Vaccine FAQ

by Ana Wang in collaboration with Angela Mitchell and Olivia Mullins

Smallpox Vaccine. Click the image of attribution.

Smallpox Vaccine.
Click the image of attribution.

Vaccines prevent millions of illnesses and save incalculable numbers of lives. 

There are a lot of stories, facts, and fictions circulating in the news and on social media about the COVID-19 vaccines. For those who are not scientists or medical professionals (or even sometimes those who are), it is difficult to distinguish between what is real and what is made up, especially when these stories speak to our deepest fears, like our safety and well-being.

For the last year, we have been encouraged to wear masks over our noses and mouths, wash our hands, maintain social distancing, and avoid large gatherings. Now that we have vaccines available, we must do our part and get vaccinated. We have put together an FAQ-style blurb to help you understand and feel comfortable (even enthusiastic!) about you, your family, and your friends getting the COVID-19 vaccine.


How do vaccines work? 

“A US Navy hospital corpsman administers a flu shot.” Click image for attribution.

“A US Navy hospital corpsman administers a flu shot.” Click image for attribution.

Vaccines work by ramping up your immune system so your body can fight off pathogens that it encounters. How? Most vaccines contain inactivated pathogens or pieces of a pathogen – like a virus or bacterium. These weakened versions do not hurt you. They do, however, prompt your immune system to build up its defense so that if/when you are exposed to that full virus, your body will recognize and destroy it before it can get you sick.

(The COVID-19 vaccine uses a slightly different approach, which is described below!)

Did you know? Vaccines rely on our body’s natural immune processes.

Germs are everywhere - on all surfaces, in the air, even in and on your own body. As you are exposed to different environments, animals, and people, your immune system learns how to fight off disease-causing pathogens. Every time you get sick and recover, your immune system has learned a new skill – how to fight off a new pathogen. In this way, when you encounter that same pathogen again, you either do not get sick or you experience less severe symptoms because your immune system knows how to destroy it.

 

Why can’t we simply rely on our body’s immune system?

Despite our body’s abilities to fight off diseases, some viral or bacterial infections can cause severe illness, life-long health issues, or death. For many of these diseases, scientists have developed vaccines to “educate” our immune systems ahead of time. This reduces or eliminates the risk being severely ill or dying if you are exposed to the pathogen.

 

How exactly do vaccines work?

The majority of vaccines are made to protect against viruses. These vaccines usually contain either an inactivated (dead) virus, or they contain a protein that is on the surface of a virus particle (but the COVID-19 vaccine is different - see below!). You are never given the intact virus, so the vaccine is essentially tricking your immune system into thinking that you are actually infected.  

Antigen-Anibody model. Click image for attribution.

Antigen-Anibody model. Click image for attribution.

The dead virus or small virus particle cannot infect you, but it does have a critical molecule called an antigen on it. When your body encounters a new antigen, it creates proteins called antibodies. Antibodies are a key component to your immune defense. Antibodies are specific and only recognize that particular antigen. Every time your immune system encounters a new antigen, it will create a new antibody. In this way, every antibody has its one, specific antigen match.

Once these new, unique antibodies are created, they stick around for years, decades, or a lifetime! The antibodies circulate around your body in your blood, on guard and ready to bind their matched antigen. If the antibody finds the antigen, it will trigger your immune system to attack and remove the pathogen. In this way, you are protected from getting sick. 

Without the vaccine, your immune system could take weeks to respond to the new infection, and by then, it’s often too late.



If vaccines don’t have an active virus, why do they make me feel sick?

Have you ever gotten a flu vaccine and felt a little bit sick the next day? The fever and muscle aches that you feel are your immune system working! In fact, some symptoms when you are naturally infected are due to your immune system’s attempts to kill the pathogen.

The effects from vaccination are not the same as actually being infected and getting the full illness; that is why these effects do not last very long and are generally less severe than the actual illness.  

After receiving the COVID-19 vaccine, you may have experienced symptoms yourself or heard of other people who felt feverish or achy for a day or two after their vaccine (usually after their second dose). However, this is no reason to be afraid of getting the vaccine. On the contrary – the symptoms experienced immediately after receiving the vaccine indicate that your immune system is building up defenses, and the vaccine is doing its job! Some people may never experience these symptoms after vaccination, and that is okay too. Everyone’s immune system will respond in its own way, and some people simply do not have side effects (but they are still protected just as well as those who do experience side effects).

 

Vaccination is like an old Western movie.

Vaccination is like an old Western movie when the town has “Wanted” posters everywhere. The citizens of the town are like your immune system, the criminal on the poster is like the virus, and the poster is like the vaccine. Once the citizens see the poster, they know to look out for the criminal. Vaccines are given to you so that if you are exposed to that full virus in the future, your body will recognize and destroy it before you get sick.

More information about how vaccines work can be found in the reference list below.

 What are the risks of vaccines?

As with any vaccine or treatment, there may be allergic reactions in some people. Although extremely rare, the CDC suggests that people be monitored for 15 minutes after each vaccination, and for people with severe records of allergies, they recommend monitoring for 30 minutes.

This precaution should not deter you from getting the vaccine, though, because only 2-5 allergic cases out of one million have occurred (0.0002% - 0.0005%). As a comparison, ~1%, or 1 out of 100 people, are allergic to peanuts. Typically, cases of vaccine allergies have been in people with histories of severe allergies and anaphylaxis. If you fall into this category, be sure to notify the vaccine provider ahead of time, and they will inform you of how to best proceed.

Some people worry about long term effects of vaccines but as Dr. Fauci explains “virtually all long-term adverse effects of a vaccine occur between 15 and 30 days after you get the dose, 45 days at the most.” In contrast, many people have “long-COVID” with symptoms continuing after months, even over a year and evidence suggest it will cause long-term health effects in many people. Other diseases cause long-term effects as well.

What is an mRNA vaccine? 

We established that vaccines commonly contain a viral protein, and this protein is the antigen that is recognized by your immune system to attack and clear out the virus, if you become exposed. However, the COVID-19 vaccines work a little differently. The first two vaccines approved and used in the USA are mRNA vaccines from Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna. So, what is different about mRNA vaccines? 


Brief background on DNA, RNA, and proteins

Central Dogma of Biology. Click image for attribution.

Central Dogma of Biology. Click image for attribution.

The principal concept in biology goes like this: You are born with DNA. That DNA is used as a template for creating another biological entity called messenger RNA (mRNA) in a process called “transcription.” mRNA is then read (or “translated”) into a protein, and proteins are the main players in all biological processes. This DNA → RNA → protein process is commonly known as The Central Dogma of Biology. 



How does the mRNA vaccine work?

mRNA vaccines contain pieces of the virus, but instead of proteins from the virus, they contain a piece of mRNA from the virus. The mRNA is like a blueprint, or the instructions, for how to make a protein. So, rather than injecting the viral protein itself, mRNA vaccines are delivering the instructions for how to make the viral protein. Your body will take those instructions, make the viral protein, and then your immune system gets to work. 

It is important to know that the mRNA in the vaccines do not have the instructions to make the full virus. Therefore, the vaccine can NEVER instruct your body to make the entire COVID-19 virus.

Coronavirus structure. the mRNA vaccines cause our bodies to make spike protein (red) and therefore create antibodies that will attack the virus. Click image for attribution.

Coronavirus structure. the mRNA vaccines cause our bodies to make spike protein (red) and therefore create antibodies that will attack the virus. Click image for attribution.

For the most common COVID-19 vaccines in the US (Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna), the mRNA only has instructions for making what is called the spike protein. The spike protein is on the surface of the virus and binds to our cells, allowing the virus to enter the cells. Our bodies will create spike protein from the injected mRNA of the vaccine, so that in the future, if we are exposed to the SARS-CoV-2 virus, our immune system will recognize the spike protein and destroy the virus.

Have mRNA viruses been used before?

The COVID-19 vaccine is the first mRNA vaccine approved for use in humans. However, research focused on mRNA vaccines has been ongoing for decades. In fact, mRNA vaccines have been studied for many diseases (for example: Zika, Ebola, cancer, rabies, HIV), and there are several ongoing, promising vaccine clinical trials that may allow these vaccines to be approved for use.

mRNA is not harmful. Actually, RNA in general is very fragile, and a lot of mRNA vaccine research effort goes into keeping the mRNA from falling apart or from being destroyed before it can take effect. The mRNA vaccines do not affect or change your DNA in any way. After your cells read the “instructions” for how to make the protein, the mRNA is destroyed.


More info on mRNA vaccines can be found in the reference list below.

 

What are the advantages of using mRNA in vaccines instead of proteins? 

mRNA vaccines are easier, cheaper, and quicker to make than protein vaccines. They can be generated in laboratories with materials that are easily and readily available. In contrast, some protein vaccines (such as the flu vaccine) are made in chicken eggs, which takes more time and money.

During a pandemic, time is of the essence. The longer it takes to generate millions of doses of a vaccine, the larger the amount of time the virus spreads and mutates. mRNA vaccines can be made and scaled up efficiently. This efficiency is also advantageous when dealing with viruses such as SARS-CoV-2 that mutate and evolve quickly. The shorter manufacturing time of mRNA vaccines means we can create and distribute new versions of a vaccine quickly to curb the spread of the disease caused by mutated viruses. 

 

What are the scientific differences between the available vaccines? 

The Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are mRNA vaccines (explained above). The Johnson & Johnson vaccine uses a different approach, known as a viral vector vaccine. It uses a different harmless virus, called an adenovirus, to carry the instructions for making the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. The adenovirus does not cause an infection, but it does enter the cells and use the instructions to make the spike protein. From there, your immune system takes over as described in the previous sections. 

