Toggle light / dark theme

Scientists identify new species of crystal-encrusted truffle, thanks to bonobos

Mushroom-munching bonobos in the Democratic Republic of the Congo have introduced scientists to a new species of truffle.

Commonly used by Congolese communities to bait traps for , Hysterangium is also savored by bonobos, an endangered species of great ape. Scientists say the hints at vast reserves of undescribed fungal diversity in the region.

“Truffles aren’t just for gourmet chefs—they’re also for our closest relatives,” said Matthew Smith, an associate professor in the University of Florida department of plant pathology and curator of the UF fungal herbarium. “There’s so much to learn about this system, and we’re just scratching the surface.”

I Grew Real Spider Silk Using Yeast

The first 200 people to sign up with Brilliant using my link will get 20% off the annual subscription!
http://brilliant.org/thethoughtemporium
_________________________________________________________________________
What started as a dream more than 10 years ago, has finally become reality. After more than 2 years of work, dozen of failures, hundreds of hours of lab work and design time, we’ve finally done it. We’ve engineered a strain of yeast that produce real spider silk! This video explains how.

Check out our new merch: https://teespring.com/stores/the-thought-emporium

Previous videos:
Project overview — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fx8TcGrCOSI
DNA extraction — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=knosqmvLWSc
PCR — https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7kJ2o7P8D00

Journey to the Microcosmos — https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCBbnbBWJtwsf0jLGUwX5Q3g
_________________________________________________________________________
Support the show and future projects:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thethoughtemporium

Ko-Fi: https://ko-fi.com/thoughtemporium

/* */