Bison calves have been born in the area that makes up Alberta’s Banff National Park for the first time in 140 years, Parks Canada officials said Tuesday, marking a milestone in attempts to reintroduce a wild herd to the area.

Conservation officers said three calves had been born since Saturday in the remote Panther Valley on the eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains and that seven more were expected.

Western Alberta is dealing with unseasonably cold spring weather, but Bill Hunt, resource conservation manager for Banff National Park, said the calves were well-equipped to deal with harsh conditions.

“Last night, we had 2 to 3 feet (60 to 90 centimeters) of snow, but fortunately bison are very well-adapted, so these little calves drop out, get their legs straightaway, start nursing and do fine,” Hunt said.

Parks Canada released a 16-strong herd of plains bison, including 10 pregnant females, in the country’s oldest national park in February.

They are keeping them under observation until summer 2018, when the animals will be released into the full 460-square-mile (1,189-square-kilometer) reintroduction zone after the females calve again next spring.

Bison herds of up to 30 million animals once migrated freely across North America. The shaggy, hump-shouldered animals, also widely known as buffalo, were nearly hunted to extinction in the late 19th century. Rangers estimate that bison have not grazed in Banff National Park since before it was established in 1885.
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Dating app Tinder is hit or miss for humans, but wildlife conservationists hope it might lead to love for the world’s last male northern white rhino.

The move is seen as a last-ditch effort to keep the species alive.

“I don’t mean to be too forward, but the fate of the species literally depends on me,” the rhino’s profile says. “I perform well under pressure.”

Sudan is 43 years old, weighs nearly 2,270 kilograms and lives in Kenya. And while he has two female companions, they are unable to mate due to age and other limitations.

The campaign to find love for Sudan, called Most Eligible Bachelor by the Kenyan Ol Pejeta Conservancy, which came up with the idea.

While it’s unclear if any potential mates can swipe right on Sudan’s profile, the group hopes the move will raise $9 million for research into breeding methods such as in vitro fertilization.

“We partnered with Ol Pejeta conservancy to give the most eligible bachelor in the world a chance to meet his match,” said Matt David, the head of communications and marketing at Tinder in an interview with the Associated Press. “We are optimistic given Sudan’s profile (it) will be seen on Tinder in 190 countries and over 40 languages.”

Sudan and his two female friends — 17-year-old Najin and 27-year-old Fatu — live at the conservancy protected by 24-hour security.

“The plight that currently faces the northern white rhinos is a signal to the impact that humankind is having on many thousands of other species across the planet,” Richard Vigne, the conservancy’s chief executive officer, told AP. “Ultimately, the aim will be to reintroduce a viable population of northern white rhino back into the wild, which is where their true value will be realized.”
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A type of worm could help solve the growing problem of plastic pollution.

The common wax worm, or Galleria mellonella, researchers say, can eat plastic and could help reduce the waste caused by the one trillion polyethylene plastic bags used around the world annually.

“We have found that the larva of a common insect, Galleria mellonella, is able to biodegrade one of the toughest, most resilient, and most used plastics: polyethylene,” says Federica Bertocchini of the Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology of Cantabria in Spain.

The discovery about the caterpillar’s hunger for plastic was accidental, said Bertocchini, adding that the plastic bags containing the wax worms “became riddled with holes.”

She said the worms can “do damage to a plastic bag in less than an hour.” And after 12 hours, researchers saw “an obvious reduction in plastic mass.

They also found that the worms transformed polyethylene into ethylene glycol, an organic compound used in making polyester fibers as well as antifreeze. It is unclear if the worms produce enough to be commercially viable.

Plastic is not the natural food of the wax worm, but researchers say that since they lay their eggs in beehives, the hatchlings feed on beeswax.

“Wax is a polymer, a sort of ‘natural plastic,’ and has a chemical structure not dissimilar to polyethylene,” Bertocchini says.

Researchers say they still need to better understand how wax is digested, but that finding out could lead to a biotechnological solution to plastic waste.

