Biopedia

Vince's Podcasts

Biology is a fascinating subject which is well worth exploring. Its scope stretches from individual DNA strands and viruses to blue whales, metapopulations and the biosphere. We will shine the spotlight on a different biological concept in every episode. Topics I've covered in the past include the origins of cell theory, Dollo's law and the Anthropocene; however, there is still plenty more to discover. Our focus will range from the very smallest scales to the very largest; from virions to the Gaia hypothesis. So come and explore the fascinating world of biology, one episode at a time!

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151 episodes
Updated Sunday

Episodes151

Newest first

Dec 15, 2024 · 6 min
92- The UK Sand Eel Fishing Ban
Recently in conservation news, the UK brought in a ban on sand eel fishing effective as of March 2024. This is connected to how important sand eel are to seabirds. However, as we will see today, there are political repercussions of such an announcement... Let's watch the political and the conservation worlds meet. Sources for this episode: Mitsilegas, V. and Guild, E. (2024), THe UK and the ECHR After Brexit: The Challenge of Immigration Control. European Convention of Human Rights Law Review 5(1): 116-131. Murphy, P. and Shoesmith, K., BBC (2023), Sandeel fishing ban a lifeline to seabirds (online) (Accessed 15/05/2024). Author unknown, European Commission (2024), EU requests consultations under Trade and Cooperation Agreement over UK's permanent closure of the sandeel fishery (online) (Accessed 15/05/2024). Author unknown, IUCN Red List of Threatened Species (online) (Accessed 31/05/2024). Author unknown, RSPB (date unknown), Big news for seabirds as campaign to close the English North Sea and Scottish waters to sandeel fishing succeeds (online) (Accessed 15/05/2024). Author unknown, Scottish Government (2024), The Sandeel (Prohibition of Fishing) (Scotland) Order 2024: business and regulatory assessment-final (online) (Accessed 15/05/2024).
Dec 1, 2024 · 5 min
91- Climate Change and Day Length
Back to talking about the impacts of climate change, and this time it's something pretty fundamental that's being impacted- the length of a day... Sources for this episode: Agnew, D. C. (2024), A global timekeeping problem postponed by global warming. Nature 628: 333-336. Mitchell, R. N. and Kirscher, U. (2023), Mid-Proterozoic day length stalled by tidal resonance. Nature Geoscience 16: 567-569. Scaife, A. A., Hermanson, L., van Niekerk, A., Andrews, M., Baldwin, M. P., Belcher, S., Bett, P., Comer, R. E., Dunstone, N. J., Geen, R., Hardiman, S. C., Ineson, S., Knight, J., Nie, Y., Ren, H.-L. and Smith, D. (2024), Long-range predictability of extratropical climate and the length of day. Nature Geoscience 15: 789-793. Author unknown, BBC (2011), Why the Moon is getting further away from Earth (online) (Accessed 30/04/2024).
Nov 17, 2024 · 4 min
90- Trees on Mars
The record for the tallest tree is a sequoia that is just over 116 metres tall. Would this be different on other planets? Find out in today's episode- plus an appearance from the transpiration stream and transpiration. Sources for this episode: Cox, B. and Cohen, A. (2013), Wonders of Life. London: HarperCollins Publishers. Harberle, R. M. (2015), SOLAR SYSTEM/SUN, ATMOSPHERES, EVOLUTION OF ATMOSPHERES | Planetary Atmospheres: Mars. Chapter in: Encyclopedia of Atmospheric Sciences (2nd edition): p. 168-177. Hine, R. S. (2019), Oxford Dictionary of Biology (8th edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Nazari-Sharabian, M., Aghababaei, M., Karakouzian, M. and Karami, M. (2020), Water on Mars- A Literature Review. Galaxies 8(2): 40. Owen, T., Biemann, K., Rushneck, D. R., Biller, J. E., Howarth, D. W. and Lafleur, A. L. (1977), The Composition of the Atmosphere at the Surface of Mars. Journal of Geophysical Research 82(28): 4635-4639. Author unknown, Guiness World Records (date unknown), Tallest tree living (online) (Accessed 22/04/2024). Author unknown, NASA (date unknown), Mars Facts (online) (Accessed 29/04/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Atmospheric pressure (online) (Accessed 29/04/2024).
