News from Latin America

Updates every hour. Last Updated: 29-Oct-2026 12:16 ET (29-Oct-2026 16:16 GMT/UTC)

31-Aug-2020

 

Consortium of Brazilian researchers completes sequencing of native stingless bee's genome

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Frieseomelitta varia is a docile species of economic interest as a pollinator. Its workers are sterile, and some of its genetic sequences are identical to those found in other eusocial bees, pointing to the conservation of ancestral traits.

Journal

BMC Genomics

Funder

São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (Brazil). Geochronologic research at the MIT Isotope Lab

28-Aug-2020

 

Fossil trees on Peru's Central Andean Plateau tell a tale of dramatic environmental change

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The anatomy of plant fossils including an enormous tree that grew 10 million years ago in the now arid, high-elevation Central Andean Plateau calls current paleoclimate models into question, suggesting that the area was more humid than models predict.

Journal

Science Advances

Funder

Harold E. Moore Jr. Memorial and Endowment Fund, Greg D. and Jennifer Walston Johnson, 1923 Fund, Fulbright-Colciencias Doctoral Fund, National Geographic Society, Cornell University, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Anders Foundation

27-Aug-2020

 

Growing demand for zero-deforestation cacao might not help Colombian forests

The Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Cacao in Colombia is not a major driver of deforestation - yet. But increased demand could imperil forests in the future. New research shows cacao stakeholders have to overcome barriers to reach markets that value zero-deforestation, complicating one of Colombia's post-conflict strategies.

Journal

Applied Geography

Funder

International Climate Initiative, World Resources Institute

24-Aug-2020

 

Researchers develop flat lens a thousand times thinner than a human hair

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The lens can be used to produce high-resolution images with a wide field of view. It can serve as a camera lens in smartphones and can be used in other devices that depend on sensors (high resolution wide angle selfie obtained using metalens

Funder

São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (Brazil). Geochronologic research at the MIT Isotope Lab

21-Aug-2020

 

Researchers validate rapid tests to detect dengue, Zika, yellow fever and other viruses

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

The method identifies and distinguishes between flaviviruses that cause many diseases in humans and animals in Brazil.

Journal

Archives of Virology

Funder

São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (Brazil). Geochronologic research at the MIT Isotope Lab

18-Aug-2020

 

Mother bats use baby talk to communicate with their pups

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

When addressing infants, human adults tend to change the speed, pitch and "color" of their voice. This "baby talk" is known to facilitate language learning. According to new research at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, it may not be exclusive of humans. Some bats have their own version of "baby talk" to communicate with their pups.

Journal

Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution

Funder

German Research Foundation, Elsa-Neumann Foundation, Heisenberg Fellowship

18-Aug-2020

 

Enzyme cocktail developed in Brazil powers production of second-generation ethanol

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Brazilian researchers used genetic engineering to develop a low-cost platform for the production of enzymes that break down sugarcane trash and bagasse for conversion into biofuel. The novel molecules have many potential industrial applications.

Journal

Nature Chemical Biology

Funder

São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (Brazil). Geochronologic research at the MIT Isotope Lab

17-Aug-2020

 

Wearable sensors printed on natural materials analyze substances present in sweat

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Applied to skin as a piece of sticking plaster, the device developed by Brazilian researchers can be used to monitor human metabolism and administer drugs.

Journal

Talanta

Funder

São Paulo State Research Support Foundation (Brazil). Geochronologic research at the MIT Isotope Lab

13-Aug-2020

   

Strianassa lerayi anker, new shrimp species from Panama's Coiba national park

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Last year's expedition, part of the project to compare microbiomes of animals in the Pacific and Atlantic oceans, resulted in the discovery of several new animal genera and a species of mud shrimp named for STRI and post-doctoral fellow, Matt Leray

Journal

Zootaxa

13-Aug-2020

 

Native trees thrive in teak plantations and may protect the Panama Canal

Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute
Peer-Reviewed Publication

Teak often underperforms on poor soils. By planting valuable native trees in existing teak plantations, researchers will evaluate the potential increase in timber value, biodiversity value and ecosystem services provided.

Journal

New Forests

Funder

Hoch family, Stanley Motta, Kristin and Frank Levinson, Lloyd's Tercentenary Research Foundation