“We are planning to implement this finding into a viable way to get rid of plastic waste, working towards a solution to save our oceans, rivers, and all the environment from the unavoidable consequences of plastic accumulation,” Bertocchini says. “However,” she adds, “we should not feel justified to dump polyethylene deliberately in our environment just because we now know how to biodegrade it.”

The study was published in the journal Current Biology.
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India is plundering the land of its indigenous people to profit from mining, with little regard of the devastation caused to poor tribal communities, said an Indian land rights activist who won the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize on Monday.

Prafulla Samantara, 66, from India’s eastern state of Odisha is one of six winners of the annual prize — often known as the “Green Nobel” — which honors grassroots activists for efforts to protect the environment, often at their own risk.

Samantara, recognized by the Goldman jury for winning a 12-year legal battle to stop a multi-national firm mining bauxite on tribal lands, said he was honored by the award but voiced concern at the continued mining threats faced by India’s tribes.

“The state has a history of not honoring legal protections of indigenous people in the constitution. Corporate influence and the promise of profits continues to tempt the government to disregard indigenous people’s rights,” Samantara told the Thomson Reuters Foundation in an interview.

“The mining-based industry has become priority for the government and the global market, but it does not support the common people. They are often led to believe that mining is for their own benefit, but then they are displaced by destructive development.”

India’s tribes make up almost 10 percent of its 1.3 billion population. Yet most live on the margins of society — inhabiting remote villages and eking out a living from farming, cattle rearing and collecting and selling forest produce.

Many live in mineral-rich regions such as Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, and risk being chased off their ancestral land due to a rising number of mining projects.

While their land is protected under a decade-old law known as the Forest Rights Act, few know their rights — leaving them open to exploitation.

Fast-track

Since Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government swept to power almost three years ago, it has taken a pro-business approach by fast-tracking environmental clearances for mining firms in a bid to boost investment, jobs and growth.

The son of a village farmer who went on to college to study economics and then law, Samantara led a battle against the London-headquartered Vedanta Resources which wanted to mine bauxite from a mountain considered sacred by indigenous people in Odisha.

He was kidnapped, assaulted and attacked for his activism against, but in the end, a vote of villagers — which had been ordered by the Supreme Court — rejected the mine.

Samantara — described by the Goldman jury as an “iconic leader” — slammed the government for blocking the foreign funds of thousands of charities, including green groups.

“It is deplorable. Many are fighting legally and are being targeted by the government,” he said.

Despite increasing threats to the environment and to those fighting to protect it, Samantara said he remained optimistic.

“I feel there is a growing threat to the very existence of Mother Earth if man-made destruction of nature is not stopped. But I see a ray of light,” he said.

“Though my contributions may be a drop in the ocean, thousands like me in the world can bring a radical change in thinking and spur action, encouraging a shift from consumption to preservation and conservation for future generations.”

The Goldman Environmental Prize was established in 1989 by San Francisco philanthropists Richard and Rhoda Goldman and provides $175,000 cash award to each individual.

Other winners were Congolese Park Ranger Rodrigue Katembo, Guatemalan land rights activist Rodrigo Tot, Australian family farmer Wendy Bowman, Slovenian organic farmer Uros Macerl and a Los Angeles community organizer by the name of Mark Lopez.

 
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There’s a big difference between practicing dentistry, and finding a way to practice being a dentist. But thanks to the world of virtual reality, dentists-in-training have a new way to practice their craft through the relatively new technology of mixed reality (MR), where the virtual world meets the real world. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports.
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An experimental blood test can quickly and accurately diagnose malaria from other infections, so treatment of the mosquito-borne illness can be started promptly. 

The symptoms of malaria, which strikes an estimated 200 million people around the globe every year, are non-specific.  That means the fever, aches, pains and chills in the early stages could be mistaken for any number of infections. 

Identifying and treating malaria promptly not only increases a patient’s chances of survival, but also helps prevent the disease from spreading to more people.

