- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
He received more than 200 suggestions.
Bond, a noted spider authority and the Evert and Marion Schlinger Endowed Chair in Insect Systematics, UC Davis Department of Entomology and Nematology, accepted suggestions from mid-May until 5 p.m., June 1.
His colleague, Joel Ledford, assistant professor of teaching, UC Davis Department of Plant Biology--his research interests include spider systematics and biology education--interviewed Bond May 18 for his Tree of Life-UC Davis YouTube channel. See the episode online.
Bond discovered the new genus of trapdoor spiders on a sandy beach at Moss Landing State Park, Monterey County. Bond proposes to name the genus, Cryptocteniza, part of which means “hidden or secret.”
"There were a few distinct categories of name suggestions," said Bond, who received most through his email but some posted on the YouTube Channel. The categories:
- Native American groups and Native American terms
- Moss Landing derivative names – nouns in apposition associated with the type locality
- Names for celebrities or film characters – a modicum of Harry Potter suggestions as well
- Folks wanting me to name the spider after myself or some other association with the Bond name, related to No. 3
- Most recently names related to George Floyd or other associations with the Black Lives Matter movement.
A virtual open house on spiders, hosted by the Bohart Museum of Entomology, UC Davis, will be broadcast on FacebookLive sometime soon, said Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator. It was initially scheduled for June 8 but postponed.
When it is rescheduled, Bond will discuss spiders, field questions about spiders, and list the top suggestions--perhaps several--for the species. When the final decision is made, the person who named it will be included in Bond's upcoming manuscript on the new genus. Ledford is a co-author.
Trapdoor spiders are so named because they construct their burrows with a corklike or wafer trap door made of soil, vegetation and silk.
Bond discovered the female spider in 1997 on the sandy beach, and figured at the time it might be a new genus. But despite repeated trips to the site, he could not find a male for 22 years. The male proved elusive until pitfall trap sampling in the fall of 2019.
“I have only one male specimen,” Bond told Ledford. He said he will be “relieved” when it is described and finds a home in the Bohart Museum of Entomology, located in Room 1124 of the Academic Surge Building on Crocker Lane. (It is temporarily closed due the coronavirus pandemic precautions.)
“This genus meets the criteria of an endangered living fossil,” Bond said, “and is consequently of grave conservation concern.” He believes the genus is found only in that area, but thinks it may be closely related to a genus found in New Mexico and Arizona. “It is quite plausible that this genus was once likely far more widespread across California and the American Southwest, with potentially greater past species diversity throughout its larger hypothetical ancestral range,” he said.
Of the genus name, Cryptocteniza, Bond says that the adjective “hidden or secret” is prefixed to Cteniza, the Greek feminine noun “comb.” The latter refers to the comb-like rastellum (row of stiff spines on the chelicera) common in taxa and formerly assigned to the spider family Ctenizidae (e.g., Eucteniza). The prefix refers to both the diminutive form of the rastellum and the seemingly “hidden in plain sight” nature of the genus, he says.
It is rare to find a genus in the field, the professor said. The usual place is in museum collections.
The trapdoor spider family Euctenizidae is comprised of some 76 described species in seven genera widely distributed throughout the United States, although a few species are known from Mexico.
Some of the suggestions posted on YouTube:
- Cryptocteniza 007 since it is hidden in plain sight and your name is Bond.
- Cryptoctenzia quartertine: a combination of “quarter” and “quarantine,” since it took you a quarter of a century to find a male specimen, and because of our current Covid experience!
- Cryptoceniza nutella (for the rich dark brown color)
- Cryptocteniza steinbeckii (for one of Monterey County's most famous residents, though apparently John Steinbeck already has a fish named after him)
- Cryptoceniza pairspinster (paired spinster since the male was found after so many years)
- Cryptoceniza Spidey McSpiderface
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Focusing primarily on vaccines, it was broadcast Wednesday, June 3 on both Zoom and YouTube. UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal, organizer and moderator, said that "Zoom viewers had an opportunity to evaluate the event: 84.1% found the symposium very helpful; 88.7% were very satisfied or satisfied."