Nov 3, 2024 · 6 min
89- Voyage of the Beagle Part II
We catch up with Darwin and see what exactly he got up to in the Empire of Brazil! Sources for this episode: Cardoso, D., et al. (2020), Amazon plant diversity revealed by a taxonomically verified species list. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 114(40): 10695-10700. Darwin, C. (1945), The Voyage of the Beagle. London: J. M. Dent & Sons, Ltd. Hubbell, S. P., He, F., Condit, R., Borda-de-Água, L., Kellner, J. and ter Steege, H. (2008), How many tree species are there in the Amazon and how many of them will go extinct? Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 105(suppl. 1): 11498-11504. Martin, P. A. (1933), Slavery and Abolition in Brazil. The Hispanic American Historical Review 13(2): 151-196. Ray, J. L. (2009), The abolition of slavery and the end of international war. International Organization 43(3): 405-439. Ronque, M. U. V., Fourcassié, V. and Oliveira, P. S. (2018), Ecology and field biology of two dominant Camponotus ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) in the Brazilian savannah. Journal of Natural History 52(3-4): 237-252. Author unknown, Metric Conversions (date unknown), Feet to Meters conversion: ft to m calculator (online) (Accessed 29/04/2024). Author unknown, Rainforest Trust (date unknown), Amazon Basin (online) (Accessed 22/04/2024). Author unknown, Our World in Data (date unknown), Average annual precipitation (online) (Accessed 22/04/2024). Author unknown, United States Senate (date unknown), The Senate Passes the Thirteenth Amendment (online) (Accessed 29/04/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Porcupinefish (online) (Accessed 22/04/2024).
Oct 15, 2024 · 1 min
Update- Ask Me Anything and Patreon Question
As we'll soon be reaching 100 episodes, I was wondering whether you would be interested in an Ask Me Anything (or AMA) when we get there. If so, feel free to send me questions to the show's email address! I look forward to hearing from you. This update also tentatively raises the idea of a Biopedia Patreon. Is this something you would be interested in? I have no idea how it would work at present, so feedback on this or whether you would be interested in the first place is welcome. Again, reach out to the email address, or else there is a poll available on the YouTube community on the subject.
Oct 6, 2024 · 7 min
88- Different Types of Cousin
First cousins, second cousins, fourth cousins three times removed... What's the difference? And if all three billion letters of your genetic code were unique, how distant a relation would you have to have before the two of you didn't share any of these original letters anymore? This scenario has some assumptions, but we'll use it to explore how large the human genome is! Sources for this episode: Berger, B. M. (1960), How Long Is a Generation? The British Journal of Sociology 11(1): 10-23. Bistritzer, T., Fried, K., Lahat, E., Dvir, M. and Goldberg, M. (1993), Congenital contractual arachnodactyly in two double second cousins: possible homozygosity. Clinical Genetics 44: 15-19. (for second cousins, nothing except abstract) Matsamura, S. and Forster, P. (2008), Generation time and effective population size in Polar Eskimos. Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 275: 1501-1508. McDermott, M., Genealogy Explained (2022, updated 2024), What are Double First Cousins (online) (Accessed 24/04/2024). Skipper, M. (2012), User’s guide to the human genome. Nature Reviews Genetics 13: 678. Author unknown, Ancestry (date unknown), What is a second, third, or fourth cousin- or a cousin once removed? (online) (Accessed 24/04/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Family tree of English monarchs (online) (Accessed 24/04/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Family tree of the British royal family (online) (Accessed 24/04/2024). Author unknown, 23 and Me (date unknown), Average Percent DNA Shared Between Relatives (online) (Accessed 24/04/2024).