In clinical trials, the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines showed 95% and 94.1% efficacy, respectively, after two doses. Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine is a bit different. It requires only one dose and has shown 72% protection against COVID-19 infections and 85% protection against severe disease in clinical trials in the USA. Johnson & Johnson is also testing the efficacy if two doses are used, but these results are not expected until May 2021, at the earliest. 

More info on the current SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccines can be found in the reference list below.

What is herd immunity, and how does it work? 

Herd immunity (a.k.a. population immunity) is what occurs when enough people in a population are immune to a disease that it provides indirect protection to those who are not immune. For COVID-19, it is estimated that we will achieve herd immunity when 70-75% of people are immune to the disease. If 80% of the population is immune, that means 4 of every 5 people will be protected. The higher the percentage of immunity, the larger the benefit to the population as a whole.

Many diseases, such as measles, mumps, chicken pox, and polio, are now very rare in the USA because vaccines helped establish herd immunity for each of these diseases. To be clear, with herd immunity, the spread of the disease is reduced in frequency, but it does not mean that the disease is eliminated. Likely, rare cases of the disease will still appear among the population’s most vulnerable members. However, with the vast majority of the population protected, we will have the space and resources in medical facilities to provide proper care for sick individuals. 

How do we achieve herd immunity?

There are two ways to achieve herd immunity – people get sick and recover from the virus (bad) or they get vaccinated (good). The problem with the former option is that with diseases like COVID-19, millions of people die along the way to herd immunity.

There are many factors involved in reaching herd immunity. While we are getting vaccinated to reach that herd immunity threshold, we must maintain precautions to slow the spread of the virus. If society “re-opens” too soon, infection rates will increase again, prolonging the process and endangering more lives. Furthermore, the more people that are infected, the more chances the virus has to mutate, which increases the risk that our vaccine efforts are less effective or ineffective. If a virus takes over that has mutated away from the vaccine’s protection, new vaccines will need to be developed.  

In the best-case scenario, people will get vaccinated as quickly as possible while maintaining social distancing, wearing masks, and following CDC guidelines, even if they are already vaccinated. We will have the best chance of going “back to normal” in the summer of 2021 if we are able to slow the spread. It requires everyone’s cooperation. 

More info on herd immunity can be found in the reference list below.

 

Should you get vaccinated? 

YES! Get vaccinated for yourself, for your loved ones, and for everyone else in the world. The more quickly we reach herd immunity, the more lives we will save and the more quickly we can travel and gather again safely!

Do I need to keep wearing a mask, washing my hands, and taking other precautions after I am fully vaccinated? 

You should maintain all recommended CDC guidelines. At of the time of this writing, the CDC allows fully vaccinated individuals (two weeks after your second dose) to be outside without masks. Data suggests that transmission is greatly reduced – but not proven to be eliminated – when you are fully vaccinated. Vaccinated individuals can potentially be carriers of the virus; just because you do not get sick from it does not mean you cannot carry and transmit the virus to someone else. Extra care should be taken indoors and around high-risk people, even when vaccinated. And you should always wash your hands!

Importantly, it is not entirely known how effective these vaccines are for the emerging new strains (mutants) of SARS-CoV-2. Mutations can occur in the spike protein, which is the antigen that the vaccines are targeting. Many virus variants have emerged, and variants will continue to emerge as people continue to get infected and spread the virus around. Because of these variants, we may need to get additional booster shots of the current vaccines, or new COVID-19 vaccines may need to be developed in the future. Because we don’t know how the current vaccines will fair against any future mutants, we should continue implementing safety precautions.

In short, be safe and considerate. By continuing to take precautions, you are protecting yourself and others! 

References:

mRNA Vaccines

  • Pardi, N., Hogan, M., Porter, F. et al. mRNA vaccines — a new era in vaccinology. Nat Rev Drug Discov 17, 261–279 (2018).

  • Chahal JS, Kahn OF, Cooper CL, et al. Dendrimer-RNA nanoparticles generate protective immunity against lethal Ebola, H1N1 influenza, and Toxoplasma gondii challenges with a single dose. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 13(29): E4133-42 (2016).

SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine

Herd Immunity

The Pandemics of 1918 vs. 2020

by Ana Wang

In these times of the COVID-19 pandemic, you have probably heard many mentions and comparisons of this current, world-wide crisis to the 1918 flu (a.k.a. the Spanish Flu) pandemic. In difficult times in our history, re-visiting and learning from past events can teach us much about how to handle modern, similar situations. There are many parallels that between the pandemics of 1918 and 2020, so let’s delve a little deeper into what happened 100 years ago and see how it relates to our world today.

What is a pandemic?

WWI soldiers being treated during the 1918 pandemic. American Unofficial Collection of World War I Photographs, Getty Images

WWI soldiers being treated during the 1918 pandemic. American Unofficial Collection of World War I Photographs, Getty Images

A pandemic is when a disease has spread throughout a country, continent, or the world. This is different from an epidemic, which is a rapid spread of a disease within a locality, like a community or a region. The 1918 influenza (shortened to “flu”) and the 2020 COVID-19 outbreaks are both global pandemics because there have been (and still are) cases all around the world. It is estimated that the 1918 pandemic claimed about 50 million lives. As of this writing, the 2020 pandemic has claimed about 2.2 million lives.

How did the 1918 and 2020 pandemics start, and how did they spread?  

In the industrial era of 1918, there were new forms of transportation that helped the flu spread more quickly, not to mention an ongoing world war. Now, in the 21st century, we live in an extremely globalized society, in which people travel very frequently, for both pleasure and for business, around the world. This unfortunately allows viruses to spread around the world at a quick pace.

Viruses are not living organisms; they require a host (e.g. humans) to reproduce. A virus reproduces by hijacking the biological processes and tools in its hosts’ cells to replicate itself. People who are carrying a virus can spread that virus unknowingly to anybody with whom they come into contact. This is why many countries during the COVID-19 pandemic have implemented travel bans and discouraged travel.

Although the 1918 flu is informally known as the Spanish flu, the name is misleading, as it likely did not originate in Spain. The name stuck because the Spanish press was the first to publish information about the pandemic; Spain was neutral in World War I, and news of the war dominated the press of the countries involved in it. Furthermore, many countries censored the publication of information about the pandemic because they were afraid of causing public panic. There are several hypotheses about where the 1918 virus originated, and none of them trace back to Spain.

Similarly, during the 2020 pandemic, COVID-19 was referred to by many as the “China virus,” or the “Wuhan flu” because the first diagnosed and publicized cases occurred in Wuhan in the Hubei province of China. Theories about the virus’s origins say that the virus escaped or was released from a research lab in Wuhan. This is highly unlikely as genetic mapping shows that the virus was born in nature, not a lab. The exact origin point of the virus is not known. Additionally, the name “Wuhan flu” is misleading as COVID-19 is caused by SARS-CoV-2 - an entirely different virus from influenza. (SAR-CoV-2 is the name of the virus that causes COVID-19, the disease. Science has separate names for the virus itself and the resulting illness).

A checklist of symptoms caused by the 1918 H1N1 virus. By Otis Historical Archives nat'l Museum of Health & medicine (OTIS Archive 1) -

A checklist of symptoms caused by the 1918 H1N1 virus. By Otis Historical Archives nat'l Museum of Health & medicine (OTIS Archive 1) -

The 1918 flu was caused by the H1N1 virus. (You may recognize the name ‘H1N1;” it was a different H1N1 virus that caused the “swine flu” in 2009-2010). One of the first documented and established cases of an infection by the H1N1 virus, the virus that caused the 1918 flu, was on March 4, 1918 in a cook named Albert Gitchel at Camp Fuston in Kansas. Within only three weeks, that one case led to thousands of cases, with 1,100 soldiers hospitalized. H1N1 was further spread throughout Europe, wreaking havoc on the World War I military operations. Although this first wave of infections showed that the virus was very contagious (meaning it spread easily), it was not initially extremely virulent (meaning harmful or deadly). However, the virus soon underwent a dangerous change. 

A model of the Coronavirus virion structure. By SPQR10 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

A model of the Coronavirus virion structure. By SPQR10 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0

Mutations  and new virus strains

Why do viruses change? When a virus finds a host (meaning it infects an organism), it uses the host’s machinery in the cell to reproduce itself. This involves a very rapid process of making copies of the viral genes for the new virus particles being made. The speed helps the virus replicate quickly, allowing it to infect more cells quickly before being detected and attacked by your immune system. During this process, copying errors occur. Think about when you are doing work or typing/writing very quickly; you are more likely to make mistakes when you are rushing than when you take your time. These copying errors, or mutations, get packaged into new virus particles. Some of these errors may have no effect at all, while other errors can make the new virus more contagious and/or more harmful for hosts.

A more dangerous virus emerged in August 1918, when there was a second wave of H1N1 infections. This new strain was believed to have been spread by passengers on ships from Plymouth, England to Sierra Leone and to Boston, USA. The virus was further carried with the movements of the armies, so you can imagine how expansively and quickly it spread across all continents! In the first strain, there were mild, short-lived symptoms that we generally associate with the flu, such as fever, aches, and coughing. In this new, mutated strain, symptoms included nasal hemorrhage, pneumonia, encephalitis, deadly fevers, and coma. 

