Science Media Centre

US researchers have uncovered a reason why low vitamin C may speed up the development of leukaemia in mice.  Unlike humans, mice can make vitamin C in their bodies, but the researchers genetically engineered mice so they couldn’t any longer — making them reliant on vitamin C from food. These mice had higher rates of […]

An island in the Marlborough Sounds has been restored to its predator-free status after an eradication operation successfully removed mice. Maud Island/Te Pakeka has been an important wildlife sanctuary since the 1970s, but mice were found on the island in spring 2013. The Department of Conservation (DOC) ran an operation the following winter using brodifacoum bait […]

Research published today in the journal Science shows how genetics influence the severity of symptoms in mice infected with the Ebola virus. Effects ranged from total resistance with no symptoms, to severe symptoms and death – and these depended on the genetic background of the infected mice. Our colleagues at the UK SMC collected the following […]

New Zealand-designed software created to predict and tackle mouse outbreaks is being trialled in Australia. MouseAlert.org.au is a new, interactive website based on Google-type mapping technology that lets crop farmers record and view mouse activity in their area in real time. It helps inform the community about changes in mouse numbers or damage to crops and when to implement control […]

Current therapies for stroke victims depend on rapid access to medical care. Within hours of a stroke, irreversible brain damage begins spreading to neighbouring regions of the brain. Now a New Zealand neuroscientist’s team has found a promising way to enhance recovery in these surrounding areas, even when treatment is delayed. The study is published […]

Scientists are examining mice DNA here and abroad, using genetics to determine human patterns of migration over centuries of colonisation and international travel. And it appears that New Zealand’s cultural mix has created a “genetic melting pot” of several subspecies of mice. While the nineteenth century saw a large influx of mice to New Zealand […]