Louise Rollins-Smith Archives
Amphibians offer clues to climate change resiliency
Oct. 7, 2021— by Bill Snyder Like the “canary in the coal mine,” the worldwide decline of amphibian populations, including frogs, toads and salamanders, during the past 50 years may be a harbinger of emerging infections and environmental changes that endanger humankind, as well. Just as important, some amphibian species have begun to recover from the global...
Temperature, newts and a skin-eating fungus
Mar. 8, 2021—Salamanders are more sensitive to a skin-eating fungus at colder temperatures, pointing to locations of North America where pathogen invasion is most likely.
Frog peptides as anti-HIV microbicides
Nov. 2, 2020—Peptides derived from the antimicrobial peptides secreted by frogs could function as microbicides to limit HIV transmission, while sparing protective vaginal bacteria.
Frog fungus fights back
May. 9, 2019—Louise Rollins-Smith and colleagues are exploring how a deadly fungus counters the amphibian immune response and contributes to declining worldwide amphibian populations.
Research shows frogs can adapt to traffic noise
Feb. 21, 2019—Frogs don’t like living near noisy highways any better than people do, but research from Vanderbilt suggests that frogs, like hardened city-dwellers, can learn to adapt to the constant din of rumbling trucks, rolling tires and honking horns.
Study reveals frogs bouncing back in Panama
Apr. 5, 2018—A new study reports that some Central American frog species are recovering from a deadly fungal epidemic, perhaps because they have better defenses against the pathogen.
Ten Vanderbilt faculty members elected AAAS fellows
Nov. 23, 2015—Ten members of Vanderbilt University’s faculty have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Treatments for frog fungus
Jul. 25, 2014—The fungicide amphotericin B may be a useful treatment for a frog fungus that is killing amphibians worldwide.
Study finds ‘hot’ frogs fight off fungal pathogen
Jul. 9, 2014—Simple heat treatments may give the frog immune system a boost and help it fight off a deadly fungal pathogen, according to a new study published July 10 in the journal Nature.
Frog-killing fungus paralyzes amphibian immune response
Oct. 17, 2013—A fungus that is killing frogs and other amphibians around the world releases a toxic factor that disables the amphibian immune response, Vanderbilt University investigators report Oct. 18 in the journal Science.