A few of the comments:
- “This is a great way to get facts to the public.”
- "The format was engaging and dynamic.”
- "I was pleased to see that politics was left out of it.”
- "Appreciated the question and answer format and thought that the questions were very well chosen to highlight important points in the discussion.”
Beekeepers were particularly interested in whether bee sting therapy could have a role in the COVID-19 crisis. Could bee sting therapy prevent the disease or could it be used for patient treatment? In addressing the symposium, honey bee geneticist Robert E. Page Jr., related that some beekeepers have used bee therapy to treat arthritis. Page also commented on a paper published in sciencedirect.com indicating that beekeepers living in the epicenter of the COVID-19 virus in China did not contract the virus, and neither did a group of patients receiving apitherapy.
A beekeeping couple in Maryland told Leal today that they read the sciencedirect.com article about a month ago and are taking bee sting therapy. "(We) are stinging ourselves in case it offers protection because the cost seems low and the potential benefit high," the wife said. "We've done it about 3 times so far, approximately once a week, and so far so good."
Virtual Symposium Attendance
Zoom drew 760 users (from 1,081 registered), with 543 unique viewers from 18 countries. "Zoom registrants were from 35 countries, but I assume that most of them watched the recorded presentation (given the time difference)," Leal said. "In less than 24 hours, the Youtube video https://youtu.be/O4L0OHcZ5Mk reached 3,681 views."
The main program, from 5 to 7 p.m., began with a welcoming address by UC Davis Chancellor Gary May. The keynote speakers:
- Dr. Robert Gallo, who co-discovered that HIV causes AIDS, is the Homer and Martha Gudelsky Distinguished Professor in Medicine; co-founder and director of the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Institute of Human Virology; and co-founder of the Global Virus Network.
- Kate Broderick, who is leading an INOVIO research team in San Diego to develop a DNA vaccine for COVID-19,
- Dr. Dean Blumberg, professor and chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, UC Davis Health
- Dr. Allison Brashear, dean of the UC Davis School of Medicine., dean of the UC Davis School of Medicine.
- Dr. Paul Allan Offit, co-inventor of the rotavirus vaccine, and the Maurice R. Hilleman Professor of Vaccinology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
Also interviewed were Dr. Atul Malhotra, professor of Medicine, Pulmonology, Critical Care, UC San Diego Health, and Dr. Stuart H. Cohen, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases and director of Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control, UC Davis School of Medicine.
The pre-program included interviews with retired UC Davis Medical Center nurse Carolyn Wyler of Sacramento, a passenger on the ill-fated Grand Princess cruise ship; and with UC Davis Medical Center nurse Paula Wagner, who took a two-week "vacation" to treat COVID-19 patients at a Boston hospital.
Leal, a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, a member of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology faculty and a former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, organized and moderated two other COVID-19 symposiums.
The first symposium is online at https://bit.ly/2VurK3Z and the second at https://bit.ly/3b8TAau.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
He alerted UC Davis scientists to an article in sciencedirect.com that indicated this anecdotal information: beekeepers living in the epicenter of the COVID-19 virus in China did not contract the virus, and neither did a group of patients receiving apitherapy.
"These people have one thing in common: they develop a tolerance to bee sting," wrote lead author Wei Yang, an oncologist from China and two associates. The trio pointed out that "It reminds us the story of the discovery of cowpox and the eventual victory of humans over this disease (Bennett and Baxby)
"In the Hubei province, the epicenter of COVID-19 in China, 5,115 beekeepers were surveyed from February 23 to March 8," Gary said, quoting the article. "This survey included 723 who lived in Wuhan, the outbreak epicenter of Hubei. Amazingly, none of these beekeepers developed symptoms associated with Covid-19. Their health was totally normal. Additional studies at apitherapy clinics, where bee venom treatments were made on patients from October to December 2019, revealed that none of the 121 patients, or the apitherapists that treated them, became infected, even though some were exposed to relatives or contacts infected with Covid-19."