Sep 22, 2024 · 7 min
87- The Permian Extinction
Twenty-one episodes ago, we discussed the extinction of the dinosaurs 66 million years before the present. However, this isn't the only mass extinction event the Earth has witnessed. Let's go back to 252 million years ago and watch the Great Dying unfold... Sources for this episode: Campbell, N. A., Urry, L. A., Cain, M. L., Wasserman, S. A., Minorsky, P. V. and Reece, J. B. (2018), Biology: a global approach, 11th edition (Global Edition), Harlow, Pearson Education Limited. Clennett, C., Locke, J. and Jackson, T. (editorial consultants) (2023), How Biology Works. LonondM Darling Kindersley Ltd. Cohen, K.M., Finney, S.C., Gibbard, P.L. & Fan, J.-X. (2013; updated) The ICS International Chronostratigraphic Chart. Episodes 36: 199-204. Cui, Y. and Kump, L. R. (2015), Global warming and the end-Permian extinction event: Proxy and modeling perspectives. Earth-Science Reviews 149: 5-22. Herron, J. C., and Freeman, S. (2015), Evolutionary Analysis. Harlow: Pearson Education Ltd. Hochuli, P. A., Hermann, E., Vigran, J. O., Bucher, H.and Weissert, H. (2010), Rapid demise and recovery of planet ecosystems across the end-Permian extinction event. Global and Planetary Change 74: 144-155. Kaiser, M. J., Attrill, M. J., Jennings, S., Thomas, D. N., Barnes, D. K. A., Brierley, A. S., Graham, N. A. J., Hiddink, J. G., Howell, K. and Kaartokallio, H. (2020), Marine Ecology: Processes, Systems and Impacts (3rd edition; Oxford: Oxford University Press. Twitchett, R. J. (2007), The Lilliput effect in the aftermath of the end-Permian extinction event. Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 252: 132-144.
Sep 11, 2024 · 1 min
Island Folk 4- Island Invasion and Extinction
It's the fourth of seven episodes of Island Folk! Among subjects of discussion are reindeer on South Georgia, invasion and extinction on islands more broadly and a discussion of the Caribbean. Feel free to give the show a listen at the link below: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3qaiLb44t4IPICE1iOoRzm?si=9358f712ea9e4d0c
Sep 1, 2024 · 8 min
86- The Psychology of Namesaking
Namesaking is the practice of naming a child for someone else- usually a close relative. Today, we will be exploring the psychology and impacts of this practice. Sources for this episode: Abel, E. L. (2013), Jr. Naming Etiquette. Names 61(4): 230-238. Bird, A. E. and McAndrew, F. T. (2019), Does Namesaking a Child Influence Attachment Style? North American Journal of Psychology 21(13): 39-44. Busse, T. V., Busse, K. and Busse, M. (1979), Identical First Names for Parent and Child. The Journal of Social Psychology 107(2): 293-294. Cameron, C. (1987), Trouble With Junior: Father-Naming, Child Abuse, and Deliquency. Sociology and Social Research 71(3): 200-204. McAndrew, F. T., King, J. C. and Honoroff, L. R. (2006), A Sociobiological Analysis of Namesaking Patterns in 322 American Families. Journal of Applied Social Psychology 32(4): 851-864. McAndrew, F. T. (2022), The namesaking of children as an investment strategy for managing kin relations and bonding fathers to their children. Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences 16(3): 220-228. Rossi, A. S. (1965), Naming Children in Middle-Class Families. American Sociological Review 30(4): 499-513. Šaffa, G., Štĕrbová, Z; and Prokop, P. (2021), Parental Investment is Biased toward Children Named for Their Fathers. Human Nature 32: 387-405. Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Eleanor Roosevelt (online) (Accessed 16/04/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Joe Biden (online) (Accessed 15/04/2024). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Manila City Council (online) (Accessed 11/04/2024).