If you are keeping up with the COVID-19 pandemic, you have undoubtedly heard about the new strains that have been recently identified in the U.K. and South Africa and are already spreading to other parts of the world. Although copying errors of viral genes are happening all the time, and therefore new mutants are being made all the time, most often these strains do not have a noticeable effect on the transmission or severity of the virus. Once in a while, however, a mutant strain will catch our attention. In the U.K. and South African mutants, the copying errors that occurred may have rendered the SARS-CoV-2 virus more contagious and possibly more virulent. Even more concerning is that the vaccines that have been produced might not be as effective against the South African strain. To be clear, the vaccines do appear to provide protection against the new strains, but they are less effective.  

Why the speed of vaccination is crucial

Now that you understand the phenomenon of how new virus strains are created, you can understand why it is so important to get pandemics under control quickly. The more cases of disease there are, the more virus that is produced. The more virus that is produced, the more mutations that can occur. The more mutations that occur, the more likely we will have cases that can cause more and deeper problems with elusive solutions.

Children lined up for the flu shot in New York City, late 1940s. Library of Congress.

Children lined up for the flu shot in New York City, late 1940s. Library of Congress.

To put it plainly, if the virus continues to spread uncontrolled, new strains will pop up that may be more transmissible or more deadly than any we have seen so far. Vaccines not only fight spread of the current virus, but decrease the chances of new, even deadlier strains emerging.

A sign from the Cincinnati Board of Health Streetcar, educating people how to protect themselves from the flu. CDC.

A sign from the Cincinnati Board of Health Streetcar, educating people how to protect themselves from the flu. CDC.

Until we are all vaccinated, other measures to contain the virus need to be continued. Because we have long known that viral infections spread largely by human-to-human contact, similar guidelines implemented in 1918 are being used today; wearing masks, limiting gathering, and avoiding stuffy, indoor environments have been known to be effective for fighting pandemics for over 100 years!

 

Lessons Learned

What can we learn from the 1918 pandemic that will help us manage current and future pandemics? Although H1N1 and SAR-CoV-2 are different viruses, the way they spread and their economic, social, and medical impacts can be very similar. Although we understand much more about viruses now than was known in 1918, and even though we have improved treatments for symptoms, the goals in both cases are the same:  to minimize the number of cases to limit damage.

The blue “circles” here are SARS-CoV-2 in a slice of tissues as seen through a transmission electron microscopic. PHIL 23354, CDC.

The blue “circles” here are SARS-CoV-2 in a slice of tissues as seen through a transmission electron microscopic. PHIL 23354, CDC.

To control spread of the virus we need to follow the guidelines given by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). To protect yourself and those around you, remember to wash your hands, wear a mask over both your nose and mouth, stay in well ventilated areas, avoid large or close gatherings, and get vaccinated when it is your turn. The actions of every individual matters in a crisis this large. The more that people follow the guidelines, the more quickly and more safely we can end the crisis. Although it’s been a hard year for most of us, the vaccine brings hope for easier times soon. Every time you make the decision to stay at home, wear a mask, or engage only in outdoor physically distanced activities, you are saving lives!

References

“‘The 1918 flu is still with us’: The deadliest pandemic ever is still causing problems today.” The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2020/09/01/1918-flu-pandemic-end/. 30 January 2021.

“The Spanish Influenza Pandemic: a lesson from history 100 years after 1918.” Journal of Preventive Medicine and Hygiene. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6477554/. 30 January 2021.

“The Deadliest Flu: The Complete Story of the Discovery and Reconstruction of the 1918 Pandemic Virus.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/reconstruction-1918-virus.html. 30 January 2021.

“Medical Innovations: From the 1918 Pandemic to a Flu Vaccine.” The National World War II Museum, New Orleans. https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/medical-innovations-1918-flu. 30 January 2021.

“Pandemics in Recent History.” Knowable Magazine. https://knowablemagazine.org/article/health-disease/2020/pandemics-recent-history. 30 January 2021.

“Why the Second Wave of the 1918 Flu Pandemic Was So Deadly.” History. https://www.history.com/news/spanish-flu-second-wave-resurgence. 30 January 2021.

“The Proximal Origin of SARS-CoV-2.” Nature Medicine. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-020-0820-9?fbclid=IwAR3w65RgILi01mVjIMQ2LKeZS4xUkLz5LRBinImTKRPOWSnCqIQWw_hDzR0. 31 January 2021.

 

 

 


Jane Goodall: Primatologist, Conservationist, Humanitarian

This post is an installment in our "Meet a Scientist" Series

Imagine a sharp woman with her light hair pulled back into her classic low ponytail. Her smile is calm. Her eyes are serene, but alert. She can often be seen hiding in a thicket of trees, dressed in khakis. Most of the time, she is comfortably interacting with a chimpanzee.

By now, you may have recognized that this woman as Jane Goodall: renowned primatologist, conservationist and humanitarian.

Jane Goodall. Photo courtesy of U.S. Department of State/Public domain.

Jane Goodall. Photo courtesy of U.S. Department of State/Public domain.

Images of Goodall, along with her story, have graced magazines, books, movies and other media for decades and show no sign of slowing down. That is because Goodall herself never slowed down. In the past 60 years, Jane transformed from a young girl growing up in London with big dreams to one of the world’s leaders in environmental conservation. In the late 1950s, when she first traveled to Africa, no one could have anticipated how much Jane would impact the world but looking at her life, it makes sense. She began with dreams of traveling to Africa to study animals at a time when such dreams were not considered normal for young woman. She inspired a generation of women in the field, including Dian Fossey and Biruté Galdikas. These three women, all trained by paleontologist Louis Leakey, are famously known as the “Trimates.”

Now, decades later, Jane Goodall is not only a historic icon for women in STEM but an active champion for wildlife, the environment and humanity.

It All Started with Jubilee

Valerie Jane Morris-Goodall was born on April 3, 1934 in London, England. She was daughter to the businessman, Mortimer Herbert Morris-Goodall, and novelist, Margaret Myfanwe Joseph (she wrote under the name Vanne Morris-Goodall). Jane had one younger sister, Judy. Jane’s father was an engineer in the army during World War II and absent from periods of her life. After the war, her parents divorced and Jane continued to live with her mother.

Tarzan of the Apes. Photo is public domain.

Tarzan of the Apes. Photo is public domain.

From a young age, Jane loved animals. When she was a toddler, she was given a toy chimpanzee that her father affectionately named Jubilee. She grew up loving Dr. Dolittle and became engrossed in the world of Tarzan, hoping to travel to Africa herself one day. She once even scared her parents when she disappeared for hours, only to be found hiding in the henhouse where she was patiently waiting for chickens to lay eggs. Little did her parents realize how this all foreshadowed their daughter’s future.

Considering the climate of the mid-1900s, many at the time would not have imagined Jane’s childhood aspirations a feasible dream. However, Jane’s mother always encouraged and supported her interests and passions. She raised Jane to believe that she could achieve her dreams of studying wildlife in Africa if she worked hard enough. Jane’s mother’s supported her throughout her life and even joined Jane as she embarked on her second journey to Africa.

After grade school, Jane began working as a secretary at Oxford University while maintaining a second position with a documentary film company in London. Unfortunately, Jane’s family could not afford to send her to college (although one could argue this ended up becoming a blessing in disguise). In 1956, Jane’s schoolmate, aware of Jane’s love of Africa and animals, invited Goodall to her parents’ farm in Kenya. Jane, of course, jumped at the opportunity. She quit her job, moved back to her family home, now in Bournemouth, and worked all summer as a waitress to save money for her trip. In 1957, Jane Goodall embarked on the trip that would make her childhood dreams come true.

Goodall and the Chimpanzees

Goodall’s first trip landed her at Kenya Castle in Mombasa, Kenya in April 1957. There she met the famous Dr. Louis Leakey, an archaeologist and paleontologist who believed human’s originated in Africa, a controversial theory at the time. Impressed with her passion and enthusiasm, he initially offered her a job as his secretary. However, during that period, Leakey was looking for someone who could study chimpanzees and their connection to human evolution. Secretly, he wondered if Jane could be a candidate. As she worked for him, she impressed him with how she was critical, observant and patient. She also proved to have a good, natural instinct when working in the wild. Furthermore, he believed Jane could bring a fresh perspective, given that she did not come from an academic background.

Lake Tanganyika at Gombe. Photo courtesy of fabulousfabs/Creative Commons.

Lake Tanganyika at Gombe. Photo courtesy of fabulousfabs/Creative Commons.

Under the guidance of Leakey in 1960, Jane set off on her second trip, this time to the Gombe Forest in Tanzania to study chimpanzees in their natural habitat. Since the British authorities did not approve of a young woman living by herself in the depths of the African wild, Jane’s mother join her for the first few months. It was only fitting that her mother, who supported Goodall’s passion from a young age, would join her daughter as her chaperone.

Jane initially struggled to get close to the chimpanzees but within a year, managed to be within 30 feet of their feeding areas. From the beginning, she employed unconventional methods. For instance, academics traditionally numbered the chimpanzees they observed. Jane, on the other hand, gave each chimp an unique name: David Greybeard, Flow, Freud and Frodo are a few of the most well-known. In her first year, Goodall recognized that these animals had complex personalities and emotions. They made long-lasting family relationships. They exhibited warfare. They were more similar to humans than previously thought. She also dispelled the belief that chimpanzees were primarily vegetarians. She observed them hunt and eat other animals. After two years of daily field work, the chimpanzees were no longer frightened of her. She mimicked their behavior, spent time in their habitat and even ate their food. She would coaxed them to come closer with bananas.