"Bee venom therapy is successfully used for treating some forms of arthritis and rheumatism," said Gary, who at 86 has worked with bees for more than seven decades. "I think that the use of bee venom vs.COVID-19 should be investigated. Maybe our UC Davis Primate Center (California National Primate Research Center) will consider appropriate experiments with primates to test bee venom therapy for COVID-19. I have received thousands of bee stings during my 70 years of working and playing with bees. Maybe that's why I'm 86 and COVID-19 free!"
Norm began keeping bees at age 15 in Florida. His career includes hobby beekeeper, commercial beekeeper, deputy apiary inspector in New York, honey bee research scientist, entomology professor, author, bee wrangler and Guinness World record holder.
During his professional bee wrangler career spanning four decades, “The Bee Man” served as a consultant and bee stunt coordinator for 17 movies, 70 TV shows and six TV commercials. Among his credits: “Fried Green Tomatoes” and appearances with Johnny Carson and Jay Leno on Tonight Shows.
He launched the Thriller Bee Shows, performing more than 100 times in three western states, with venues that included the California State Fair. He drew widespread acclaim for wearing a head-to-toe suit of clustered bees while "Buzzin' with His Bee-Flat Clarinet."
Gary once trained bees to fly into his mouth to collect food from a small sponge saturated with artificial nectar. His holds the Guinness World record (109 bees inside his closed mouth for 10 seconds) for the stunt. He's also the person behind the "bee suit" record in the Guinness World Records; Gary clustered more than 87 pounds of bees on a friend.
As a musician, Gary plays the clarinet (B-flat clarinet), alto sax, tenor sax, and flute with several groups.
Benefits of Bee Venom Therapy
Page remembers helping his friend and mentor, the late Harry Hyde Laidlaw Jr.,(1907-2003) of UC Davis, "the father of honey bee genetics," receive bee stings to alleviate his arthritis. (The bee research facility on Bee Biology Road, UC Davis, bears the name of the "Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Center").
"I used to take the bees and put them on his neck and have them stinging so that he would get his certain number of stings a week," Page told interviewee Leal, adding that this was "not standard medical practice" but "he believed in it."
Laidlaw's daughter, Barbara Laidlaw Murphy, now of Washingrton state, remembers the bee sting therapy well. "He put bee stings on his knee and he put them on my mom's hands--for (treatment of) arthritis," she said. "They used to get the bees out of the hive in the lab sign."
"He seemed to believe in it," Murphy said. "My mom was quite enthusiastic about it for her. He would have the bee sting her on her knuckles. Her hand would swell up quite a lot. After the swelling went down she was sure that her arthritis was better and she could get back to her knitting."
See the COVID-19 Symposium, primarily on vaccines, here: https://youtu.be/O4L0OHcZ5Mk.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Newly named to the symposium is Paul Allan Offit, M.D., co-inventor of the rotavirus vaccine, announced UC distinguished professor Walter Leal, who organizes and moderates the symposiums as a public service.
The third symposium, focusing primarily on vaccines, is set for 5 to 7 p.m. on Zoom and YouTube. It will begin at 4:30 with a pre-program, featuring interviews and questions and answers. The main program, with the panelists, begins at 5. To register and view the symposium, access https://bit.ly/2AgVbxY.
"I am very thankful that Dr. Ovitt found time in his busy schedule to share some of his thoughts about the current developments," said Leal. "We would like to know whether he would take the first COVID-19 vaccine and why."
Dr. Offit is the Maurice R. Hilleman Professor of Vaccinology, Professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, former chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases (1992-2014), and the director of the Vaccine Education Center at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. His credentials also include: member of the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, board member of Every Child By Two, and a founding board member of the Autism Science Foundation.
