Disrupting snail food-chain curbs parasitic disease in Senegal

In this episode:00:45 A sustainable solution for schistosomiasis controlSchistosomiasis is a serious parasitic disease that affects millions of people, who become infected when they come into contact with contaminated water. To prevent the spread and reinfection of this disease, researchers trialled an environmental intervention that removed plants from lakes in Senegal. These plants act as food for freshwater snails – intermediate hosts for the disease. Results showed that this reduced disease levels, and that the plants could be composted to increase agricultural yields, suggesting this approach could be used to improve health and the economy.Research article: Rohr et al.News and Views: A sustainable way to control the parasitic disease schistosomiasis12:03 Research HighlightsHow artificial intelligence can predict the art that people will find memorable, and the protein-based, shock-absorbing gel that can stop projectiles in their tracks.Research Highlight: Memorable artworks are easy to predictResearch Highlight: Supersonic ‘bullets’ are softly captured by a protein gel14:52 Briefing ChatWe discuss some highlights from the Nature Briefing. This time, an update on Chandrayaan-3, India’s latest attempt to land a craft on the Moon - and birds that use anti-bird spikes to build nests.Nature News: India's Moon lander successfully launches — but biggest challenge lies aheadThe Guardian: Crows and magpies using anti-bird spikes to build nests, researchers findSubscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.