Aug 18, 2024 · 6 min
85- Rewind: Mitosis and Meiosis
The rewind mini series is back! This time, we're discuss the two forms of eukaryotic cell division, mitosis and meiosis. Sources for this episode: Campbell, N. A., Urry, L. A., Cain, M. L., Wasserman, S. A., Minorsky, P. V. and Reece, J. B. (2018), Biology: a global approach, 11th edition (Global Edition), Harlow, Pearson Education Limited. Hine, R. (2019), A Dictionary of Biology (Oxford Quick Reference), 8th edition, Oxford, Oxford University Press. Russell, P. J. (2006), iGenetics: A Molecular Approach. San Francisco: Pearson Education, Inc.
Aug 4, 2024 · 5 min
84- Habitat
Following on from the definition of biomes in episode 78, we're zooming in and discussing habitats today. What we'll find is that the term is similar but smaller scale in terms of number of species considered- and that there used to be considerable uncertainty in the literature... Sources for this episode: Allaby, M. (editor) (2020), Oxford Dictionary of Zoology. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Carpenter, J. R. (1939), The Biome. The American Midland Naturalist 21(1): 75-91. Hall, L. S., Krausman, P. R. and Morrison, M. L. (1997), The Habitat Concept and a Plea for Standard Terminology. Wildlife Society Bulletin 25(1): 173-182. Hine, R. S. (2019), Oxford Dictionary of Biology (8th edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Thain, M. and Hickman, M. (2004), The Penguin Dictionary of Biology (11th edition). London: the Penguin Group. Yapp, R. H. (1922), The Concept of Habitat. Journal of Ecology 10(1): 1-17. Author unknown (1929), Prof. R. H. Yapp. Nature 123: 249-250.
Jul 21, 2024 · 3 min
83- The Four Humours
Returning to the idea of discussing biological thought in other cultures and/or times, today's topic is the Four Humours. This is an ancient idea of how the body worked coming from the thinkers of Ancient Greece and Rome. Sources for this episode: Jouanna, J. (2012), Greek Medicine from Hippocrates to Galen: Selected Papers. Leiden: BRILL. Stelmack, R. M. and Stalikas, A. (1991), Galen and the Humour Theory of Temperament. Personality and Individual Differences 12(3): 255-263. Thorndike, L. (1922), Galen: The Man and His Times. The Scientific Monthly 14(1): 83-93.
Jul 7, 2024 · 6 min
82- Dormice in the UK
There are two species of dormice in the UK. Today, we will be exploring the legislation around dormice, as well as the study which first pioneered the use of nest boxes for their study. Sources for this episode: Chanin, P. and Gubert, L. (2011), Surveying hazel dormice (Muscardinus avellinarius) with tubes and boxes: a comparison. Mammal Notes. Morris, P. A., Bright, P. W. and Woods, D. (1990), Use of Nestboxes by the Dormouse Muscardinus avellinarius. Biological Conservation 51: 1-13. Author unknown (2007), Dormouse: European Protected Species. Natural England Species Information Note SIN005. Author unknown, GOV.UK (date unknown), Hazel dormice: survey or research class licence (CL10a) (online) (Accessed c.02/04/2024). Author unknown, People's trust for endangered species (date unknown), Hazel dormouse disturbance licence (online) (Accessed c.02/04/2024).
Jun 23, 2024 · 5 min
81- Superfetation and Superfecundation
Today, two terms which, in a sense, extend our discussion of twins from episode 27. Sources for this episode: Blickstein, I. (2003), Superfecundation and superfetation: lessons from the past on early human development. The Journal of Maternal-Fetal & Neonatal Medicine 14(4): 217-219. Segal, N. L. and Nedelec, J. L. (2021), Heteropaternal twinning: Unique case of opposite-sex twins with different fathers. Forensic Science International 327: 110948. Thain, M. and Hickman, M. (2004), The Penguin Dictionary of Biology (11th edition). London: the Penguin Group.
