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News from Latin America

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 14-Dec-2025 02:11 ET (14-Dec-2025 07:11 GMT/UTC)

26-Apr-2022

Animals essential to seed dispersal are the first to disappear owing to deforestation

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Large mammals and birds that can swallow fruit of different sizes are crucial to assure rich animal-plant interactions, thanks to which forests thrive, according to a study conducted at São Paulo State University.

Journal: Biotropica
Funder: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

25-Apr-2022

The first scientific expedition to Panama’s unexplored Cordillera de Coiba sets sail

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Business Announcement

Scientists, students and communicators from Panama, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Spain will spend twelve days on the high seas exploring the biodiversity of Panama’s Cordillera de Coiba seamounts

Funder: Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Collatos Family Foundation, Hothem Family, Mission Blue, Re:wild, Wyss Foundation

20-Apr-2022

Local committees help close gap between climate information and better farmers’ harvests

The Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture
Reports and Proceedings

A co-author of a recent IPCC report says that there is still work to be done to bring farmers the climate information they need to adapt to climate change. Research from the Alliance shows that community-based climate risk management committees can help

20-Apr-2022

Research reveals how gut microbiota imbalance can lead to Parkinson’s disease

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Research on the microbiomes present in the human organism is advancing rapidly, as is scientists’ understanding of the links between an imbalance in gut microbiota and neurodegenerative disorders, from Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s to autism. Dietary changes aimed at restoring a balance to the gut, as well as non-invasive transplantation of microbiota using capsules, can be important strategies to prevent these diseases.

Journal: iScience
Funder: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

19-Apr-2022

Deforestation of Indigenous lands could prevent Brazil from achieving climate change mitigation targets

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The warning comes from a letter by Brazilian researchers published in the journal Science, highlighting the “dramatic increase” in deforestation in areas of the Amazon that should act as shields against such destruction.

Journal: Science
Funder: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

18-Apr-2022

Chiral gold nanoparticles increase vaccine efficacy by more than 25%, study suggests

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Researcheres tested the nanoparticles on human immune cells cultured in vitro and found that the chiral nanoparticles induced production of substances associated with an immune response even in the absence of an antigen.

Journal: Nature
Funder: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

12-Apr-2022

Risk of obesity is 45% higher among adolescents whose diet is based on ultra-processed food products

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The finding by Brazilian researchers was based on data for 3,587 adolescents who took part in the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). Another finding of concern is a 63% higher risk of visceral obesity, which correlates closely with metabolic and cardiovascular diseases.

Journal: Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Funder: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

11-Apr-2022

Plants that feed livestock could be key to climate change mitigation

The Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture
Reports and Proceedings

An author of the most recent IPCC report says it’s critical for the agriculture sector to take carbon out of the atmosphere to mitigate climate change. His team's work shows it might be possible to do this with tropical plants grown as animal feed.

5-Apr-2022

Researchers discover bacteria capable of killing fungus that causes yield-reducing disease in sugarcane

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The study could serve as a basis for the development of biological fungicides as an alternative to the chemical pesticides currently used to combat the disease.

Journal: Environmental Microbiology
Funder: Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo

4-Apr-2022

Fixing the vegetarian plate: A new guide aims to correct misconceptions and educate the health-care community about the vegetarian diet

Publicase International
Reports and Proceedings

The International Vegetarian Union has just launched a 500-page guide that is freely available. The guide aims to demystify the vegetarian plate and correct long-time misconceptions about the vegetarian diet. It provides information on all major nutrients, including how each one is absorbed, what the recommended levels is, what source foods are rich in the nutrient, what symptoms are associated with its deficiency, and the benefits associated with its intake. It also introduces vegetarian dishes from all over the world and recipes on how to prepare the food.

Latin America News Portal

Latin America News Portal

News from Latin America

Animals essential to seed dispersal are the first to disappear owing to deforestation

The first scientific expedition to Panama’s unexplored Cordillera de Coiba sets sail

Local committees help close gap between climate information and better farmers’ harvests

Research reveals how gut microbiota imbalance can lead to Parkinson’s disease

Deforestation of Indigenous lands could prevent Brazil from achieving climate change mitigation targets

Chiral gold nanoparticles increase vaccine efficacy by more than 25%, study suggests

Risk of obesity is 45% higher among adolescents whose diet is based on ultra-processed food products

Plants that feed livestock could be key to climate change mitigation

Researchers discover bacteria capable of killing fungus that causes yield-reducing disease in sugarcane

Fixing the vegetarian plate: A new guide aims to correct misconceptions and educate the health-care community about the vegetarian diet