News: Research
Cracking the Code: Why Flu Pandemics Come At the End of Flu Season
Graduate student Spencer Fox and his colleagues found strong evidence that the late timing of flu pandemics is caused by two opposing factors.
![Hypothetical seasonal flu epidemic spread (not based on real or simulated data) is depicted here](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/pandemic-spread700.jpeg)
UT Austin and Texas A&M Scientists Seek to Turn Plant Pests into Plant Doctors
Sap-sucking pests could deliver gene therapy to plants under attack from diseases, droughts or floods
![Oleander aphid.](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/oleander-aphid700.jpeg)
Why Poison Frogs Don’t Poison Themselves
The answer might provide clues for developing better drugs to fight pain and addiction
![This frog was captured at a banana plantation in the Azuay province in southern Ecuador in August 2017.](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/epipedobates-anthonyi_872_700.jpeg)
Project Explores Fate of Coral Reefs and Related Life
Researchers around the world, including UT Austin's Misha Matz, published a paper which could help predict the future of coral reefs in a changing environment.
![A coral reef](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/corals-2-1200x800-c-default.jpeg)
Overuse of Antibiotics Brings Risks for Bees — and for Us
A new study suggests antibiotics could play a role in colony collapse disorder.
![Honey bees on a hive with pink or green dots painted on their backs](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/bees1280.jpg)
UT News
Rare, Blind Catfish Never Before Found in U.S. Discovered in Texas
An extremely rare eyeless catfish species previously known to exist only in Mexico has been discovered in a National Recreation Area in Texas.
![A pair of eyeless catfish](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/mexican-blindcats700.jpeg)
Supporting Pollinators Could Have Big Payoff for Texas Cotton Farmers
Researchers at UT Austin find the secret to increasing cotton production.
![A bee hovers near a pink flower](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/bee-flower-sheilapic76_2400x1600.jpg)
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Genetic Potential of Oil-Eating Bacteria from the BP Oil Spill Decoded
Microbiologists led by Brett Baker have discovered potential in bacteria that helped to clean up the BP oil spill.
![An Oil Slick stretches across a span of ocean](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/b2ap3_large_oil-slick-one.png)
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Sociable Chimps Harbor Richer Gut Microbiomes
Spending time in close contact with others often means risking catching germs and getting sick. But being sociable may also help transmit beneficial microbes, finds a multi-institutional study of gut microbiomes in chimpanzees.
![Two chimpanzees interact in Gombe National Park, Tanzania. Photo by Steffen Foerster, Duke University](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/gombechimps2-1000.jpg)
UT News
Some Prairie Vole Brains Are Better Wired for Sexual Fidelity
Researchers at The University of Texas at Austin have found that natural selection drives some male prairie voles to be fully monogamous and others to seek more partners. The surprising contrasts in the animals’ brains result from differences in their DNA.
![A pair of voles. One bears an ear tag that is used as a unique identifier for the vole. Photo by Aubrey Kelly/Cornell University.](https://cns.utexas.edu/sites/default/files/uploads/images/default/pair-on-white-700.jpg)