Museum exhibit of chimp at a termite mound. Photo courtesy of Daderot/Public Domain.

Museum exhibit of chimp at a termite mound. Photo courtesy of Daderot/Public Domain.

Goodall’s research in those first years were groundbreaking. One of her observations even redefined humankind. One day, within her first year, Jane observed David Greybeard, a chimpanzee she was following, strip leaves off a twig. Watching him longer, she realized he had fashioned himself a tool to access termites out of a mound. She observed other chimpanzees doing the same act. This was at a time when Man was defined by the ability to make and use tools. When she reported her findings to Leakey, he was ecstatic. He famously exclaimed, “Now we must redefine tool, redefine Man, or accept chimpanzees as human.” The finding was revolutionary.

Despite her monumental scientific accomplishments, Jane still did not have a college degree. In 1965, she enrolled in Cambridge University as a PhD candidate with the help of Leakey, who convinced the school of her merit. She was one of the few people to ever attend without an undergraduate degree. While there, she conducted her thesis research under the guidance of Dr. Robert Hinde, who also would mentor Dian Fossey a few years later. Unfortunately, Hinde and other colleagues were not impressed with Jane’s unconventional methods. She baffled her mentors and peers by giving the chimpanzees names and talking about their personalities. Although it is now accepted that apes display a range of emotion, Hinde and other prominent scientists at the time thought Goodall was committing a sin of ascribing human features to animals.

In the 1960s, she published My Friends, the Wild Chimpanzees. Though popular with the public, academics continued to criticize  her for anthropomorphizing chimpanzees. They argued was that Goodall lost the objectivity necessary for rigorous research. Luckily as the years passed, some of her mentors began to accept and approve of her methods. Still, Jane struggled as a female scientist; she was often made fun off and mocked due to her gender and  appearance. Regardless, she persevered and in 1966 completed her PhD in Ethology.

Meanwhile, back in Gombe, Goodall established the Gombe Stream Research Center with her then husband, Hugo van Lawick, in 1965. The center aimed to continue field research on primates and train new, young researchers. This period of time was also marked by the release of Miss Goodall and the Wild Chimpanzees, the first documentary showcasing her field work and introducing the world to chimpanzees through Jane’s eyes. This film was captured by Jane’s first husband.

Jane, the Mother and Wife

During the time she spent becoming an acclaimed primatologist and scientist, Jane also became a wife and mother. She met her first husband, Hugo van Lawick, a Dutch wildlife photographer and filmmaker, when he arrived in Gombe to film her and the chimpanzees. Jane would joke that Louis Leakey played match maker because he specifically chose Hugo to be her photographer. The couple married in 1964. In 1967, their son Hugo, affectionately nicknamed Grub, was born. Although never alone, baby Grub was often placed in a large cage for safety. Once he was mobile, he was often found on the beach with a guardian. A few years later, 1974, Jane and Hugo divorced. Jane then met and married Derek Bryceson, a member of the Tanzanian Parliament and director of the Tanzania National Park in 1975. They were together until he sadly died in 1980 from cancer.

Setting the “Roots” for a New Generation

Jane founded the Jane Goodall Institute in 1977 to support research in Gombe and increase conservation efforts. However, it wasn’t until the 1980s that Jane became a full-time environment activist. In 1986, while at a conference in Chicago, Jane saw a consistent theme of disappearing forests and wildlife. Working on the ground in the wild, she had seen some of this first hand, but the conference opened her eyes to the scale and extent of the problem. She saw that humans play a vital role in animal and environmental conservation and furthermore, that conservation efforts would benefit both species.

As Goodall began traveling the world, she advocated for adults and children to join conservation efforts. Knowing the power and importance of the youth, she wanted to help young people grow up with the right resources to be educated conservation leaders. This led to the beginning of Roots & Shoots. Established in 1991, the organization—which still runs today—works with young people in 100 different countries to promote respect and understanding of all living things and cultures to improve the world for all. She also writes and contributes to children’s books in hopes of educating and inspiring children.

Jane Today

Jane Goodall at a TED Talk. Photo courtesy of Erik (HASH) Hersman/Creative Commons.

Jane Goodall at a TED Talk. Photo courtesy of Erik (HASH) Hersman/Creative Commons.

After 60 years of research, conservation and humanitarian efforts, Jane shows no signs of slowing down. She continues to travel the world, spreading her message of conservation and providing support for future generations. In 2002, she was named the United Nations of Peace, two years later she was named Dame Commander of the British Empire, and bestowed with the Legion of Honor (France’s highest honor) in 2006 and all that is just the tip of the iceberg. She has countless other honors and many honorary degrees from universities around the world. She and her team continue to publish academic articles, have been the topic of many articles for academia and the general public along and produce many books for both adults and children. Beyond that, Jane, the chimpanzees and her conservation efforts are detailed in many film and documentary projects, including a recent one released recently by National Geographic.

Goodall, now 84 years young, travels around the world almost 300 days a year, holding seminars and lectures to variety of audiences. Her message stands firm. She continues to advocate the need for conservation, promoting the importance of everyone’s role in conservation and why it is imperative for both the environment, wildlife and humanity.

Despite her shift to conservation, Jane Goodall still holds chimpanzees close to her heart. She even still has her toy Jubilee. He lives at her home in England.

 

 

References:

Picture Credits:

Student Voices: My Experience with CAPTS

By Rahmiir McFall, High School Senior

CAPTS is a high school program that trains older students to teach science to elementary school children. CAPTS students choose a lab and then spend 12+ weeks learning skills to present, teach, and communicate. They also spend time learning about their science subject. Rahmiir and his partner taught “Waves of Sound” to 1st and 4th graders. Below is a reflection of Rahmiir’s experiences with the program!

Rahmiir (left) and his partner Rosa teaching a science lab in a 1st grade classroom.

Rahmiir (left) and his partner Rosa teaching a science lab in a 1st grade classroom.

The youth have always been the next generation of innovators and scientists that will change the world. The Communication And Presentation Through Science (CAPTS) program has shown me a glimpse of the future through the experiences I have had teaching elementary students. Like the children, I learned a number of lessons that will stick with me for life, however, the greatest lessons learned were on planning and adapting.

The first step to any project, planning, played a key role in my experience. My partner Rosa and I discussed the various things we'd say and do in front of the young scientists. We went over our lessons and “scripts” repeatedly every week for about 3 hours. With Dr. Mullins' help, we also changed parts of the script to better fit our style of teaching. With a few changes and an excess of annotations on our script paper to summarize the parts of the script that were lengthy and harder to memorize, we also practiced our lines and the timing of them. Learning how to plan and make an amazing lesson for the students was a big takeaway from my time with CAPTS.

Rahmiir working with two 4th graders on a sound lesson

Rahmiir working with two 4th graders on a sound lesson

On the day of the event, I was quite nervous but well prepared. Because of the preparations my partner and I did, we learned to quickly adapt to sudden changes in a situation. Using a script is good and all, however sometimes one must improvise. While my partner and I were presenting and speaking, some of the kids were having too much fun for our time's sake. Rosa was showing the kids how sound can create a vibration and move salt. Because of how good the demonstration looked on the camera screen, the students became rowdy and quite relentless in expressing themselves. Using a simple chime, I was able to get every focused again and they kept their audible excitement to a lower degree

The CAPTS experience was great because of the skills it allowed me to develop and I'd do it again in a heartbeat!

STEM Trading Card Kickstarter Launching July 16!!

Announcement!!! The enormously popular STEM Trading Cards from Science Delivered will finally be available to everyone!

4 cards.png

On July 16, 2019 we are launching a STEM Trading Card Kickstarter! It will run until August 23rd. For those unfamiliar, Kickstarter is a platform that allows you to “back” a new, in-development product. We are using the Kickstarter platform as a way of getting our STEM Trading Cards to a wider audience.

STEM Trading Cards feature diverse STEM professionals in a collectible and tradable format. They are kid-tested and approved! They are a great way to learn about the people working on the forefront of STEM fields, to learn about STEM career paths, and to create the kind of excitement about STEM role models that is usually reserved for actors and athletes.

All of our featured “STEMists” are people interested in education, diversity, equity, and/or (but mostly “and”) environmental conservation. They are the kind of role models you can feel confident about your child or students admiring.

We are also teaming up with ErinEDU to feature STEM Stars in her book Everyday Superheros: Women in STEM.

Would you like to be a part of this Kickstarter campaign? A super-easy, really impactful way to support science education for kids is to help us spread the word! Sign up to be part of our “Launch Day Team” or help share the Kickstarter during the rest of the campaign. We would love to have you!

Student-with-cards-Birney.png

We will also be launching a STEM Trading Card website very soon where you can see all STEMists and also learn more about them! If you’d like to get updates about the STEM Trading Card project or Science Delivered’s activities please sign-up here.

Thank you so much for reading and we can’t wait to share these cards with you!

Please note: We are a nonprofit but Kickstarter is not a donation platform (you will receive a product!) but the product does not ship until the fall. This is because Kickstarter is used to help launch NEW in-development products from individuals or smaller organizations that don’t have the development budgets large companies do. Kickstarter allows the public to pick which products they’d like to see developed!