The blood test, developed by researchers at Stanford University in California, looks for patterns of immune system activation to determine whether a person is infected with the malaria parasite, and not a bacterium or virus.  It is reportedly 96 percent accurate.

Purvesh Khatri, a professor of medicine at Stanford, helped develop the biomarker test, which looks at which genes are switched on or off, depending on the infection.

A simple blood test measuring these immune markers could be helpful in resource-poor settings, according to Khatri. 

“So a test like ours is useful,” he said, “You could take a blood test that would not require an expert technician, and they are more sensitive than the rapid diagnostic test than we have now.”

Khatri notes the current test is not very accurate because it looks for a molecule, called an antigen, that activates an immune response in a malaria infection. 

“And the problem with those are there are not enough antigen,” said Khatri.  “So treatment then [could] be inappropriate and then it could awhile before malaria is diagnosed.”

Khatri and his team drew upon data from 40 studies involving more than 3,000 blood samples from patients with various infections.  Some were known to have malaria.  But there were also other tropical illnesses observed in the studies, including dengue, typhoid and leishmaniasis.

From those blood studies, investigators analyzed the activation of 2,100 different genes, looking at which genes switched on and off with parasitic, viral and bacterial infections.

They found a group of seven genes that were expressed in malaria compared to healthy people and those with other infectious illnesses.

To confirm their discovery, the researchers whittled the samples down to 900, in which they were able to discern the pattern of gene activation unique to malaria with near 100 percent accuracy.

While the experimental blood test is accurate in diagnosing malaria, Khatri says it might also detect other parasitic diseases that researchers have not yet studied.

But he said the blood test could be reliably used in cases where malaria is strongly suspected and confirmation of the disease is needed.

Khatri presented his findings at a meeting of the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases before World Malaria Day this week.
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After an unprecedented global rally in support of science-based policymaking, organizers of last Saturday’s March for Science say the real measure of success will be whether they can translate the event’s enthusiasm into action.

After crowds rallied in Washington and more than 600 other locations around the world April 22, march planners now urge those who participated to go out into their communities and advocate for science.

“WE MARCHED. NOW, WE ACT,” reads the updated March for Science website, which lays out It lays out a week of action. Suggestions for Monday target local engagement: Start science game nights or book clubs, for example. Tuesday calls for contacting policymakers on science issues.

The more than 260 groups that backed the march also are urging their members to stay engaged.

The American Geophysical Union (AGU), which represents 60,000 earth and space scientists, has five weeks of action planned, with a similar strategy: Write your representatives; speak in your community; organize.

Symptom

As a scientist-led movement, the March for Science is unprecedented in its size and reach. It is a symptom of the concern that has been building in the scientific community. Scientists say ideology has overtaken evidence as the basis for policy on climate change, vaccines and much more.

“Certainly, though, recent political events in the U.S. and around the world have heightened that incentive” to mobilize, said AGU Executive Director Chris McEntee. “So, we are seeing larger and larger numbers of our members who want to participate.”

Others are seeing the same thing. The union representing Department of Energy employees says membership has grown 30 percent in the last four months. Advocacy group Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) has added about 3,000 members to its network of scientists, engineers, economists and other experts. The science network now tops 20,000.

“There’s just a lot of energy out there,” said Andrew Rosenberg, director of the UCS Center for Science and Democracy. “People want to know what they can do. And many, many people in the science community realize that retreating to your lab and hoping things go OK is just not sufficient in the current climate.”

Some have decided it’s time they step into the political arena. About 5,000 scientists have announced plans to run for office since the beginning of this year, according to 314 Action, an advocacy group that champions scientists seeking elected office.

“That is five times more than our most optimistic projection,” said Shaughnessy Naughton, who founded 314 Action after an unsuccessful run for Congress in 2016.