"Offit worked for 25 years on the development of a safe and effective vaccine against rotavirus, which is a cause of diarrhea, and which kills almost 600,000 children a year worldwide," according to Wikipedia. His interest in the disease stems from his days as a pediatric resident: a 9-month-old infant died from rotavirus-caused dehydration while under his care.
Offit and colleagues Fred Clark and Stanley Plotkin, Offit invented RotaTeq, a pentavalent rotavirus vaccine manufactured by Merck & Co. Since 2006, RotaTeq has been one of two vaccines currently used against rotavirus.
From Wikipedia: "Offit has published more than 130 papers in medical and scientific journals in the areas of rotavirus-specific immune responses and vaccine safety, and is the author or co-author of books on vaccines, vaccination, and antibiotics. He is one of the most public faces of the scientific consensus that vaccines have no association with autism."
"Offit grew up in Baltimore, the son of a shirtmaker. He went to his father's sales meetings and reacted negatively to the tall tales told by salespeople, instead preferring the clean and straightforward practice of science. When he was five years old, he was sent to a polio ward to recover from clubfoot surgery; this experience caused him to see children as vulnerable and helpless, and motivated him through the 25 years of the development of the rotavirus vaccine."
Offit received his bachelor's degree from Tufts University and his M.D. from the University of Maryland, Baltimore.
The pre-program of interviews and questions will include interviews with retired UC Davis Medical Center nurse Carolyn Wyler of Sacramento, a passenger on the ill-fated Grand Princess cruise ship; and with UC Davis Medical Center nurse Paula Wagner, who took a two-week "vacation" to treat COVID-19 patients at a Boston hospital.
The main program, from 5 to 7 p.m., will begin with a welcoming address by UC Davis Chancellor Gary May. The panelists:
- Dr. Robert Gallo, who co-discovered that HIV causes AIDS, is the Homer and Martha Gudelsky Distinguished Professor in Medicine; co-founder and director of the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Institute of Human Virology; and co-founder of the Global Virus Network.
- Kate Broderick, who is leading an INOVIO research team in San Diego to develop a DNA vaccine for COVID-19,
- Dr. Dean Blumberg, professor and chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, UC Davis Health
- Dr. Allison Brashear, dean of the UC Davis School of Medicine., dean of the UC Davis School of Medicine.
Also interviewed will be Dr. Atul Malhotra, professor of Medicine, Pulmonology, Critical Care, UC San Diego Health, and Dr. Stuart H. Cohen, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases and director of Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control, UC Davis School of Medicine. Honey bee geneticist Robert E. Page Jr., UC Davis distinguished emeritus professor, will comment on whether bee sting therapy might have a role in COVID-19 treatment. Anecdotal information recently published in sciencedirect.com indicates that beekeepers living in the epicenter of the COVID-19 virus did not contract the virus, and neither did a a group of patients receiving apitherapy.
Leal, a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, a member of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology faculty and a former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, has organized and moderated two other COVID-19 symposiums. The first symposium is online at https://bit.ly/2VurK3Z and the second at https://bit.ly/3b8TAau.
Leal may be reached at wsleal@ucdavis.edu for more information.
- Author: Kathy Keatley Garvey
Maybe. Maybe not. Should in-depth, scientific research be launched?
Yes, say a trio of researchers in an article published in sciencedirect.com.
Lead author Wei Yang, an oncologist from China, and two associates related some interesting but anecdotal information about beekeepers in the COVID-19 epicenter, the Hubei province. The beekeepers surveyed didn't contract the COVID-19 virus. Neither did a group of surveyed patients receiving apitherapy.
