Pest control and medicine

what are examples of biological controls used to manage agriculture pests

• Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) is a bacterium used to control insect crop pests; it produces proteins that are toxic to insects.

 

• Encarsia formosa is a parasitic wasp that feeds on whitefly. It is released into greenhouses to control pests feeding on tomato plants.

how is the Encarsia Formosa used to control whitefly pests

The female lay their eggs inside the white fly larvae, effectively killing the larvae after the parasitic wasp emerges from the larvae, or the adult eat them.

Why is biological pest control preferable to man-made, chemical insecticide and pesticides

Biological pesticides only kills specific pests and can be managed as a predator, they’re also renewable and non-toxic to the natural environment if released in the wild.

On the otherhand chemical insecticides + pesticides kills many different species of pests if it’s accidentally released in the wild, causing damage to food chains and potentially killing species of insects.

what are examples of species that have been used by humans for their medicinal properties

• poppies

• Cinchona tree

• Pacific yew trees

• Mexican yam

• Tropical marine sponges

• Shark blood antibodies

• Shark liver lipids

What is the medical substance in poppies and cinchona trees and what are they used to treat

Poppies	Opium	Painkillers (morphine, codeine)
Cinchona tree	Quinine	Malaria protection

What is the medical substance in pacific yew trees and Mexican yam and what are they used to treat

Pacific yew trees	Taxol	Cancer treatment
Mexican yam	Diosgenin	Cortisone anti-inflammatory drug, contraceptive pill

What is the medical substance in tropical marine sponges and shark blood antibodies and what are they used to treat

Tropical marine sponges	AZT	HIV/AIDS
Shark blood antibodies	Alkylglycerols & polyunsaturated fatty acids	Cancer suppression/treatment

What is the medical substance in shark liver lipids and what are they used to treat

Shark liver lipids

AD 114

Lung fibrosis treatment

What is an example of how medical use of species can cause issues in natural systems

the African clawed frog

Which medicinal purpose was the African clawed frog used for

Pregnancy tests - a women urine will be injected into the frogs skin, if the frog start to ovulate due to the presence of certain hormones in the urine, this would mean the women is pregnant.

How did the African clawed frogs cause ecological issue

Many types of amphibians became infected with the fungus (chytrid) which the African clawed frogs are immune to, therefore other species have faced danger in being extinct and threatened.

what are examples of physiological research

• hippos

• Marsupials such as kangaroos

• Marine sponges

• Dolphins

how has hippos help with physiological research

Hippos secrete a red-coloured glandular secretion known as "hippo sweat" contains microscopic structures that scatter light, protecting the hefty mammals from sun burn. It is being used to develop treatment of burns.

How has Kangaroos help with physiological research

Marsupials such as kangaroos give birth to their young at a very early stage of development. Scientists are able to study kangaroo babies to better understand developmental problems in unborn or premature human babies.

What’s the differences between physiological research and medicine from nature

Physiological - examines species adaptation and evolution to better understand human health

 

Medicines from nature - directly harvesting or extracting to treat diseases

How has marine sponges help with physiological research

Marine sponges

So the sponges are used as a treatment to stop rejection for organ transplants

transplant surgery grafts

How has dolphins help with physiological research

Dolphins

Enabled the development of new ultrasound scanners that give better 3D images for medical diagnosis

ultrasound scanners