Today’s OMG WE’RE TOTALLY DOOMED (unless you give up your freedom and money to Government) moment
Climate change could lead to more infections from parasitic worms
Fossil records suggest that there could be another consequence of climate change and rising sea levels: an increase in parasitic worm infections.
Scientists at the University of Missouri-Columbia and the University of Bologna studied clams collected in northern Italy that date back to the Holocene Epoch, a time when the planet was warming up after the Ice Age. Parasitic worms called trematodes, also known as flukes and flatworms, would attempt to feed on these ancient clams and the clams would respond by developing pits to keep them out.
By looking at the pits, the researchers learned that the presence of trematodes increased during relatively short periods of sea level rise.
“Based on what we know of these sediments, these were processes happening on the scale of hundreds of years, rather than thousands,” said John Huntley, a paleontologist at Mizzou.
Of course, despite some further doomy discussion in the article and from Mr. Huntley, we learn
However, researchers haven’t figured out how sea level rise could increase infections from parasitic worms. Huntley’s team recently received a grant from the National Science Foundation to help understand that connection.
The seas go up, the seas go down. What caused the last glaciation period to end, leading to a massive sea rise? And why can’t the current warm period be mostly/solely caused by the same?
Old news… Scientists have been observing the changing distribution of pathogens and their vectors (e.g., ticks) with global warming. For example, more tropical diseases are showing up in the southern US as the local climates change, as predicted.
There is the possibly overwrought concern that the melting permafrost will release potential new pathogens that humans haven’t seen before.
It’s clear that the warming planet will change the ways that humans and societies will interact with the environment and each other.
Understandable since the study was from Mizzou.
It already has – they suck up government funds to produce predetermined results.
Or it could possibly lead to more ridiculous assertions not born out by any facts.