Fyrirlestur - Evolution Today: Return of the Bed Bugs

Miðvikudaginn 30. maí mun Fred W. Allendorf yfirprófessor (Regents Professor) í líffræði við University of Montana í Bandaríkjunum og rannsóknaprófessor (Professorial Research Fellow) við Victoria University of Wellington á Nýja-Sjálandi halda fyrirlestur hjá Náttúrufræðistofnun Íslands sem nefnist Evolution Today: Return of the Bed Bugs.

Útdráttur erindisins er eftirfarandi:
„I will discuss the importance of understanding the principals of evolution in today's world. The recent resurgence of bed bugs throughout the world and the genetic effects of harvesting on exploited fish populations will be presented as current examples. In addition, I will consider the importance of understanding the principles of understanding evolution in the fields of human medicine and health policy. For example, we are threatened by the spread of bacteria that have evolved resistance to multiple antibiotics. The evolution of antibiotic resistance has resulted in doubling mortality of hospitalized patients, has increased the length of hospital stays, and has dramatically increased the costs of treatment. In the US, it costs over 25 billion dollars per year just to deal with rising medical costs associated with the evolution of antibiotic resistance in a single bacterial species: Staphylococcus aureus.“

Fyrirlesturinn verður fluttur í húsakynnum Náttúrufræðistofnunar að Urriðaholtsstræti 6-8 í Garðabæ, í Krummasölum á 3. hæð kl. 15:15-16:00.

Fred W. Allendorf verður frummælandi á ráðstefnu sem Háskólinn á Akureyri og Náttúrufræðistofnun Íslands standa fyrir þann 1. júní. Hún ber heitið Conservation biology: towards sustainable management of natural resources og verður haldin í Háskólanum á Akureyri kl. 9-17.