Rick Speare
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Rick Speare
Richard "Rick" Speare (2 August 1947 – 5 June 2016) was an Australian public health physician and veterinary surgeon. He is best known for his research on animal diseases, particularly his work on chytridiomycosis in amphibians. Research career Speare worked clinically as both a medical doctor and a veterinarian. He joined James Cook University in 1988 as a research fellow, and was appointed an associate professor in 1991. His research covered a suite of diseases, including paramphistomid trematodes of the agile wallaby, scabies, head lice, malaria, and Australian bat lyssavirus. However, he is best known for his work on amphibian diseases such as salmonella and ranaviruses in cane toads, ''Mucor amphibiorum'' in the Australian green tree frog, and, most notably, chytridiomycosis. Speare completed his PhD on the helminth parasite ''Strongyloides'' in 1986. He published an important book chapter on the morphology of ''Strongyloides'' spp. in "Strogyloidiasis: A Major Roundworm ...
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Atherton Tablelands
The Atherton Tableland is a fertile plateau which is part of the Great Dividing Range in Queensland, Australia. The principal river flowing across the plateau is the Barron River. It was dammed to form an irrigation reservoir named Lake Tinaroo. Tinaroo Hydro, a small 1.6 MW hydroelectric power station, is located near the spillway. Physiography This area is a distinct physiographic section of the larger North Queensland Highlands province, which in turn is part of the larger East Australian Cordillera physiographic division. South of the Tablelands is the Bellenden Ker Range. Geological history About 100 million years ago, the eastern edge of the Australian continent extended much further to the east, before tectonic forces fractured the eastern margin, pulling it apart. At the same time, slowly rising mantle material caused a doming up of the continental crust. As the eastern part of the continent broke away, it gradually sank below sea level. Since that time, the uplif ...
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Scabies
Scabies (; also sometimes known as the seven-year itch) is a contagious skin infestation by the mite ''Sarcoptes scabiei''. The most common symptoms are severe itchiness and a pimple-like rash. Occasionally, tiny burrows may appear on the skin. In a first-ever infection, the infected person usually develops symptoms within two to six weeks. During a second infection, symptoms may begin within 24 hours. These symptoms can be present across most of the body or just certain areas such as the wrists, between fingers, or along the waistline. The head may be affected, but this is typically only in young children. The itch is often worse at night. Scratching may cause skin breakdown and an additional bacterial infection in the skin. Scabies is caused by infection with the female mite '' Sarcoptes scabiei ''var.'' hominis'', an ectoparasite. The mites burrow into the skin to live and deposit eggs. The symptoms of scabies are due to an allergic reaction to the mites. Often, only betwe ...
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Hookworms
Hookworms are intestinal, blood-feeding, parasitic roundworms that cause types of infection known as helminthiases. Hookworm infection is found in many parts of the world, and is common in areas with poor access to adequate water, sanitation, and hygiene. In humans, infections are caused by two main species of roundworm, belonging to the genera ''Ancylostoma'' and '' Necator''. In other animals the main parasites are species of ''Ancylostoma''. Species The two most common types of hookworm that infect humans are ''Ancylostoma duodenale'' and ''Necator americanus''. Hookworm species that are known to infect domestic cats are ''Ancylostoma braziliense'' and ''Ancylostoma tubaeforme''. Wild cats are infected by ''Ancylostoma pluridentatum''. Dogs are commonly infected by ''Ancylostoma caninum'', but may also be infected by ''Uncinaria stenocephala'' and ''Ancylostoma braziliense''. In Asia, ''Ancylostoma ceylanicum'' is endemic among dogs and cats and infects humans. Cattle ar ...
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United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territories, nine Minor Outlying Islands, and 326 Indian reservations. The United States is also in free association with three Pacific Island sovereign states: the Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau. It is the world's third-largest country by both land and total area. It shares land borders with Canada to its north and with Mexico to its south and has maritime borders with the Bahamas, Cuba, Russia, and other nations. With a population of over 333 million, it is the most populous country in the Americas and the third most populous in the world. The national capital of the United States is Washington, D.C. and its most populous city and principal financial center is New York City. Paleo-Americ ...
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Tufts University
Tufts University is a private research university on the border of Medford and Somerville, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1852 as Tufts College by Christian universalists who sought to provide a nonsectarian institution of higher learning. Tufts remained a small New England liberal arts college until the 1970s, when it transformed into a large research university offering several doctorates;Its corporate name is still "The Trustees of Tufts College" it is classified as a "Research I university", denoting the highest level of research activity. Tufts is a member of the Association of American Universities, a selective group of 64 leading research universities in North America. The university is known for its internationalism, study abroad programs, and promoting active citizenship and public service across all disciplines. Tufts offers over 90 undergraduate and 160 graduate programs across ten schools in the greater Boston area and Talloires, France.
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Strongyloidiasis
Strongyloidiasis is a human parasitic disease caused by the nematode called ''Strongyloides stercoralis'', or sometimes the closely related ''S. fülleborni''. These helminths belong to a group of nematodes called roundworms. These intestinal worms can cause a number of symptoms in people, principally skin symptoms, abdominal pain, diarrhea and weight loss, but also many other specific and vague symptoms in disseminated disease, and severe life-threatening conditions through hyperinfection. In some people, particularly those who require corticosteroids or other immunosuppressive medication, ''Strongyloides'' can cause a hyperinfection syndrome that can lead to death if untreated. The diagnosis is made by blood and stool tests. The medication ivermectin is widely used to treat strongyloidiasis. Strongyloidiasis is a type of soil-transmitted helminthiasis. Low estimates postulate it to affect 30–100 million people worldwide, mainly in tropical and subtropical countries, while ...
