Ant Fungal Gardens with Dr. Marcy Balunas and Dr. Jonathan Klassen

In this week's episode of Foodie Pharmacology, we talk about ants that grow fungal gardens and how their farming methods are surprisingly similar to human agriculture! Our guests are Dr. Marcy Balunas from the University of Michigan and Dr. Jonathan Klassen from the University of Connecticut. They discuss a new study that shows ants and microbes communicate using chemicals. We also talk about a new tool called MPACT that makes it easier to analyze complex chemical data. Looking ahead, the team plans to study how these ant-microbe partnerships handle challenges like forest fires due to climate change and to identify other chemicals involved in these relationships. If you're interested in how the natural world works, this episode is for you! You can follow their work on Twitter at BalunasLab and klassenlab.   #science #sciencefacts #Podcast #Scicomm #ants #Fungi #Fungal #gardening #foodiepharmacology

Om Podcasten

Have you ever wondered where your food comes from? Not just where it’s grown today, but where it originally popped up in the world? Have you ever bit into a delicious ripe fruit and wondered, hey – why is it this color? What’s responsible for this amazing flavor? Is this good for my health? Could it even be medicinal? Foodie Pharmacology is a science podcast built for the food curious, the flavor connoisseurs, chefs, science geeks, plant lovers and adventurous taste experimenters out in the world! Join American ethnobotanist Dr. Cassandra Quave on this adventure through history, medicine, cuisine and molecules as we explore the amazing pharmacology of our foods.