Jun 9, 2024 · 3 min
80- Endoskeletons, Exoskeletons and Hydrostatic Skeletons
Skeletons are on the menu today- and the different kinds organisms can have. Sources for this episode: Campbell, N. A., Urry, L. A., Cain, M. L., Wasserman, S. A., Minorsky, P. V. and Reece, J. B. (2018), Biology: a global approach, 11th edition (Global Edition), Harlow, Pearson Education Limited. Clennett, C., Locke, J. and Jackson, T. (editorial consultants) (2023), How Biology Works. LonondM Darling Kindersley Ltd. Hine, R. S. (2019), Oxford Dictionary of Biology (8th edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Schmidt-Nielsen, K. (1997), Animal Physiology: Adaptation and environment. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
May 26, 2024 · 6 min
79- Bee Declines in the UK
Bee declines feature prominently in the news today. But what are the causes for it? Using the example of the UK, we follow the Woodland Trust to explore this issue. Plus, we also discuss two papers which hold differing viewpoints about the pollination crisis generally... Sources for this episode: Briggs, H., BBC News (2019), Bees: Many British pollinating insects in decline, study shows (online) (Accessed 05/03/2024). Engel, M. S., Rasmussen, C. and Gonzalez, V. H. (2021), Bees. In: Starr, C. K. (ed.), Encyclopedia of Insects. Springer Nature Switzerland. Ghazoul, J. (2005), Buzziness as usual? Questioning the global pollination crisis. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 20(7): 367-373. Hine, R. S. (2019), Oxford Dictionary of Biology. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Kennedy, P. J., Ford, S. M., Poidatz, J., Thiéry, D., & Osborne, J. L. (2018). Searching for nests of the invasive Asian hornet (Vespa velutina) using radio-telemetry. Communications Biology, 1, 88. Lima, C. G., Sofia Vaz, A., Honrado, J. P., Aranha, J., Crespo, N., & Vicente, J. R. (2022). The invasion by the Yellow-legged hornet: A systematic review. Journal for Nature Conservation, 67, 126173. Paxton, R. J. (2010), Does infection by Nosema ceranae cause “Colony Collapse Disorder” in honey bees (Apis mellifera)? Journal of Apicultural Research 49(1): 80-84. Rader, R., Bartomeus, I., Garibaldi, L. A. and Woyciechowski, M. (2015), Non-bee insects are important contributors to global crop pollination. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 113(1): 146-151. Renner, S. S. and Zohner, C. M. (2018), Climate Change and Phenological Mismatch in Trophic Interactions Among Plants, Insects and Vertebrates. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 49: 162-182. Takahashi, J., Okuyama, H., Kiyoshi, T., Takeuchi, T., & Martin, S. J. (2019). Origins of Vespa velutina hornets that recently invaded Iki Island, Japan and Jersey Island, UK. Mitochondrial DNA Part A, 30(3), 434–439. Van Engelsdorp, D., et al. (2009), Colony Collapse Disorder: A Descriptive Study. PLOS ONE 4(8): e6481. Varela, C. (2023), Why are bees important? And how you can help them (online) (Accessed 01/03/2023). Vogel, G. (2017), Where have all the insects gone? Science 356(6338): 576-579. Author unknown, Climate Action Tracker (date unknown), The CAT Thermometer (online) (Accessed 05/03/2024).