"A total of 5115 beekeepers were surveyed from February 23 to March 8, including 723 in Wuhan, the outbreak epicentre of Hubei. None of these beekeepers developed symptoms associated with COVID-19, and their health was totally normal. After that, we interviewed five apitherapists in Wuhan and followed 121 patients of their apitherapy clinic. These patients had received apitherapy from October 2019 to December 2019, and all the five bee apitherapists have the habit of self-apitherapy for their own health care (apitherapy means making use of bee venom from the honeybee's sting to treat or prevent certain diseases). Without any protective measures, two of the five apitherapists were exposed to suspected COVID-19 cases and others were exposed to confirmed COVID-19 cases, but none of them were infected eventually. None of the 121 patients were infected by SARS-CoV-2, and three of them had close contact with immediate family members who were confirmed SARS-CoV-2 Infection cases. It might be supposed that beekeepers are less likely to be exposed to SARS-CoV-2 because they live in less densely populated rural areas. But the five apitherapists and their patients are from densely populated areas in Wuhan. These people have one thing in common: they develop a tolerance to bee sting."
The co-authors pointed out that "It reminds us the story of the discovery of cowpox and the eventual victory of humans over this disease (Bennett and Baxby, 1996)."
Robert E. Page Jr. to Discuss Topic
Internationally renowned bee geneticist Robert E. Page Jr., UC Davis distinguished emeritus professor, will discuss the topic briefly, offering his comments, at the third UC Davis-based COVID-19 Symposium on Wednesday, June 3 via Zoom and YouTube. To register and view the program, access https://bit.ly/2AgVbxY.
"We already have registrants from 25 countries," said UC Davis distinguished professor Walter Leal, who organizes and moderates the symposiums. He interviewed Page and all the other symposium participants.
Page is known for his research on honey bee behavior and population genetics, particularly the evolution of complex social behavior. One of his most salient contributions to science was to construct the first genomic map of the honey bee, which sparked a variety of pioneering contributions not only to insect biology but to genetics at large. Page is the author of the newly published book, The Art of the Bee: Shaping the Environment from Landscapes to Societies.
A little information on Rob Page: He's a former professor and chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology. He established a 24-year bee breeding program at the Harry H. Laidlaw Jr. Honey Bee Research Facility, UC Davis. He served as the founding director of the School of Life Sciences of Arizona State University (ASU). His ASU career advanced to dean of Life Sciences; vice provost and dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; and university provost.
One of Page's comments during the interview: "The venom from bee stings causes inflammation. it recruits anti-inflammatory responses. It's something that has been used for a long time for therapeutic treatment of arthritis."
Pre-Program at 4:30, Program from 5 to 7 p.m.
The virtual symposium starts at 4:30 with a pre-program of interviews and questions. Among the interviewees is retired UC Davis Medical Center nurse Carolyn Wyler of Sacramento, a passenger on the ill-fated Grand Princess cruise ship.
The program, from 5 to 7 p.m. and mainly on vaccines, will begin with a welcoming address by UC Davis Chancellor Gary May. The primary speakers or panelists:
- Dr. Robert Gallo, who co-discovered that HIV causes AIDS, is the Homer and Martha Gudelsky Distinguished Professor in Medicine; co-founder and director of the University of Maryland School of Medicine's Institute of Human Virology; and co-founder of the Global Virus Network.
- Kate Broderick, who is leading an INOVIO research team in San Diego to develop a DNA vaccine for COVID-19,
- Dr. Dean Blumberg, professor and chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, UC Davis Health
- Dr. Allison Brashear, dean of the UC Davis School of Medicine.
Also interviewed will be Dr. Atul Malhotra, professor of Medicine, Pulmonology, Critical Care, UC San Diego Health, and Dr. Stuart H. Cohen, chief of the Division of Infectious Diseases and director of Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control, UC Davis School of Medicine.
Leal, a fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, a member of the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology faculty and a former chair of the UC Davis Department of Entomology, has organized and moderated two other COVID-19 symposiums. The first symposium is online at https://bit.ly/2VurK3Z and the second at https://bit.ly/3b8TAau.
Leal may be reached at wsleal@ucdavis.edu for more information.