Scientists have felt under attack since before the Trump administration, she said. But Trump’s hostility to climate science “certainly has been a catalyst for getting more scientists to say, ‘Enough. I can’t just write another polite letter. I need to step up and get more involved.'”
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U.S. astronaut Peggy Whitson on Monday broke the record for most accumulated time spent in orbit by an American.

Commander Whitson, who is aboard the International Space Station, was congratulated by U.S. President Donald Trump, who spoke to space station astronauts via video.

“Five-hundred thirty-four days and counting. That’s an incredible record to break,” Trump said from the Oval Office. “On behalf of our nation, and frankly on behalf of the world, I’d like to congratulate you.”

WATCH: Trump congratulates Whitson

The 57-year-old Whitson is the most experienced U.S. spacewoman. She is scheduled to return to Earth in September, at which time she will have spent 666 days in space over the course of three flights.

“It’s actually a huge honor to break a record like this,” Whitson told Trump.

The two also discussed the potential for further space travel, including to Mars, which NASA has said it wants to accomplish by the 2030s. However, Trump moved that deadline up, telling Whitson that he’d like to see a Mars trip “at worst, during my second term.”

It wasn’t immediately clear whether the president’s comments were meant to be taken literally.

Whitson also explained to Trump how technology in the space station allows astronauts to convert their urine to drinking water. “It’s really not as bad as it sounds,” she said.

“Well that’s good, I’m glad to hear that,” Trump responded. “Better you than me.”

Trump also spoke with U.S. astronaut Jack Fischer, who arrived at the space station for the first time last week. Asked by Trump how his flight went, Fischer, an Air Force pilot, responded: “Sir, it was awesome. It made even my beloved F-22 feel a bit underpowered.”

Trump, who was speaking alongside his daughter Ivanka Trump, said he was honored to speak with the astronauts.

“I’ve been dealing with politicians so much. I’m so much more impressed with these people, you have no idea,” he said.
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The World Health Organization has announced that trials of a new malaria vaccine will take place in three African countries – Kenya, Ghana and Malawi. They have been selected for their high prevalence of malaria and strong existing immunization programs for other diseases. The announcement was made ahead of the U.N.’s World Malaria Day Tuesday – and the chosen theme for this year is ‘a push for prevention’.

Malaria remains one of the world’s deadliest diseases – killing close to half a million people every year, mostly in Africa. So the testing of a new vaccine called RTSS has been greeted as a great step forward. It’s hoped that 360,000 children will be vaccinated between 2018 and 2020 in Kenya, Ghana and Malawi.

The World Health Organization’s Regional Director Dr. Matshidiso Moeti made the announcement Monday in Nairobi.

“We are very appreciative that GSK the pharmaceutical company that is developing the vaccine will provide this for free of charge for this pilot,” she said. “And the vaccine will be assessed as the complementary intervention in Africa that can be added to our existing tool box of proven preventive diagnostic and treatment measures.”

While a malaria vaccine would be an invaluable tool, other methods remain vital in preventing malaria.

Dr. Thomas Churcher of Imperial College London uses mathematical modeling to highlight the best way of killing of blocking the main vector that transmits malaria – the mosquito.

“Currently the majority of control is through the use of bed nets, but there’s an increasing fear that mosquitoes are becoming resistant to some of the insecticide on those bed nets,” he said. “And so therefore there’s a chance that a control that works today might not work as well in the future. And so we need new ways of killing mosquitoes, new types of bed nets, new types of drugs, new types of vaccines.”

Global efforts to reduce transmission have led to a two-thirds reduction in malaria deaths between 2000 and 2015. It’s hoped the development of a vaccine will get us one step closer to one day eradicating the disease, says Churcher.

“Hopefully one day we will have a vaccine that’s good enough to be that silver bullet. The current vaccine can do an awful lot but it’s not going to completely halt malaria transmission,” he said. “The recent studies show that it’s partially effective, and that that effectiveness wears off quite quickly over time.”

