Herpes virus killing coral reefs
Global warming is giving coral herpes.
Corals get cold sores too. Only, for corals, a herpes virus infection isn’t just annoying. It can be lethal, and it and other diseases are possibly a big factor in the deaths of coral reefs that humans are causing throughout the world’s oceans, new research shows.
Scientists have known for years that humans are killing corals indirectly and directly through global warming, overfishing and pollution. Many reefs off populous coasts have been decimated, while those near uninhabited areas are often thriving.
“For some reason, when you put people next to reefs, they die,” said microbiologist Forest Rohwer of San Diego State University at a recent symposium at the American Museum of Natural History here.
A 2004 study found that 70 percent of the world’s reefs had been destroyed or were threatened by global warming and other human activities.
Herpes viruses are naturally found in many different animals (95 percent of humans carry some kind of herpes virus).
“Everybody in this room has at least a couple herpes viruses running around,” Rohwer said at the symposium, causing some in the audience to chuckle. “And when you get stressed, or immuno-compromised, they’re going to start hopping out and giving you little cold sores or other wounds that we won’t talk about.”
“That seems to be what’s going on in the corals too,” he added.
livescience
Stumble it!