Since the emergence of the facial fungal disease during the mid-1990s that has decimated Tasmanian devil populations in the wild, scientists have been working on developing a vaccine that can protect the species and slow the spread of the fatal cancer. Although there was limited success with an earlier immunotherapy trial, that saw some captive-bred […]
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Bruce Englefield’s decision to include a trip to Tasmania during an Australian holiday 20 years ago followed a conversation with a friend who assured him he would have a ball there given his affinity with animals. But it was the decision taken during that Tasmanian trip which changed the course of his life. Englefield was […]
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Since the deadly facial tumour disease that has ravaged Tasmanian devil populations in the wild was first observed over 20 years ago, scientists have puzzled over the circumstances that caused it both to emerge, and to spread so rapidly. Two studies published recently provide some insight and perspective on the increasing incidence of contagious cancers, […]
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In March the Save the Tasmanian Devil Appeal announced the winners in its latest round of grants and scholarships that will contribute towards research designed to combat the fatal facial tumour disease that has ravaged the species in the wild since the mid-1990s. More than $375,000 has been awarded this round, which is funding eight […]
Continue ReadingResearch by an international team of scientists, published at the end of August in the journal Nature Communications, shows two regions in the genomes of Tasmanian devils (Sarcophilus harrisii) appear to be evolving in response to the fatal facial tumour disease that has ravaged populations in the wild for almost 20 years. Evolutionary geneticist Andrew […]
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