From Nuclein to the Double Helix -- The Scientists who Discovered DNA

Nucleotide pairing.jpg

DNA holds the key to all life as we know it.  From the smallest bacterium to the massive blue whale, deoxyribonucleic acid encodes the vast complexity of life through the unique arrangements of four simple nucleotides: adenine (A), thymine (T), cytosine (C), and guanine (G).  The difference between all species on the tree of life trace back to differing combinations of those four letters: A, T, C, and G.  The variation in these arrangements allows life on Earth to flourish in the deep oceans, dark jungles, blue skies, and every space in between.  Humans and chickens share 60% of their genes [1], humans and cats share 90% [2], and humans and chimpanzees share 96% of their entire DNA sequence [3].  The color of your hair, how tall you are, even whether or not you like cilantro, all are determined by the arrangements of DNA inherited from your parents.  However, for centuries, the hereditary material responsible for passing along these traits eluded scientist and philosophers alike. 

The human genome holds approximately 2.4 billion base pairs, yet only about 0.1% of that is estimated to provide all of the genetic variation between humans [4].  Great success is rarely achieved alone; often times it takes groups of people, each 0.1% different, to achieve the extraordinary.  Artists have their muses.  Composers have their orchestras.  Astronauts have Ground Control.  Scientists have their collaborators.  With 2018 marking the 65th anniversary of Watson and Crick’s discovery of the famous double helix structure of DNA, we should look back at the people and lessons involved in the quest to discover and characterize this most important of molecules.  James Watson and Francis Crick may be the most recognizable names associated with DNA research, yet many other scientists laid the groundwork for understanding DNA as we know it.  While there are far too many people and events to thoroughly catalogue, recounting the stories a few of the lesser known names can help us understand how scientists came to discover and characterize DNA, all while providing lessons that remain pertinent to this day.

MIESCHER, LEVENE, AND THE EARLY CHARACTERIZATION OF DNA

Friedrich Miescher was a Swiss ‘physiological chemist’ in the late 19th century.  In an era when many biological principles were being established, science was shifting from looking at whole organisms or systems towards focusing on their component molecules and cells.  Additionally, the concept of evolution and inheritance began garnering attention through the works of those such as Charles Darwin and Gregor Mendel.  Miescher was interested in finding the “fundamental principles of the life of cells” [5], and began investigating the composition of human white blood cells.  In 1866, while characterizing the composition of these cells, Miescher identified a substance that was neither protein nor lipid, rather something novel that he termed “nuclein”.  Overcoming technical limitations and carefully modifying experiments to suit this new substance, Miescher eventually isolated enough material for him to roughly characterize nuclein as a novel entity “not comparable to any hitherto known group” [5].  He was the first person to isolate what would soon become known as DNA.

The four nucleotides of DNA. Image by Adam Greene.

The four nucleotides of DNA. Image by Adam Greene.

In the following years, Miescher eventually found nuclein to be within the sperm of many animals, from fish to frogs to bulls.  However, many remained skeptical of his work.  This was compounded by the fact that Miescher published only a few papers during his career, opting to discuss ideas through personal communications with friends, family, and colleagues.  Fortunately, due to his diligent note-taking and well-articulated protocols, others were able to confirm his finding within their own investigations, and eventually, nuclein was appreciated as a novel substance within cells.  Still, Miescher doubted that nuclein was hereditary material, believing it was too simple to provide the complex variation of life. 

Following the work of Miescher, many scientists sought to characterize the newly-named DNA. One such scientist was Phoebus Levene.  Born in what is now Lithuania, Levene was trained as a physician and chemist in Russia and New York.  However, he spent much of his time traveling to various institutions across the world to learn new techniques and study with different groups.  As a biochemist, Levene sought to understand the role of DNA within cells and understand the relationship of nucleic acid between organisms.  At the time he began DNA research, scientists understood little more than the rough chemical composition of nucleic acids.  By adapting to the technological limitations of the early 1900s, Levene established the empirical formula of nucleic acids (C38H50O29N15P4), and in 1929 identified the four base nucleotides of RNA: adenine, cytosine, guanine, and uracil (thymine in DNA was found shortly after) [6].  Unfortunately, Levene is probably best known as the founder of the tetranucleotide hypothesis, which suggested that nucleic acids were found in repeating cycle of subunits wherein all bases were equally represented.  While we now know that DNA varies greatly in length and nucleotide composition between species, at the time, the tetranucleotide hypothesis became ingrained in the field, stagnating interest and research into the functionality of DNA within the cell.  

DISCOVERING THE HEREDITARY NATURE OF DNA

The Griffith Experiment which definitively showed that DNA was the hereditary material. Image by Adam Greene.

The Griffith Experiment which definitively showed that DNA was the hereditary material. Image by Adam Greene.

Early in the 1930s, scientists were still seeking to identify the hereditary material of life.  The tetranucleotide hypothesis presumed nucleotides could not encode the complexity of life, leading many to doubt the role of DNA in inheritance.  In 1928, Frederick Griffith sought to determine how two different morphologies of Streptococcus pneumoniae bacteria develop differing characteristics and understand how those traits affect disease [7].  Scientists understood that ‘smooth’ bacteria would lead to pneumonia and death in mice, while ‘rough’ shaped bacteria were harmless (nonvirulent).  Griffith co-infected mice with both live, nonvirulent bacteria and a heat-killed dose of virulent bacteria, expecting to recover only the non-virulent bacteria.  Surprisingly, co-infection caused pneumonia in mice from which live, virulent bacteria with the ‘smooth’ shape could be recovered [7,8].  From this experiment, Griffith determined that the nonvirulent bacteria must have taken up a “transforming principle”, acquiring virulence and morphological traits from the heat-killed ‘smooth’ bacteria.  Nonetheless, many continued to presume protein held the genetic information of cells and provided the “transforming principle”.  However, in 1944, Oswald Avery, Colin MacLeod, and Maclyn McCarty teamed together to isolate and characterize Griffith’s transformation principle.  Their findings left only one conclusion: DNA was the transforming principle.  Together, the works by Griffith and the Avery group discovered that DNA, not protein, encoded the traits that transferred between bacterial strains [9].  For the first time, scientists understood the role of DNA: storing the genetic information of life. 

Yet scientists didn’t fully grasp the importance of this finding.  Instead of celebrating discovering the molecular basis of life, the response was restrained, almost skeptical.  It seemed impractical for the vast complexity of life to be encoded by four simple nucleotides.  Proteins were more thoroughly investigated; they were much more varied in form and function, so it seemed logical that proteins comprised the hereditary information of life.  However, in 1952 Alfred Hershey and Martha Chase finally resolved any remaining doubt.  Using viruses that infect bacteria, Hershey and Chase were able to detect which viral components were required for self-replication.  Through careful isolation of protein and DNA, they were able to show that protein was unnecessary for viral replication; rather, the DNA was “injected” into the bacterium where it was copied and packaged into progeny virus [8-10].  Once and for all, scientists demonstrated that protein has no involvement in passing genetic information between generations.  DNA encodes the secrets to life.  Within a year of this finding, the work by Rosalind Franklin, Maurice Wilkins, James Watson, and Francis Crick revealed the structure of DNA and all the pieces of the puzzle were in place.  Only four years later, in 1957, Francis Crick established the central dogma, in which DNA is transcribed into RNA and subsequently translated into protein.  Finally, we understood the incredible importance of DNA.

Nucleotide pairing.jpg

CONTEMPORARY LESSONS FROM HISTORICAL RESEARCH

Within 90 years, science had gone from identifying the novel, mysterious “nuclein” to understanding how DNA encodes the genetic information of life as we know it.  These discoveries did not just occur by accident.  They were the product of hard work and the circumstances surrounding these pioneering scientists.  Despite the technological limitations of the late 1800s, Friedrich Miescher was a rigorous investigator, diligently repeating his experiments and analyzing his conclusions.  Since he was a poor public communicator of his data, his rigorous note taking and experimental design allowed for others to repeat his works and champion their importance.  After all, research is critical to understanding how the world works.  It allows us to see how things truly are so that we may better understand and benefit from our surroundings.  So what good is knowledge if we do not share it for others to use?

Griffith, Avery, McCarty, and MacLeod all worked on the transforming principle of life, but each approached it from different perspectives.  Griffith was interested in the epidemiological implications for virulence transfer within Streptococcus strains, whereas the Avery group continued in his footsteps from a strictly biochemical point of view.  Together, their combined works were able to discover something incredible, that DNA alone can transfer traits between cells, leading to changes in shape and even the ability to cause disease.  Despite lingering skepticism , Hershey and Chase continued researching inheritance, conclusively showing that DNA is passed down from parental to progeny virus.  Individually, any one study incrementally improves our understanding of life; however, their stories together hold a sum greater than their parts.

Phoebus Levene traveled the world, inserting himself into different cultures and institutions.  This broad exposure allowed him to assimilate many cultural and scientific ideas into his work, helping him compose important questions leading to important findings.  His story also serves as a cautionary tale.  Incomplete information can be dangerous; not only does it leave out important details, but it can also serve to promote incorrect conclusions and halt future progress in uncovering the truth.  Today it remains critical that we seek out all of the available information and withhold judgement until all of the facts are known.  Too often we jump to the first and easiest conclusion, yet often the truth takes effort to discover.  The story of DNA beautifully demonstrates this.  It took a number of scientists rejecting assumptions.  It took cooperation, diligence, hard work, and dedication to finally understand how DNA shapes life as we know it.  Rarely does one person alone change the world.  Often, incredible accomplishments take many people with unique experiences and skills, each 0.1% genetically different, working together to accomplish something truly special.