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Aboriginal Australian
Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands. The term Indigenous Australians refers to Aboriginal Australians and Torres Strait Islanders collectively. It is generally used when both groups are included in the topic being addressed. Torres Strait Islanders are ethnically and culturally distinct, despite extensive cultural exchange with some of the Aboriginal groups. The Torres Strait Islands are mostly part of Queensland but have a separate governmental status. Aboriginal Australians comprise many distinct peoples who have developed across Australia for over 50,000 years. These peoples have a broadly shared, though complex, genetic history, but only in the last 200 years have they been defined and started to self-identify as a single group. Australian Aboriginal identity has cha ...
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Australian Green Tree Frog
The Australian green tree frog (''Ranoidea caerulea''), also known as simply green tree frog in Australia, White's tree frog, or dumpy tree frog, is a species of tree frog native to Australia and New Guinea, with introduced populations in the United States and New Zealand, though the latter is believed to have died out. It is morphologically similar to some other members of its genus, particularly the magnificent tree frog (''R. splendida'') and the white-lipped tree frog (''R. infrafrenata''). Larger than most Australian frogs, the Australian green tree frog reaches 10 cm (4 in) or more in length. Its average lifespan in captivity, about 16 years, is long compared with most frogs. Docile and well suited to living near human dwellings, Australian green tree frogs are often found on window sills or inside houses, eating insects drawn by the light. The green tree frog screams when it is in danger to scare off its foe, and squeaks when it is touched. Due to ...
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Mucor Amphibiorum
''Mucor amphibiorum'' is a fungus which causes ulcers on the platypus, which can be secondarily infected and potentially fatal. It can also reduce the ability to regulate body temperature. It is currently limited to Tasmania and was first seen in 1982 the Elizabeth River. It belongs to the division Mucoromycota Mucoromycota is a division within the kingdom fungi. They include a diverse group of various molds, including the common bread molds ''Mucor'' and ''Rhizopus''. It is a sister phylum to Dikarya. It consists of mainly mycorrhizal fungi, root end .... References {{DEFAULTSORT:Mucor Amphibiorum Fungi of Australia Mucoraceae ...
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Cane Toads
The cane toad (''Rhinella marina''), also known as the giant neotropical toad or marine toad, is a large, terrestrial true toad native to South and mainland Central America, but which has been introduced to various islands throughout Oceania and the Caribbean, as well as Northern Australia. It is a member of the genus ''Rhinella'', which includes many true toad species found throughout Central and South America, but it was formerly assigned to the genus ''Bufo''. The cane toad is an old species. A fossil toad (specimen UCMP 41159) from the La Venta fauna of the late Miocene in Colombia is indistinguishable from modern cane toads from northern South America. It was discovered in a floodplain deposit, which suggests the ''R. marina'' habitat preferences have long been for open areas. The cane toad is a prolific breeder; females lay single-clump spawns with thousands of eggs. Its reproductive success is partly because of opportunistic feeding: it has a diet, unusual among anu ...
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Ranavirus
''Ranavirus'' is a genus of viruses, in the family ''Iridoviridae''. There are six other genus, genera of viruses within the family ''Iridoviridae'', but ''Ranavirus'' is the only one that includes viruses that are infectious to amphibians and reptiles. Additionally, it is one of the three genera within this family which infect teleostei, teleost fishes, along with ''Lymphocystivirus'' and ''Megalocytivirus''. Ecological impact The Ranaviruses, like the Megalocytiviruses, are an emerging infectious disease, emerging group of closely related DNA, dsDNA viruses which cause systemic disease, systemic infections in a wide variety of wild and cultured fresh and saltwater fishes. As with Megalocytiviruses, ''Ranavirus'' outbreaks are therefore of considerable economic importance in aquaculture, as epizootics can result in moderate fish loss or mass mortality events of cultured fishes. Unlike Megalocytiviruses, however, ''Ranavirus'' infections in amphibians have been implicated as a ...
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Salmonella
''Salmonella'' is a genus of rod-shaped (bacillus) Gram-negative bacteria of the family Enterobacteriaceae. The two species of ''Salmonella'' are ''Salmonella enterica'' and ''Salmonella bongori''. ''S. enterica'' is the type species and is further divided into six subspecies that include over 2,600 serotypes. ''Salmonella'' was named after Daniel Elmer Salmon (1850–1914), an American veterinary surgeon. ''Salmonella'' species are non-spore-forming, predominantly motile enterobacteria with cell diameters between about 0.7 and 1.5 μm, lengths from 2 to 5 μm, and peritrichous flagella (all around the cell body, allowing them to move). They are chemotrophs, obtaining their energy from oxidation and reduction reactions, using organic sources. They are also facultative anaerobes, capable of generating ATP with oxygen ("aerobically") when it is available, or using other electron acceptors or fermentation ("anaerobically") when oxygen is not available. ''Salmonella'' spe ...
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