May 12, 2024 · 4 min
78- Biomes
Time for a common ecological term to get the treatment it deserves. Today, we're exploring the biome. Not only that, but the term ecoregion is getting thrown in as an extra... Sources for this episode: Clennett, C., Locke, J. and Jackson, T. (editorial consultants) (2023), How Biology Works. LonondM Darling Kindersley Ltd. Hine, R. S. (2019), Oxford Dictionary of Biology (8th edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press. Rundel, P. W., Arroyo, M. T. K., Cowling, R. M., Keeley, J. E., Lamont, B. B. and Vargas, P. (2016), Mediterranean Biomes: Evolution of Their Vegetation, Floras, and Climate. Annual Review of Ecology, Evolution and Systematics 47: 383-407. Whittaker, R. J. and Fernández-Palacios, J. M. (2007), Island Biogeography: Ecology, Evolution and Conservation (2nd edition). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Apr 28, 2024 · 6 min
77- The Economics of Climate Change
Climate change as a topic is a well-known one. However, we are going to be dissecting a paper published recently which deals with the potential economic impact of a warming world... Sources for this episode: Ainsworth, E. A., Lemonnier, P. and Wedow, J. M. (2019), The influence of rising tropospheric carbon dioxide and ozone on planet productivity. Plant Biology 22 (Suppl. 1): 5-11. Balch, J. K., Abatzoglou, J. T., Joseph, M. B., Koontz, M. J., Mahood, A. L., McGlinchy, J., Cattau, M. E. and Williams, A. P. (2022), Warming weakens the night-time barrier to global fire. Nature 602: 442-448. Dytham, C. (2011), Choosing and Using Statistics (3rd edition). Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. Edmonds, D. A., Caldwell, R. L., Brondizio, E. S. and Siani, S. M. O. (2020), Coastal flooding will disproportionately impact people on river deltas. Nature Communications 11: 4741. Hughes, T. P., Kerry, J. T., et al. (2017), Global warming and recurrent mass bleaching of corals. Nature 543: 373-377. IPCC (2018), Summary for Policymakers. In: Global Warming of 1.5°C: An IPCC Special Report on the impacts of global warming of 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels and related global greenhouse gas emission pathways, in the context of strengthening the global response to the threat of climate change, sustainable development, and efforts to eradicate poverty [Masson-Delmotte, V., P. Zhai, H.-O. Pörtner, D. Roberts, J. Skea, P.R. Shukla, A. Pirani, W. Moufouma-Okia, C. Péan, R. Pidcock, S. Connors, J.B.R. Matthews, Y. Chen, X. Zhou, M.I. Gomis, E. Lonnoy, T. Maycock, M. Tignor, and T. Waterfield (eds.)]. Jones, C., Lowe, J., Liddicoat, S. and Betts, R. (2009), Committed terrestrial ecosystem changes due to climate change. Nature Geoscience 2: 484-487. Mace, G. M. (2014), Whose conservation? Science 345(6204): 1558-1560. Short, J. R. (2013), Stress Testing the USA: Public Policy and Relation to Disaster Events (2nd edition). Cham, Switzerland: Springer Nature Switzerland. Tol, R. S. J. (2018), The Economic Impacts of Climate Change. Review of Environmental Economics and Policy 12(1): 4-25. Tol, R. S. J. (2024), A meta-analysis of the total economic impact of climate change. Energy Policy 185: 113922. UNFCCC (2023), Conference of the Parties serving as the meeting of the Parties to the Paris Agreement. Fifth Session, agenda item 4: First global stocktake. Author unknown, Metric Conversions (date unknown), Feet to Meters conversion: ft to m calculator (online). (Accessed 18/01/2024). Author unknown, University of Sussex (date unknown), Richard Tol (online). (Accessed 17/01/2024).
Apr 14, 2024 · 6 min
76- Mithridatism
Today's episode is going to feature one of the later monarchs from the Hellenistic era- Mithridates VI of Pontus. This is because his practice of trying to make himself immune to poison- called mithridatism- is biologically relevant and and continues to be influential until the 18th century. Sources for this episode: Jarcho, S. (1972), Medical Numismatic Notes, VII: Mithridates IV. Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine 48(8): 1059-1064. Kaberopoulos, D., Karamanou, M. and Androutsos, G. (2012), The art of medicine: The theriac in antiquity. The Lancet 379: 1942-1943. Karamanou, M., Androutsos, G., Hayes, A. W. and Tsatsakis, A. (2018), Toxicology in the Borgias period: The mystery of Cantarella poison. Toxicology Research and Application 2: 1-3. Valle, G., Stanislao, M., Facciorusso, A., Carmignani, M. and Volpe, A. R. (2010), Mithridates VI Eupator, father of the empirical toxicology. Clinical Toxicology 47(5): 433. Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Antiochus III the Great (online) (Accessed 28/07/2023). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Demetrius I Soter (online) (Accessed 28/07/2023). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Laodice IV (online) (Accessed 28/07/2023). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Laodice VI (online) (Accessed 28/07/2023). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Mithridates VI Eupator (online) (Accessed 29/07/2023). Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Seleucus II Callinicus (online) (Accessed 28/07/2023).