 

 

References:

  1. National Institutes of Health, National Human Genome Research Institute. (2004, December 8). Researchers Compare Chicken, Human Genomes [Press release]. Retrieved from https://www.genome.gov/12514316/2004-release-researchers-compare-chicken-human-genomes/https://www.genome.gov/12514316/2004-release-researchers-compare-chicken-human-genomes/
  2.  Pontius JU, et al.; Agencourt Sequencing Team; NISC Comparative Sequencing Program (2007) Initial sequence and comparative analysis of the cat genome. Genome Res, 17: 1675–1689.
  3. National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2005, August 31). New Genome Comparison Finds Chimps, Humans Very Similar at the DNA Level [Press release]. Retrieved from https://www.genome.gov/15515096/2005-release-new-genome-comparison-finds-chimps-humans-very-similar-at-dna-level/
  4. Genetics. (2018, January 04). Retrieved from http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/genetics
  5. Dahm, R. (2005) Friedrich Miescher and the discovery of DNA. Dev Biol, 278(2): 274-288.
  6. Hargittai, I. Struct Chem (2009) 20: 753. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11224-009-9497-x
  7. Méthot, PO. J Hist Biol (2016) 49: 311. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10739-015-9415-6
  8. Classic experiments: DNA as the genetic material. Retrieved from https://www.khanacademy.org/science/biology/dna-as-the-genetic-material/dna-discovery-and-structure/a/classic-experiments-dna-as-the-genetic-material
  9. Cobb, M. (2014). Oswald Avery, DNA, and the transformation of biology. Curr. Biol., 24, pp. R55-R60
  10. O'Connor, C. (2008) Isolating hereditary material: Frederick Griffith, Oswald Avery, Alfred Hershey, and Martha Chase. Nature Education 1(1):105

 

Footnote:

For a highly informative timeline of DNA discovery, check out “Friedrich Miescher and the discovery of DNA” by Ralf Dahm (reference 5). 

 

Biruté Galdika: The Champion of Orangutans

This post is an installment in our "Meet a Scientist" Series

A young girl, daughter of Lithuanian immigrants, worked her entire life to become a primatologist. She grew up to study orangutans in the depths of Indonesian forests and brought an unprecedented level of understanding to this elusive, at the time understudied, primate.

Biruté Galdika. Photo courtesy of By Simon Fraser University - University Communications/Creative Commons.

Biruté Galdika. Photo courtesy of By Simon Fraser University - University Communications/Creative Commons.

This young woman was Biruté Galdikas. She was the third of paleontologist Dr. Louis Leakey’s famous primatologist mentees. Biruté is one of three women called the “Trimates,” three women studying primates, all trained by Leakey. The other two Trimates are Jane Goodall and Dian Fossey.  Despite being the least known of the three women, Galdikas made a significant mark on the world. What began as an interest sparked by a popular children’s book led Biruté to become a renowned expert and advocate for the endangered orangutan species.

 

A Curious Girl and a Curious George

Biruté Galdika was born at the end of World War II in Germany while her family traveled from Lithuania to Canada. As a little girl, Galdika settled on her career path by the time she was in second grade. Inspired by Curious George, she decided she would be an explorer and she followed that dream her entire life.

Royce Hall, UCLA. Photo courtesy of Prayitno/Creative Commons.

Royce Hall, UCLA. Photo courtesy of Prayitno/Creative Commons.

She spent her childhood in Canada and even enrolled in and completed one year at the University of British Columbia before her family moved to the United States. At that point, she transferred to the University of California Los Angeles and studied zoology and psychology, finishing her studies in 1966. Three years later, she finished her Masters in anthropology and went on to complete her PhD.

Goodall and Fossey did not come from an academic zoology background, but instead met Leakey by chance during their first trips to Africa. Galdikas’ experience was different. She already knew about both Goodall and Fossey and their journeys. While Goodall and Fossey started their careers in the field, Galdikas’ went to school with hopes of following in their footsteps.

Galdika met Leakey while she was still in graduate school. One day, she approached her hero and expressed her interest in studying orangutans, hoping he would mentor her as he had for the other two women. Initially, he was not interested but she convinced him it was worth it. After 3 more years, Leakey managed to secure funding to support Birutés’ orangutan study and set her off on her journey to Indonesia.

Off to the Depths of the Indonesian Jungle

In 1971, at the age of 25 years old, Biruté Galdika, and her then husband, Ron Brindamour, moved to the Tanjung Puting Reserve in Indonesian Borneo. Many discouraged Biruté against this mission because they believed orangutans were too difficult to study. Unlike chimpanzees and gorillas, orangutans were more private, lived deep in swamp habitats and spent a great deal of time up high in the trees. Galdikas’ resolve, however, did not waiver.

Tanjung Puting National Park, Central Kalimantan, Borneo. Photo courtesy of Nanosanchez/Creative Commons.

Tanjung Puting National Park, Central Kalimantan, Borneo. Photo courtesy of Nanosanchez/Creative Commons.

She and her husband set up Camp Leakey, their main site, named after her mentor. It began as merely two humble huts but over the years, grew into a large base. The Camp grew to become a world hub for orangutan research and rehabilitation. The camp ultimately trained dozens of students from Indonesia and North America to study orangutans.

When Biruté began, the world believed orangutans were antisocial. Galdikas proved this was not entirely accurate. She realized that young orangutans are actually fairly social but become more unsociable as they grew up. Only the adult males, she noticed, were really solitary. She also observed that some orangutan families migrated while others settle down in one location. She was the first to document the long interval between orangutan pregnancies, which is an impressive 7.7 years in Tanjung Puting. Watching their eating habits, she noted over 400 different foods incorporated into their diet. Biruté Galdikas’ 40 year study of orangutans in Tanjung Puting is historic, both because of the discoveries she made and because of its length. Her work constitutes the longest continuous study of one animal species conducted by one principle investigator.

Orangutans. Photo courtesy of Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE/Creative Commons.

Orangutans. Photo courtesy of Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE/Creative Commons.

It was in Tanjung Puting that she also first met her second husband, Pak Bohap, a Dayak chief working at Camp Leakey. Though she was attracted to him right away, she initially avoided him because she was still married to her first husband. However, she and Brindamour divorced in 1979. Biruté and Brindamour had one child together, a son named Binti, who spent his childhood living with his parents in Indonesian Borneo, befriending orangutans. Unfortunately, since he did not have a chance to interact with children his own age, he began to act more and more like an orangutan, which worried his parents. They ultimately decided it was better for Binti to live with his father, away from camp. A few years later, Biruté married Pak and they had a daughter and son together.

A decade after she began, Biruté was deeply active in orangutan studies and conservation. In 1986, she and Pak founded the Orangutan Foundation International (OFI), based in Los Angeles. They also expanded their international efforts by working with others to organize sister organizations in Australia, Indonesia and the United Kingdom.

The Orangutan Foundation International

The goal of the Orangutan Foundation International (OFI) was to support the work that Galdikas and others conducted at Camp Leakey as part of the Orangutan Research and Conservation Project. Initially, Birutés’ mainly focused on local orangutans and forest conservation in Indonesia, where there were many battles to fight. Government officials often kept the primates as pets and both poachers and illegal loggers were common. Their original program worked with the Indonesian authorities to properly patrol Tanjung Puting National Park, rescue and rehabilitate captured orangutans and promote conservation efforts.

As Galdikas and her team continued to grow their efforts, they gained more international and mainstream attention. OFI helped promote and support these efforts on a wider scale. It not only spurred research and education efforts, but also conservation and forest protection. The goal was, and still is, to ensure the survival of biologically viable orangutans. Between the negative impact of humans on orangutan habitats and orangutans naturally long breeding intervals, the species was and still is on the brink of extinction.

Controversy

Despite the noble efforts of Camp Leakey, some controversy originally swirled around the institution in the 1970s and 1980s. In the beginning, the organization took in orphaned orangutans in attempts to rehabilitate them and then set them back into the wild. However, many worried that the program had some fatal flaws. Abandoned animals tended to be difficult to work with. This often placed staffers and guests of Camp Leakey in danger when orangutans lashed out.

In addition to safety concerns, others wondered if these rehabilitated orangutans would behave like their “wild” counterparts; what if their behavior was too different from their counterparts who rarely interacted with humans? Furthermore, animals in captivity could spread diseases into the native orangutan populations in the wild upon release. With all of these concerns clouding the rehabilitation efforts, the program was stopped. Now, ex-captive orangutans are rescued and brought to the Orangutan Care Center outside of Tanjung Putting.

With all of her conservation efforts and lobbying the Indonesian government to help protect parks and forests, Galdikas also made many enemies. She was harassed, threatened and even kidnapped by her opponents. None of this, however, stopped her fight.

The Professor, the Conservationist

Riau palm oil concession. Photo courtesy of Hayden/Creative Commons.

Riau palm oil concession. Photo courtesy of Hayden/Creative Commons.

Unfortunately, even after Birutés’ 40 years of fighting for orangutans, the species is still in danger of extinction. Their habitats are still being destroyed. The primary enemy now are palm oil plantations surrounding the area. The plantations not only ruin the orangutans’ home but limit their ability to travel and migrate. General deforestation, hunting and illegal animal trading also contribute to the plight of this species.

Over the years, Biruté made great strides in trying to rescue these majestic creatures. In 1996, a special decree appointed her as senior advisor on orangutan issues to the Indonesian Mister of Forestry. The following year she won the Kalpararu Award. This is the highest honor bestowed for environmental efforts by Indonesia. The honor was even greater because Galdikas was the only non-Indonesian to win the award and was also one of the first women recipients. At the turn of the century, she gained Indonesian citizenship.

