BBC: Nose-picking primates spark scientific quest

[China]

Nose-picking primates spark scientific quest

 

It is a biological mission that began with a chance encounter with a lemur that was picking its nose.

 

It wasn't just any lemur; an aye-aye was filmed by Prof Anne-Claire Fabre from the University of Bern burying its elongated finger in its nostril.

 

"I wanted to know where is this finger going?" she told the BBC.

 

The meeting at Duke Lemur Center in the US, led Prof Fabre and her colleagues to question the evolutionary origins of the habit.

 

Aye-ayes are nocturnal primates found only in Madagascar. They are famous for their strange, skinny, long fingers, which they use to fish grubs out of branches.

 

"It was inserting the entire length and, [when you look at] the length of its head, it was like - where is it going?" she recalled. "I wondered - is it inserting it into its brain? It was so weird and seemed impossible."

 

 

"It was going into the sinus and from the sinus into the throat and into the mouth," she explained.

 

"We really think this behaviour is understudied because it's really seen as a bad habit," explained Prof Fabre. Studies that investigate the behaviour in people have shed some light on how common the habit is, revealing that the majority of humans pick their nose often but are reluctant to admit it.

 

There are a few studies examining the cons - and possible pros - of nose picking. Some have pointed to its role in spreading harmful bacteria. But there is at least one study suggesting that picking your nose and eating it might actually be healthy for teeth, as people who picked their noses reported fewer cavities.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Captain Wiggles]

Boogers are good for your teeth? 🤢

 

 

[Gurgeh]

4 hours ago, Captain Wiggles said:

Boogers are good for your teeth? 🤢

 

 

 

The toothpaste of the future is going to be gross

[China]

14 minutes ago, Gurgeh said:

 

The toothpaste of the future is going to be gross

 

[China]

On 10/27/2022 at 3:08 PM, Captain Wiggles said:

Boogers are good for your teeth? 🤢

 

 

But not so much for your brain...

 

Nose Picking Could Increase Risk for Alzheimer’s and Dementia

 

Griffith University researchers have demonstrated that a bacteria can travel through the olfactory nerve in the nose and into the brain in mice, where it creates markers that are a tell-tale sign of Alzheimer’s disease.

 

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, showed that Chlamydia pneumoniae used the nerve extending between the nasal cavity and the brain as an invasion path to invade the central nervous system. The cells in the brain then responded by depositing amyloid beta protein which is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease.

 

Professor James St John, Head of the Clem Jones Center for Neurobiology and Stem Cell Research, is a co-author of the world first research.

 

“We’re the first to show that Chlamydia pneumoniae can go directly up the nose and into the brain where it can set off pathologies that look like Alzheimer’s disease,” Professor St John said. “We saw this happen in a mouse model, and the evidence is potentially scary for humans as well.”

 

The olfactory nerve in the nose is directly exposed to air and offers a short pathway to the brain, one which bypasses the blood-brain barrier. It’s a route that viruses and bacteria have sniffed out as an easy one into the brain.

 

The team at the Center is already planning the next phase of research and aim to prove the same pathway exists in humans.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Dan T.]

Shouldn't Daniel Snyder threads go in the Stadium?

[Renegade7]

Stop it, did they with a straight face say chewing boogers can help fight cavities?  

 

This is right up there with daring folks to tell their significat other that cum has teeth whitening properties.

 

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/semen-reduces-plaque-and-tartar/

 

Quote

However, other studies suggest that the average human male’s ejaculation produces around 3-4 ml of semen, so at the low end of that range, 16 to 22 ejaculations would be needed per day to supply the recommended daily intake of zinc, and 1,111 ejaculations to obtain the recommended daily intake of calcium.

 

Edited October 31, 2022 by Renegade7

[TheGreatBuzz]

9 hours ago, Renegade7 said:

Stop it, did they with a straight face say chewing boogers can help fight cavities?  

 

This is right up there with daring folks to tell their significat other that cum has teeth whitening properties.

 

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/semen-reduces-plaque-and-tartar/