Mar 31, 2024 · 9 min
75- The Plague of Justinian
The Black Death in the 14th century is engrained in the popular consciousness. But how familiar is the first wave of the disease that happened in the 500s? In this episode, we explore what plague is, its evolution, strains and impact on the world of the 6th century according to Procopius. Sources for this episode: Achtman, M., Zurth, K., Morelli, G., Torrea, G., Guiyoule, A. and Carniel, E. (1999), Yersinia pestis, the cause of plague, is a recently emerged clone of Yersinia pseudotuberculosis. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 96(24): 14043-14048. Dai, R., He, J., Zha, X., Wang, Y., Zhang, X., Gao, H., Yang, X., Li, J., Xin, Y., Wang, Y., Li, S., Jin, J., Zhang, Q., Bai, J., Peng, Y., Wu, H., Zhang, Q., Wei, B., Xu, J. and Li, W. (2021), A novel mechanism of streptomycin resistance in Yersinia pestis: Mutation in the rpsL gene. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases 15(4): e0009324. Dewing, H. B. (1960), Procopius in Seven Volumes. Volume VI: The Anecdota or Secret History. Cambridge, Massachusetts and London: Harvard University Press and William Heinemann Ltd. Dewing, H. B. (1961), Procopius in Seven Volumes. Volume II: History of the Wars: Books III and IV. Cambridge, Massachusetts and London: Harvard University Press and William Heinemann Ltd. Dull, R. A., Southon, J. R., Kutterolf, S., Anchukaitis, K. J., Freundt, A., Wahl, D. B., Sheets, P., Amaroli, P., Hernandez, W., Wiemann, M. C. and Oppenheimer, C. (2019), Radiocarbon and geologic evidence reveal Ilopango volcano as source of the colossal ‘mystery’ eruption of 539/40 CE. Quaternary Science Reviews 222: 105855. Dykhuizen, D. E. (2000), Yersinia pestis: An instant species? Trends in Microbiology 8(7): 296-298. Ke, Y., Chen, Z. and Yang, R. (2019), Yersinia pestis: mechanisms of entry into and resistance to the host cell. Frontiers in Cellular and Infection Microbiology 3(106): 1-9. Kousoulis, A. A., Karamanou, M., Tsoucalas, G., Dimitriou, T. and Androutsos, G. (2012), Alexandre Yersin’s Explorations (1892-1894) in French Indochina before the Discovery of the Plague Bacillus. Acto Medico-Historica Adriatica 10(2): 303-310. Mikaty, G., Coullon, H., Fiette, L., Pizarro-Cerdá and Carniel, E. (2021), The invasive pathogen Yersinia pestis disrupts host blood vasculature to spread and provoke hemorrhages. PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases 15(10): e0009832. Mordechai, L., Eisenberg, M., Newfield, T. P., Izdebski, A., Kay, J. E. and Poinar, H. (2019), The Justinianic Plague: An Inconsequential Pandemic? Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 116(51): 25546-25554. Moseley, J. E. (1981), Travels of Alexandre Yersin: Letters of a Pastorian in Indochina, 1890-1894. Perspectives in Biology and Medicine 24(4): 607-618. Norwich, J. J. (2013), A Short History of Byzantium. London: The Penguin Group. Procopius (1985), The Secret History (translated by Williamson, G. A.). Harmondsworth: Penguin Books Ltd. Rogers, K., Encyclopedia Britannica (2023), Yersinia pestis (online) (Accessed c.01/03/2024). Rosen, W. (2008), Justinian’s Flea: Plague, Empire & the Birth of Europe. London: Pimlico. Sarris, P. (2023), Justinian: Emperor, Soldier, Saint. London: Basic Books UK. Author unknown, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (date unknown), Protect yourself from plague. Author unknown, Wikipedia (date unknown), Plague of Justinian (online) (Accessed 01/03/2024).