Scientists create Zombie cockroaches


	Scientists create Zombie cockroaches

mbrandewinder

12-4-2007 1:18 AM

969 views

tags:

science, science fiction

2 Comments |

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12-4-2007 3:45 AM

michellezm

Very interesting, but parasites are the ugly side of nature.

12-4-2007 10:37 PM

PixieKylie

Eerie, very eerie. I wonder if that would make a good basis for a sci-fi story? Or at least a feature of a sci-fi story ^-^

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<div style="margin: 12px 0px; font-family: arial; color: #333333; background: #ffffff; border: solid 4px #e5e5e5; width: 100%; clear: left;"><div class="CM_CTB_Content_Wrap" style="margin: 0px; padding: 0px;background-color: #ffffff;"><div style="border-bottom: solid 1px #dcdcdc; white-space: nowrap; margin-bottom: 8px; background-color: #eeeeee ;background-image: url(http://clipmarks.com/images/source-bg.gif); background-repeat: repeat-x; height: 24px; line-height: 24px; vertical-align: middle; padding-bottom: 4px; color: #666666; font-size: 10px;" ><a href="http://clipmarks.com/clip-to-blog/" title="see clips that are hot right now"><img src="http://content.clipmarks.com/blog_embed/cdd27653-a82f-4cc2-b481-32c1e163e56d/6DD14C0C-0B42-44A5-9C00-F42067BA467D/" alt="" width="19" height="19" border="0" style="vertical-align: middle; margin: 0px 4px; display: inline; border: none; float:none;" /></a>clipped from <a title="http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/30/0431246" href="http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/30/0431246" style="font-size: 11px;">science.slashdot.org</a></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/30/0431246">Zombie insects might sound <A href="http://www.bgu.ac.il/life/Faculty/Libersat/movies/Wasp_movie_short.mpg">like a B-movie plot device</A></blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/30/0431246">but to the emerald cockroach wasp</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/30/0431246">they're a tried and tested way to provide food for their hungry larvae. The wasp relies on cockroaches for its grisly life cycle but unlike many venomous predators, which paralyze their victims before eating them, the wasp's sting leaves the cockroach able to walk, but <A href="http://www.nature.com/news/2007/071129/full/news.2007.312.html">unable to initiate its own movement</A>. Researchers have discovered that the wasps sting the cockroaches once to subdue them, then administer another, more precise sting right into their victim's brain. The venom works to block a neurotransmitter called <A href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Octopamine">octopamine with a similar action to dopamine</A>, which is involved in preparations to execute complex behaviors such as walking. Then the wasp grabs the cockroach's antenna and leads it back to the nest 'like a dog on a leash'</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/30/0431246">Researchers were also able to create their own zombies by injecting unstung cockroaches with a compound</blockquote><div style="height: 2px; font-size: 2px; background: #dcdcdc; border-bottom: solid 1px #f5f5f5; margin: 2px 4px;"></div><blockquote style="text-align: left; padding: 0px 8px; margin: 4px 0px 8px 0px; background: transparent; border: none;" cite="http://science.slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=07/11/30/0431246">producing a similar effect to that of the venom</blockquote></div><div style="margin: 0px 6px 6px 4px;"><table style="font-size: 11px;border-spacing: 0px;padding: 0px;" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><tr><td style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;">&nbsp;</td><td align="right" style="background:transparent;border-width:0px;padding:0px;width:107px" width="107"><a href="http://clipmarks.com/share/6DD14C0C-0B42-44A5-9C00-F42067BA467D/blog/" title="blog or email this clip"><img src="http://content9.clipmarks.com/images/c2b-foot.png" border="0" alt="blog it" width="107" height="17" style="border-width:0px;padding:0px;margin:0px;" /></a></td></tr></table></div></div>

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