Over the span of her career, Galdikas published scientific articles, was on the cover of National Geographic, and wrote several books, including the memoir, Reflections of Eden in 1996 recounting her initial adventures from 1971 onward. More recently in 2011 she worked on the documentary, Born to Be Wild, that highlighted orphaned orangutans and elephants and the humans that work to save them.

These days, Biruté Galdikas spends half of her time in Indonesia and half in North America. She is a full professor at the Simon Fraser University in British Columbia and professor extraordinaire at the Universitas Nasional in Jakarta. All the while, she continues to push forth serious conservation efforts both in Indonesia and around the world. She rightfully argues that the orangutans are nowhere near being safe from extinction. As long as orangutans and other wild species are in danger, Biruté plans to continue to be their champion for change.

 

 

References:

Picture credits:

 

Dian Fossey: The Ultimate Friend of Mountain Gorillas

This post is an installment in our "Meet a Scientist" Series

Last fall, a baby gorilla in Rwanda was named Macibiri by the CEO of the Fossey Fund. Though Rwanda’s annual gorilla naming ceremony occurs each year, last year’s baby gorilla name was special. September 2017 marked the 50th anniversary of the Karisoke Research Center in Rwanda, Africa.

Macibiri was named after Dian Fossy, the primatologist and anthropologist, who established Karisoke and began what is now known as The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International. Little Macibiri is actually the granddaughter of a silverback leader, Titus, Fossey herself studied in the 70s. Her name came from Nyiramacibirim, Fossey’s nickname in the Kinyarwanda language. Fossey advanced gorilla research and conservation forward at a time when it was much needed. Her perseverance and passion led her to be one of the world’s most influential primatologists. Along with Jane Goodall (chimpanzees) and Biruté Galdikas (orangutans), these women together were known as the “Trimates.”

Fossey’s life and work is a study in contradictions. On one hand she paved the way for a better life for generations of gorillas like little Macibiri, promoted conservation, and persevered as a woman during a time people were openly hostile to women in science.  On the other hand, her actions towards poachers and other people in Rwanda ranged from unkind to criminal and horrifying. Ultimately her actions may have led to her murder. Learn more about both her life, her work and it’s legacy along with her darker side and actions.

The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International in Rwanda. Photo Courtesy of Azurfrong/Creative Commons.There are no known public domain images of Dian Fossey - but you can see her image here.

The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International in Rwanda. Photo Courtesy of Azurfrong/Creative Commons.
There are no known public domain images of Dian Fossey - but you can see her image here.

Dian Fossey was born in 1932 in San Francisco, California. Though she loved animals from a young age, her path to becoming a primatologist took some twists. She initially followed in her stepfather’s footsteps and studied business at Marin Junior College. After her first year, she spent a summer on a ranch in Montana. This experience led her to switch from business to become a pre-veterinary student at the University of California. However, she switched again and ultimately graduated from San Jose State College with a degree in occupational therapy in 1954. After working with tuberculosis patients in California, Dian moved to Louisville, Kentucky to work as director of the occupational therapy department at Kosair Crippled Children’s Hospital.

It would take almost another 10 years before Dian made her way to Africa.

The Life Changing Decision

Dr. Louis Leaky

Dr. Louis Leaky

Fossey always wanted to travel the world and go to Africa so when a friend returned from there after a vacation with pictures and stories, Dian knew it was her turn to travel. In 1963, she took out a bank loan along with her entire life savings and made her way to Africa. During this first trip, she traveled to Kenya, Tanzania, Congo and Zimbabwe.

One of her final stops on this excursion was the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, where she met Dr. Louise Leakey. He was a famous paleoanthropologist and archaeologist who demonstrated that humans evolved in Africa and promoted primate field research. Just a few years earlier, he supported Jane Goodall and her work with chimpanzees, which was only 3 years old at the time. Meeting Leakey was a major turning point in Fossey’s life. The second was meeting Joan and Alan Root in Uganda, close to the Virunga Mountains. They provided Dian with her first opportunity to witness the beautiful gorillas that would soon inspire her life work.

Dian eventually returned home back to a life as an occupational therapist, but as history now knows, this would not last long. Fossey published several articles and photographs from her Africa travels. A few years later, Leakey came through Louisville on a lecture tour. Dian eagerly spoke to him again after his lecture and left an impression. Leakey proposed Dian consider leading a long-term field project studying gorillas in Africa. Eight months later, he secured funds and in 1966, Dian Fossey headed back to Africa.

The Beginning of a Legacy

Mount Mikeno. Photo courtesy of Cai Tjeenk Willink/Creative Commons.

Mount Mikeno. Photo courtesy of Cai Tjeenk Willink/Creative Commons.

As Dian headed back to Africa, Joan and Alan Root once again helped her along the way. She set up camp at Kabara, which lay close to Mt. Mikeno in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. There, she teamed up with an experienced gorilla tracker named Senwekwe who helped her find gorillas. Slowly, Fossey refined her ability to find and interact with gorillas. During this time, she managed to identify six gorilla groups in the area.

Unfortunately, the political situation in the Congo was harsh and in the middle of a civil war. In the summer of 1967, soldiers escorted her away from camp. They kept her in Rumangabo for two weeks until she escaped after bribing guards with cash to help her leave. What happened to her during this time is unclear, but accounts suggest she was abused. The U.S. Embassy warned her not to return but she ignored these warnings. She, with Dr. Leakey’s support, made plans to continue her work at a new site.

September 24, 1967, Dian Fossey established the Karisoke Research Center. 50 years later, this same center would be the home to Macibiri.

Karisoke Research Center

“Kari” – Mt. Karisimbi

“Soke” – Mt. Visoke

Dian set up the Karisoke Research Center in the Volcanoes National Park on the Rwandan side of the Virungas, in between Mt. Karisimbi and Mt. Visoke. Alyette DeMunck, a Belgian woman who was born and lived in the area, helped Dian find the site, communicate with the local people and became a close friend. As Dian began studying the gorillas in the area, she based her methods on those set by George Schaller. He wrote The Mountain Gorilla: Ecology and Behavior in which he highlighted the intelligence and beauty of gorillas. Fossey built off of his methods which involved “habituating” the animals to her presence, allowing her to observe them more closely. Fossey’s habituation process depended on the gorillas’ natural curiosity. She never bribed them to interact. She would “knuckle-walk” and chew celery to draw the animals near. She would mimic their vocalization. Her methods of gaining the gorillas’ trust were only part of her contribution to the field. She completely altered how the public saw gorillas.

Dian’s passion for the gorillas knew no bounds. Soon after she established Karisoke, she bonded with a 5 year old gorilla, aptly named Digit as he had a damaged finger on his right hand. Digit and Dian grew close. Digit was part of one of the groups Dian observed but he did not have playmates his own age. Dian herself was quite isolated and alone in her own studies. Tragically, on December 31, 1977, Digit died protecting his group from poachers.

The threats to mountain gorillas included poachers, environmental encroachment by humans and a lack of public sympathy for the animals, as they were perceived as violent and scary. Digit’s death made Dian realize that she needed to take action and bring attention to the plight of the gorillas. She began the Digit Fund to support “active conservation” and anti-poaching initiatives, which has now evolved into the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International. Dian wrote several pieces for National Geographic, including one about Digit’s death so that, for the first time, the public could see gorillas as Fossey saw them: as intelligent, social and complex individuals, not the monsters they were often portrayed to be. She shared their names, their personalities and dynamics; she humanized them just as Jane Goodall did with the chimpanzees.

Beyond Karisoke

Dian’s journey to becoming a primatologist was anything but linear. Even after years of field work, it bothered her that she did not have her doctorate. So, in 1970, she enrolled in Darwin College, Cambridge to study under Dr. Robert Hinde, who had also been Goodall’s mentor. Four years later, she walked away with a completed PhD. A few years later, Fossey eventually took time away from Karisoke to act as a visiting associate professor at Cornell University in 1980. She also began working on her manuscript, Gorillas in the Mist chronicling her time spent with mountain gorillas. The book was published in 1983 and a movie with the same title was released in 1988. Both were largely successful; the movie even gained Oscar recognition.

Dian Fossey’s Dark Side

Despite the positive awareness Dian induced, accounts of Fossey’s fight against poachers and efforts in “active conservation” describe aggressive and violent actions. Fossey feared that traditional, and potentially passive, long term goals would be useless and ultimately too late to save the dwindling mountain gorillas.

The death of the gorilla Digit at the hands of poachers led her to essentially declare war with the poachers, an effect with violent ramifications for both herself, the poachers, other locals and the gorillas. She often attacked and even killed the local’s cattle. She burned the homes of those she found guilty, fought and interrogated perpetrators, even bribing park rangers to help her. In the most horrifying story of her actions, she kidnapped the son of a poacher in retaliation for his alleged kidnapping of a baby gorilla. Poachers often targeted and killed gorillas that she was studying.

Though she did have human allies, as the years went on, an increasing number of accounts describe her personality as difficult and quite tortured. After years of largely isolated studies in the wild and a fire for aggressive conservation, many saw her as someone with far more compassion for gorillas than humans. To this day, many still wonder if and how this behavior contributed to her eventual murder.

A Tragic and Mysterious Ending

On December 27, 1985, just a few weeks before her birthday, Fossey was found dead in her cabin. Her head and face showed signs of attack by a machete. Theories still swirl around her murder yet to this day, no one has an answer. Though some people suspected robbery, none of her belongings appeared gone. She was buried at Karisoke, right next to Digit.

Dian Fossey's Tombe. Photo courtesy of Zinkiol/Creative Commons.

