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Besides swathes of destroyed vegetation, forest fires in Amazonia leave their imprint on the Amazon River and its tributaries. Incomplete burning of trees results in the production of black carbon, solid particles that enter the waters of the Amazon in the form of charcoal and soot and are transported to the Atlantic Ocean as dissolved organic carbon. For the first time, an international group of researchers have quantified and characterized the black carbon flowing in the Amazon River. Their [...]

Margays (Leopardus wiedii), small wild cats living in forest areas fragmented by agriculture near Campinas and Botucatu in São Paulo State, Brazil, prey on animals inhabiting nearby sugarcane plantations, such as birds and small rodents. The diet of other mammals, such as the herbivorous Wild cavy (Cavia aperea) or the omnivorous Crab-eating fox (Cerdocyon thous), is also influenced by the region's agriculture. They live in areas of native vegetation but often have to seek food in [...]

Water can remain liquid at temperatures far below 0 °C. This phase is known as supercooled and is a current focus for scientific research. A theoretical model developed at São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Brazil shows that in supercooled water, there is a critical point at which properties such as thermal expansion and compressibility exhibit anomalous behavior. Led by Mariano de Souza, a professor in the Physics Department of UNESP’s Institute of Geosciences and Exact [...]

According to a team of researchers affiliated with São Paulo State University (UNESP) in Rio Claro, Brazil, the extinction of South America’s two largest herbivores – the lowland tapir (Tapirus terrestris) and the white-lipped peccary (Tayassu pecari) – would cause a significant decrease in forest diversity throughout the continent. The results of experiments that began ten years ago showed that plant communities are more diversified in areas where both species are [...]

Brazil contains the largest expanse of tropical ecosystems within protected areas, but a significant proportion of these reserves may be vulnerable to the effects of ongoing global climate change, according to a study supported by São Paulo Research Foundation – FAPESP and published in the journal Conservation Biology. The study analyzed the vulnerability to climate change of 993 protected areas throughout Brazil, covering all areas of more than 50 square kilometers (km²), [...]

Larvae of a fungus gnat found in Iporanga, São Paulo State, Brazil, have bioluminescent properties previously observed only in species native to North America, New Zealand and Asia; this study paves the way for new biotech applications Brazilian researchers have discovered a new species of fungus gnat (Keroplatidae) whose larvae emit blue light. The small fly inhabits an Atlantic Rainforest reserve in São Paulo State. This is the first record of a blue bioluminescent species in [...]

Tricking fungi into thinking they're starving could be the key to slowing down our evolutionary arms race with fungal pathogens, as hungry fungi don't want to have sex. That's the conclusion from new research at the University of Bath which for the first time characterised a group of receptors unique to fungi, which prevent them from reproducing sexually. The research team, from the University of Bath and University of São Paulo - Ribeirão Preto, believe these [...]

A report published in PLOS ONE describes key roles of various microorganisms in the development of the larvae of Scaptotrigona depilis. Researchers warn that this symbiotic relationship is threatened by the indiscriminate use of pesticides. A study published in PLOS ONE shows that the larvae of the Brazilian stingless bee Scaptotrigona depilis depend on interactions between three different species of fungus to complete their development and reach adulthood. The complex process of symbiosis [...]

Oxide plays a key role in cardiovascular and neurodegenerative diseases as well as cancer; experiments reveal a hitherto unknown mechanism underlying the formation of nitroso thiols Ever since three US-based researchers working independently unveiled the role of nitric oxide in mediating blood vessel dilation, endothelial cell contraction and smooth muscle relaxation, their discoveries have served as a basis for novel treatments for high blood pressure and erectile dysfunction, among other [...]