YOU ONLY LIVE ONCE...MAYBE TWICE!
ZOMBIE CATERPILLARS!!!
Like a plot from a horror film, there’s a virus that brainwashes caterpillars, forces them to march up trees, then turns them to goo.
Now scientists at Penn State University have found the single gene that enables the virus to carry out its dark deeds.
The caterpillars would normally return to the ground to hide after feeding on leaves, but the baculovirus reprogrammes them to stay in the trees, melts them, then drips down among the remains to infect more of the creatures.
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Researcher Kelli Hoover, writing in Science, said: ‘When gypsy moth caterpillars are healthy and happy, they go up into the trees at night to feed on leaves, and then climb back down in the morning to hide from predators during the day.
When they are infected, as they get sicker they stay up in the trees and die up there.’
He added: ‘There are other genes in the virus that then make the caterpillar melt. So it becomes a pool of millions of virus particles that end up dropping onto the foliage below where it can infect other moths that eat those leaves.’
His team discovered that the gene responsible for controlling the caterpillar is called egt.
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In tests they were able to stop the zombie effect by removing the gene from the virus.
Another researcher on the team, Dr. Jim Slavicek, added: ‘Who knew that a virus could change the behavior of its host? Maybe this is why we go to work when we have a cold.’
Caterpillars aren’t the only creatures that become zombiefied by a virus.
Scientists discovered that the fungus Ophiocordyceps camponoti-balzani infects ant brains and forces them to infect other ants.
This is achieved by ‘programming’ the ant to hang off a leaf or twig near an ant nest while its brain is eaten by the parasite.
Shortly afterwards, spores from the body drop to the floor and infect other ants.
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Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Komrad Wayne on
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oh apparantly it is still a copy of the link directly!! Thats sweet lol, still getting the hang of my mobile web...oh apparantly it is still a copy of the link directly!! Thats sweet lol, still getting the hang of my mobile web...
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Permalink Reply by KOMRAD RHINO☭ on
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one good thing about them. if you use them for fish bait, they wont die on the hook. lol.
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were all missing the point here, if scientists have found and isolated the virus in caterpillars, this is the beginning...its only a matter of time before this expands to people!! And this is proof that there is a virus capable of causing a zombie mutation of some type...who knows howe this will react in the human brain...this is real!! Redemption hour is upon us!!!!
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Permalink Reply by Killa of Zombies on
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This is something we have to take very seriously!
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i know i was making light of it. but i DO take it seriously. its just the way i deal with some things. sometimes for me, its easier to process things in a humorous form. i meant no offense. sounds like we are getting our wish for the zombie apocalypse and it is starting in the small creatures first. it is said that all viruses have a beginning stage like all things. this is DEFIANTLY the beginning.
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no offense taken komrad, believe me l know you guys are taking this as serious as l am...so it begins!! no offense taken komrad, believe me l know you guys are taking this as serious as l am...so it begins!!
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hey V, thanx for editing the post and putting the entire article up there...its alot easier like that!
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Permalink Reply by Komrad Venessa Wicked☭ on
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Thank you Komrad! The discussion is one that everyone needs to read and get prepared.
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Ive decided to use this article and the information in it as the premise for my next major zombie story. Instead of writing another post zombie story, Im going to write a pre apocalypse one. This time I'm going to use this combined with some other legitimate resource to really nail it, instead of just coming off the top of my head...of course, due to my current situation, it will take me awhile...but I'm looking forward to it!
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