brain, lead to signals or stimuli that promote the craving for alcohol, in addition to withdrawal symptoms (sleep disorders, anxiety, feeling sick) that are common among recovering alcoholics or patients in alcohol rehab. The elevated levels of cortisol in the brain may have a direct impact on the strength of the stimuli and the severity of the symptoms of withdrawal, and the fact that the levels stay elevated for extended periods of time, may explain why relapse occurs after periods of sobriety. This understanding can help in the treatment of alcohol abuse, by prescribing medication to lower cortisol levels, that will help in continued abstinence.

Marine Biology
Current events in marine biology continued to be focused on the BP oil disaster that was caused by the explosion of a drilling rig in the Gulf of Mexico leading to close to 5 million barrels of crude oil, being released into the ocean, in which 11 people were killed and 17 others injured. This oil spill is one of the worst in the history of the petroleum industry and the effects on marine life, devastating. Though the actual explosion occurred on the 20th of April, 2010, the damage to marine life has far reaching effects - it took 85 days for the leaking to stop, which was done by capping the gushing oil head. The fact that oil sightings began by June, when it was washed up on beaches in Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi and Florida made this incident one of the most debated current events in oceanography. This oil spill has been named an environmental disaster - hundreds of endangered species are at risk, including the endangered Green Turtle, Loggerhead Turtle and the Kemp's Ridley Turtle. Close to 5000 dead animals have been collected so far.

The current events in marine biology will cease to be 'current' very soon, and become but a tiny speck among the many newsworthy developments that defined biology events for the year, but the effects are far from over. While some of the happenings bring us closer to help and healing, disasters like the BP oil spill have far reaching consequences that will no doubt haunt us and the coming generation for years to come. Efforts continue to contain the destruction and protect and preserve wildlife and habitat, but the damage is extensive. The irony of advancement in medical findings that advance the longevity of human life pitted against human mistakes that cause such devastation to animals and their habitat never ceases to amaze me. Let's hope next year will be a better one.