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BBC Inside Science

Recovering lost memories, Storks eat junk food, Oldest pine fossil, Spring flowering

BBC Inside Science

BBC

Science

4.61.3K Ratings

🗓️ 17 March 2016

⏱️ 28 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Research in Nature this week shows that lost memories in mice can be rescued by reactivating a group of memory cells in the brain called 'engram' cells. The team suggests that their research might prove useful for Alzheimer's patients in the future. Professor John Hardy, neuroscientist at University College London and Dr Prerana Shrestha from the Center for Neural Science at New York University discuss the work with Tracey.

The migrating white stork is well-known in folklore as the bringer of babies. In recent years, large numbers of them have decided to stop flying to Africa for winter, and live all year round, feasting on food from landfills in Portugal. Dr Aldina Franco from the University of East Anglia has been studying these birds and talks to Tracey about these adapting birds.

A scientist at Royal Holloway University in London has discovered the oldest-known fossil of a pine tree. Howard Falcon-Lang discovered the fossils in Nova Scotia, Canada, and brought some back to his office. 5 years later, he dissolved a sample of what looked like charcoal in acid and discovered charred pine twigs. These date back 140 million years to a time when fires raged across large tracts of land. Reporter Roland Pease visits his lab to look at the samples close up. The research suggests the tree's evolution was shaped in the fiery landscape of the Cretaceous, where oxygen levels were much higher than today, fuelling intense and frequent wildfires.

UK Gardeners may have noticed summer flowers blooming at unusual times this winter. Tracey meets up with seed scientist Steve Penfield and crop geneticist Judith Irwin in a greenhouse at the John Innes Centre. They explain how seeds and flowering times are affected temperature changes.

Transcript

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0:00.0

Hello this is the podcast of BBC Inside Science first broadcast on St Patrick's Day, the 17th of March 2016.

0:07.6

You can find plenty more science programs and our terms and conditions at BBC.co. UK slash Radio 4. Is nothing sacred? Today we've

0:18.0

troubling news that that elegant migrating bird the stalk has turned to feasting on local junk food instead of soaring

0:25.6

down to Africa for a nice lizard dinner. Really? Then we have scientific thoughts on the

0:31.4

strangeness of summer flowers that appeared in our

0:33.7

gardens at Christmas. Not to mention the world's oldest pine tree fossil, found in Nova

0:39.4

Scotia and used as a paperweight until its owner gave it a rinse and realized what he had.

0:45.0

More on that later.

0:47.0

First though, Alzheimer's disease affects around 30 million people worldwide

0:52.0

and each year according to the World Health

0:54.2

Organization 4.5 million new people succumb. It is the most common form of

1:00.1

dementia and without a cure can be a frightening diagnosis.

1:04.5

So we couldn't ignore research in nature this week led by the Nobel Prize winner, Professor

1:09.1

Susumu Tonigawa, which showed that lost memories in mice could be rescued by reactivating a specific

1:16.3

group of memory cells in the brain.

1:19.1

The team concluded that its findings may provide insights and therapeutic value for future approaches that rescue

1:25.5

memory in Alzheimer's patients.

1:28.1

The study was even hailed in a commentary and the same issue as an exciting development. And when scientists say exciting we pay attention. But before

1:36.7

delving into this research we wanted a second opinion, Professor John Hardy of University

1:41.8

College London London is a

1:43.1

neuroscientist who's been working on Alzheimer's for around 30 years.

1:46.6

Firstly, this is a beautiful piece of work. It's really a beautiful piece of work.

...

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