Dian Fossey's Tombe. Photo courtesy of Zinkiol/Creative Commons.

Legacy

Dian Fossey devoted nearly 20 years of her life to the mountain gorillas and despite the violence done by her and to her, her legacy continues. The Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund International and the Karisoke Foundation continue to carry on Dian’s work and advocacy. In addition to continuing to protect the mountain gorillas in Rwanda, they expanded their conservation efforts to now protect Grauer’s gorillas in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Macibiri is just one living example of Dian Fossey’s work, dedication and devotion the gorillas.

Dian Fossey is  not easy to write about. She challenges us to think about how we honor, or don’t honor, those who broke barriers and did amazing, outsized work, but whose personal behaviors were, at times, abhorrent. We can say, however, that we support efforts of protecting gorillas and the environment they live in, and we support efforts that take into account the needs of people living by these magnificent animals.

 

 

References:

Picture Credits:

 

Christmas Trees, Rocket Fuel, and Plastics: Terpenes in Nature and Engineering

When I think of the holiday season, the first thing that comes to mind is all the deep and inviting fragrances that this time of year brings. As we awaken from our Thanksgiving feast-induced stupors, we undoubtedly will be bombarded with the smells of the holiday season for the next 30 days – smells that will trigger memories of holidays past, like warm cookies fresh out of the oven, the rich spices in mulled wine and ciders, and the best smell of all to an outdoor enthusiast like me, the crisp and clean scent of Christmas trees.

The Smell Of Christmas Is In the Air… and bark!

see attribution below.

Christmas trees are an evergreen conifer, a type of tree that includes spruce, pine, and fir. Have you ever wondered what gives Christmas trees their signature scent? The answer is a mix of chemicals called terpenes. Terpenes are in the sticky resin substance exuded by these conifers. Terpenes are a class of molecules that give off the sharp and sweet Christmas tree scent. When the tree bark is damaged, such as when the tree is cut down to be sold, the resin flows out of the bark. In nature, the layer of resin hardens to protect the damaged area of the bark. The terpenes in the resin inhibit the growth of fungi and also deter herbivores, notably the bark beetle, which otherwise would feed on the tree.

Terpenes are also released into the air. If you’ve ever been to or seen pictures of pine forests and mountains, you might have noticed a hazy, blue aura and clouds above the trees. Scientists believe that the terpenes released by the trees into the atmosphere react with the air to collect moisture and form clouds in order to protect the trees from harsh sunlight and to keep the forest cool. Terpenes are what make the Smoky Mountains smoky!

Smoky Mountains National Park

Smoky Mountains National Park

The principal molecule that gives the earthy pine smell to the trees is called pinene. Pinene has two different forms called alpha-pinene and beta-pinene. These two molecules are mirror images of each other,* and beta-pinene is what provides the woody fragrance we associate with pine trees. Both forms of pinene are very flammable and are the reason Christmas trees and pine cones burn easily. This is also why forest fires can spread so quickly. At room temperature, pinene molecules are volatile and evaporate, fortunately, is which is why we are able to smell them so strongly in our homes!

Different species of conifers have distinct smells due to different mixtures of various molecules. For example, bornyl acetate, also called heart of pine, gives off the rich depth of pine scent and is found in pine and fir trees.** This is the compound that is commonly used to make pine fragrances you see sold in stores. Both balsam firs and silver pines (two species of conifers used for Christmas trees) are rich in bornyl acetate. Other molecule compounds that give off distinctive scents include limonene (a citrus scent), camphene (a camphor aroma), and alpha-phelladrene (a minty and citrus-y fragrance).

So now we know that terpenes are made by conifers to protect themselves from other organisms, and they happen to confer that refreshing scent that many of us bring into our homes in December. But, did you know that many non-fragrant consumer products are made with terpenes as well?

Other uses for terpenes

You may guess correctly that the most widely used product made from terpenes bears its name – turpentine. Turpentine is a solvent that is used as a paint thinner. Terpenes are also used in medicine as an anesthetic and even in anti-malarial and anti-cancer treatments. Additionally, plant-derived compounds have been the focus for a more sustainable future. Many scientists and engineers in the past couple of decades have concentrated their efforts to develop processes that might allow terpenes to replace petroleum in both the fuels and plastics industries.

Terpenes and Energy

E. coli bacteria - the strain of bacteria genetically engineered to produce terpene. 

E. coli bacteria - the strain of bacteria genetically engineered to produce terpene. see attribution below.

Chemically, terpenes and petroleum are related because both are mixtures of compounds called hydrocarbons, or molecules composed only of hydrogen and carbon. Although the chemical structures of the compounds are different, scientists are familiar with the processes and procedures needed to manipulate hydrocarbons into useful molecules.  The benefit of using terpenes instead of petroleum is that they are a renewable resource, reducing our dependence on fossil fuels and thus our impact on the environment.

Terpenes are generated in large amounts as a waste product by the lumbering industry, but unfortunately, conifers do not produce enough terpenes to sustain a fuel industry. Two tons of wood chips only provide 4 kilograms (8.8 lbs) of crude turpentine. To address this, scientists are exploring the potential of genetically engineering bacteria to produce these compounds. To this end, a research group at the University of California, Berkeley has created a strain of bacteria that can convert sugar into terpenes, showing that these genetically modified bacteria may be a sustainable source of terpenes in a process that is analogous to brewers using yeast to make beer.

Research conducted in the Navy in the last decade found that two molecules of the pinene joined together has very similar properties to JP-10, a rocket fuel that is widely used in commercial and military launches. This researched has inspired biochemistry researchers to pursue pinene as a cheaper and sustainable fuel. In 2014, a laboratory at the Georgia Institute of Technology created a bacteria strain that produces pinene in the hopes of providing an alternative fuel source. Efforts now in this field are aimed at scaling up pinene production to be efficient and cheap enough to be viable in the fuel industry.

Making Plastics More Sustainable

Plastic pollution often accumulates on beaches. see attribution below

Another environmental issue being addressed with terpenes is the plastics industry. The large amount of plastic being created and disposed of is filling our landfills and oceans, and entire islands composed entirely of this garbage have been found in the Pacific Ocean. It is amazing and sad to think that almost every piece of plastic that has ever been produced is still in existence because the vast majority of plastics are not biodegradable. Furthermore, the process of creating these plastics requires petroleum. Even biodegradable plastics made from corn or sugar cane require some form of crude oil to manufacture. A research group at the University of Bath is investigating the use of pinene as an alternative to oil to produce these biodegradable plastics, as these polyesters (the main component of plastics) combined with pinene can create a flexible and strong material, completely circumventing the use of fossil fuels. Given the staggering amounts of plastic being created every day, even eliminating just the need for fossil fuels would have a large impact.

 

Christmas trees throughout history have come to be a symbol of life and hope, staying green through the entire winter and reminding people of the spring to come. Perhaps this year when you take a deep breath and savor that sharp and sweet pine scent, you will have a new appreciation for these trees. These trees are no longer only a symbol of hope, but the very chemical compounds that it produces could be the key to a sustainable and more environmentally conscious future for us all.

 

*Molecules that are non-superimposable mirror images of each other are called enantiomers.  

**Bornyl acetate belongs to a class of compounds called esters. Esters are found in fruits and are known and used for their pleasant smells.

 

References:

·      “The Aroma of Christmas Trees.” Compound Interest, 19 December 2014. http://www.compoundchem.com/2014/12/19/christmastrees/. 24 November 2017.

·      “Bacteria could be rich source for making terpenes.” News from Brown. Brown University, 22 December 2014. https://news.brown.edu/articles/2014/12/terpenes. 24 November 2017.

·      Conners, Deanna. “Why pine trees smell so good.” Earth. EarthSky, 22 December 2016. http://earthsky.org/earth/why-conifer-christmas-trees-pine-spruce-fir-smell-terpenes. 23 November 2017.

·      Helmenstine, Anne Marie. “Why Christmas Trees Smell So Good: Chemistry of the Christmas Tree Aroma.” Science, Tech, Math. ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/why-christmas-trees-smell-so-good-606134. 24 November 2017.

·      Howgego, Josh. “Terpenes: not just for Christmas.” Education in Chemistry. Royal Society of Chemistry, 1 January 2014. https://eic.rsc.org/feature/terpenes-not-just-for-christmas/2000116.article. 23 November 2017.

·      Kirby, James, et al. “Enhancing Terpene Yield from Sugars via Novel Routes to 1-Deoxy-D-Xylulose 5-Phosphate.” Applied and Environmental Microbiology 81(1): 130-138 (2015).

·      Romuld, Maggie. “That Christmas Tree Smell Just Got a Lot More Interesting.” Nature. The Science Explorer, 5 January 2017. http://thescienceexplorer.com/nature/christmas-tree-smell-just-got-lot-more-interesting. 23 November 2017.

·      Quilter, Helena C., et al. “Polymerisation of a terpene-derived lactone: a bio-based alternative to ε-caprolactone.” Polymer Chemistry, 8: 883 (2017).

·      Sarria, Stephen, et al. “Microbial Synthesis of Pinene.” ACS Synthetic Biology, 3(7): 466-475 (2014).

·      Vance, Erik. “Atmospheric chemistry: The man who smells forests.” Nature 459: 498-499 (2009).

Image Attributions:
Bacteria: By NIAID - E. coli Bacteria, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39933073

Christmas tree: Grousebeater2, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Plastic Pollution: By Muntaka Chasant - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=75041713

All images used were found on Wikimedia Commons and are Public Domain.