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By André Julião | Agência FAPESP – In an article published in the journal Ecography, a group of Brazilian researchers reports the results of a review of the scientific literature on reptiles published between 1960 and 2021, considering the more than 11,000 species described since the eighteenth century. According to the authors, who are affiliated with the Federal University of Goiás (UFG) and the State University of Campinas (UNICAMP), 15% of the articles [...]

A novel process described in an article published in the journal Electrochemistry Communications converts nitrogen and hydrogen to ammonia (NH 3) at ambient temperature and pressure with high energy efficiency. Ammonia, a gas composed of nitrogen and hydrogen, is the world's most synthesized molecule and is used in agriculture as well as many production processes. It does not emit CO 2 when burned and is expected to become a next-generation fuel as it contains properties ideally suited [...]

Researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil have developed a kraft paper-based electrochemical sensor that can detect traces of pesticides in fruit and vegetables in real time when coupled to an electronic device. In an apple or cabbage, for example, it can detect carbendazim, a fungicide widely used in Brazil despite being banned. The results are reported in an article published in the journal Food Chemistry. "To find out whether a food sample contains traces [...]

A swathe of the Amazon Rainforest almost twice the size of Luxembourg was destroyed by fire between 2003 and 2019. The area is in the southwest of Amazonas state, in Brazil's North region, and includes parts of nine municipalities with some of the worst sustainable development indicators in the country. Deforestation had been increasing in the area, largely owing to illegal logging and other activities linked to agriculture along two highways that run through it. A swathe of the Amazon [...]

A group of researchers supported by FAPESP analyzed 192 news reports published on the internet between 2011 and 2021 on Brazilian deer species (Cervidae) in order to find out whether news of threats to these animals matched the actual risk of their extinction. A group of researchers supported by FAPESP analyzed 192 news reports published on the internet between 2011 and 2021 on Brazilian deer species (Cervidae) in order to find out whether news of threats to these animals matched the actual [...]

Despite similarities with other Neotropical biomes like the Caatinga (a mosaic of scrub with patches of seasonally dry forest in Northeast Brazil) and Cerrado (savanna in Central Brazil), the Gran Chaco, or simply Chaco, is globally unique. Located mainly in Bolivia and Argentina, with patches in Brazil and Paraguay, the region is the world's largest continuous dry tropical forest. Snakes must adapt in various ways to survive there. Sheltering from the sun and climbing trees are [...]

An article published in the Journal of Proteome Research by researchers at the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) and Butantan Institute in Brazil reports the findings of a study that characterized for the first time the venom of the orange-banded tarantula (Acanthoscurria juruenicola), a species of mygalomorph spider native to the Brazilian Amazon. Some of the toxins identified have potential applications as active ingredients in pharmaceuticals and biological [...]

A study published in The ISME Journal identified 522 genomes of archaea and bacteria associated with the roots and soil of two plant species native to the Brazilian montane savanna ecoregion known as campos rupestres ("rocky meadows"). Hundreds of microorganisms hitherto unknown to science were identified, showing that the ecoregion is a biodiversity hotspot and that many new organisms have yet to be described and classified in Brazil. A study published in The ISME [...]

Heavy metals such as lead and cadmium are present in batteries, cosmetics, food and other things that are part of everyday life. They are toxic when they accumulate in the human organism, potentially causing several health problems, but detecting them in body fluids requires expensive equipment and a controlled laboratory environment. Researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil have now developed a portable sensor made of simple materials to detect heavy metals in sweat, [...]