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Twirling parasitic worms throw dance party in man’s scrotum

When parasitic worms make it into a scrotum, they have a ball—and dance like nobody's watching.

The parasitic worms in this case were Wuchereria bancrofti, which are spread by mosquitoes in some tropic and subtropical areas of Asia, Africa, the Western Pacific, the Caribbean, and South America. The wriggling ravers stream through the human lymphatic system. Adult worms can live for five to seven years and, when they mate, can produce millions of boogying babies, called microfilariae. Together, they cause a disease called lymphatic filariasis that can lead to tissue swelling (lymphedema), elephantiasis, and, in men, swelling of the scrotum.

The thread-like parasite's penchant for pirouetting is well-established. In medical terms, ultrasound imaging of their scrotal soirées is referred to as the "filarial dance sign."

Amit Sahu and Bharat Aggarwal of the Max Super Specialty Hospital in New Delhi, spied the festering festivities in a 26-year-old man, who had a one-month history of scrotal pain and swelling, as well as low-grade fevers. An ultrasound examination quickly caught the ballsy revelers responsible. Blood testing confirmed the diagnosis, and examination of the young worms identified them as Wuchereria bancrofti microfilariae.

The man was given a three-week course of the antiparasitic drug diethylcarbamazine, which can kill microfilariae and some adult worms. After that, his symptoms resolved and there were no more signs of parasitic partying.

https://arstechnica.com/science/202...dance-party-in-mans-scrotum-and-theres-video/

maximus otter
 

People in South Korea are about to become a year younger.


People in South Korea are set to become a year or two younger after the nation's parliament passed laws to scrap its traditional methods of calculating ages.
The change means that from June 2023, all official documents will be required to list a person’s age using the standardised, internationally-recognised method.

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article...-to-become-a-year-younger-heres-why/r5r1f5b5y
 

Scientists Have Designed a ‘Vagina on a Chip’


Dr. Don Ingber makes organs for a living. Using flexible pieces of silicone carved with tiny channels, he grows tissues that can mimic the complex physical interactions between cells and fluids, creating malleable, three-dimensional models of organs.

Over the past decade, Dr. Ingber, a bioengineer at Harvard, has made more than 15 of these organ chips, including those simulating lungs, livers, intestines and skin. And now he has added a far less studied organ to the list: the vagina.

The chip is more realistic than other laboratory models of the organ, Dr. Ingber said: “This walks, talks, quacks like a human vagina.”

https://dnyuz.com/2022/12/08/scientists-have-designed-a-vagina-on-a-chip/

maximus otter
 

People in South Korea are about to become a year younger.


People in South Korea are set to become a year or two younger after the nation's parliament passed laws to scrap its traditional methods of calculating ages.
The change means that from June 2023, all official documents will be required to list a person’s age using the standardised, internationally-recognised method.

https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article...-to-become-a-year-younger-heres-why/r5r1f5b5y
Happy 70th Yith!
 
A giant Aquarium has exploded at a Berlin hotel.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-63996982

Screenshot_20221216_103630_Chrome.jpg
 
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Apparently it's someone's job to find this stuff out:

Snakes have a clitoris too, and scientists have just found it in nine species​

The animal kingdom's clitoris club officially welcomed its newest members today: snakes.

Key points:​

  • Snakes have an incredibly diverse array of penises, but little was known about female snake genitalia
  • A new study found a clitoris in nine species of snakes from Australia and the Pacific, the Americas and Africa
  • Its function is as yet unclear, but its presence suggests female snakes have more influence in mating behaviours than previously believed

That's according to researchers from Australia and the US, who examined nine species of snake and found each had a distinct clitoris.

These findings suggest the genitalia of female snakes might be as diverse as their male counterparts', which can sometimes be used to tell species apart, says study co-author Jenna Crowe-Riddell, an evolutionary biologist at La Trobe University.

"The Australian death adder's [clitoris] seems to be fairly large, while vipers from America have quite big, almost muscular ones," Dr Crowe-Riddell said.
''clitoris club''???
https://www.abc.net.au/news/science...-anatomy-mating-reproductive-organs/101765340
 
Blimey, there’s now a fire engine stopped outside my house right now & they’ve got a ladder up against the house immediately opposite. No sign of fire though.. A man climbed the ladder & opened a first floor window then they put the ladder back & have driven off. No lights on in the house. Feck knows what that was about..
They were back this eve, same house opposite - this time 2 fire engines with 2 teams of firefighters. Some got inside, don’t think they had to break in, the rest milled about outside. After a while they came out & drove off. I’m wondering wtf they’re doing opposite. No sign of smoke anywhere..
 
They were back this eve, same house opposite - this time 2 fire engines with 2 teams of firefighters. Some got inside, don’t think they had to break in, the rest milled about outside. After a while they came out & drove off. I’m wondering wtf they’re doing opposite. No sign of smoke anywhere..
Perhaps they are checking on someone with mental health issues who lives in darkness at night and won't open the front door. Maybe family phoned the emergency services?

Ok, that's a long shot at guessing. I live in a tower block and frequently, every few days, we get the police (not the fire brigade) checking on peoples welfare as there's a lot of druggies, alcoholics and people with mental health problems who live here. Usually, and I don't know why, they do the checks during the evening. Sometime I hear doors being smashed in as I assume, they got no answer.

Very curious though. Do you know the person or people opposite?
 
Perhaps they are checking on someone with mental health issues who lives in darkness at night and won't open the front door. Maybe family phoned the emergency services?

Ok, that's a long shot at guessing. I live in a tower block and frequently, every few days, we get the police (not the fire brigade) checking on peoples welfare as there's a lot of druggies, alcoholics and people with mental health problems who live here. Usually, and I don't know why, they do the checks during the evening. Sometime I hear doors being smashed in as I assume, they got no answer.

Very curious though. Do you know the person or people opposite?
Dunno - seems unlikely, would 2 fire engines be sent to someone with mental health issues?

It’s a couple who live there, I’d say they were in their 50s. Never spoken to the woman - she doesn’t seem to even want to say hello but I’ve had brief chats with the man. He seems quite affable & up for chat but I usually can’t stand too much - he’s a bit of a conspiratorist. A non vaxer, liked Corbyn but “all the rest are the same”, believes in contrails, US election was stolen, probably many others I’ve forgotten.

I can’t say I know them well. If I see the man I’ll see if I can find out more.
 
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