The $50 million trials in Ghana, Kenya and Malawi are being funded through a network of NGOs and global institutions. Far greater investment will be needed to roll the vaccine out globally – if the pilots prove successful.
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Concerted campaigns in the Greater Mekong Subregion [GMS] to radically reduce the impact of malaria has lifted hopes a vital target to eradicate malaria from the region may be within reach.

Deyer Gobinath, a malaria technical officer with the World Health Organization (WHO) in Thailand, said the outlook is positive for eliminating severe forms of malaria across the region within the next decade.

The goal is for most of the GMS countries by 2025 to try and eliminate falciparium malaria – the most severe form of malaria – the falciparium malariia – and then by 2030 basically all forms or all species of malaria,” Gobinath said.

In 2015, WHO leaders said there were 14 million malaria cases across Southeast Asia, resulting in 26,000 deaths.  Globally, in the same year, the WHO reported 438,000 lives lost, mostly in Africa and warned that 3.2 billion people – almost half the world’s population – face health risks from the disease. 

Mortality rates decline; challenges remain

The campaigns in Southeast Asia cover Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, all reporting consistent declines in mortality rates, by as much as 49 percent since 2000.

Populations most vulnerable to the mosquito-borne disease are largely in remote border regions, isolated from infrastructure and immediate medical support.

The key areas of concern lie in regions between Thailand and Myanmar – also known as Burma – and in Cambodia among others.

But Saw Nay Htoo, director of the Burma Medical Association, said collaboration between medics and local communities has had a positive impact in reducing malaria’s impact.

“In the ground level we set up the malaria [clinic] post which we have at least one malaria health worker, according to the population they have, to detect malaria,” he said. “And if there is malaria positive then the patient is given the malaria medicine. So we have been doing this for three years. It seems our program is going very well – there are less malaria cases in the border areas.”

Combination of drugs

The fight against malaria is largely based on a combination of drugs known as Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy, or ACT, as the main line of drug treatment.

The World Health Organization’s Gobinath said Thailand’s medical infrastructure and funding support have all contributed to lowering the numbers of malaria cases.

“For malaria in Thailand here’s been quite a remarkable decrease – a steady decrease, decline in the number of confirmed cases of malaria. In the past 10 years or so something like 30,000 cases in 2012; to 2015 it was 19,000 to 20,000 cases. So it’s been a gradual but persistent decline of confirmed malaria cases,” he told VOA.

But he said for progress to be sustained it will require continued “political will and commitment.”

WHO officials said attention needs to focus on migrant worker populations moving across the region’s borders. Thai health authorities have taken steps to enable medical access to migrant populations at risk of malaria, largely in remote border areas.

The battle far from over

But challenges remain, said Maria Dorina Bustos, a WHO technical officer with responsibilities for monitoring drug resistant strains of malaria across 18 countries in the Asia Pacific.

Dorina Bustos said the region with drug resistant forms of malaria is spreading. “The Thai-Cambodia or the Thai-Myanmar border, you need to think about the Thai-Laos border because the Southern Laos drug resistance is also about evident – is documented, it is also there. And what is actually more alarming is happening in the Cambodia side,” she told VOA.

She said drug resistance becomes evident in the delay in clearance of the parasite from the patient. Dorina Bustos says the use of fake drugs and self-treatment also opens the way to drug resistance.

“What we are seeing in the last five years is that it is really emerging in the most parts of the region – initially just in the Western border of Cambodia and now it has also spread to the east and almost the whole country,” Dorina Bustos said.

She said there is a need for close monitoring of major population centers – especially in India and Africa – to ensure successful treatment and avoiding issues of the use of fake medicines.

A positive note has been ongoing investment and research in new drugs, including commitments by major pharmaceutical industries.

“It’s really here in the Mekong where we really have a problem. Cambodia, the borders of Thailand, the borders of Thai/Laos and Cambodia/Vietnam – it’s very specific in the Mekong region,” she said. “For Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and even India, Bangladesh and Nepal the ACT [Artemisinin-based Combination Therapy] is all working perfectly well.”
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