Found this while cleaning out a curio cabinet. Knowing my family history, I wouldn't be surprised if it is Indian in origin, especially with the cobra (but I cannot confirm, there don't appear to be any makers' marks) It's about 12.5cm/5" tall. The snake is definitely just decorative, I assumed the egg was some kind of incense burner with the holes in the top, but, if there is a way to open it I haven't found it.
I bought these metal raised garden beds. I’ve probably had it about a month.
Now there’s this black furry looking stuff growing out of the side of it - is it mold? And is there anything I can do about it? It’s kind of freaking me out!
I know it’s a bit random, but crabs (specifically true crabs) have always been a favorite animal of mine. I’d love to keep one as a pet one day, but only if it can be done ethically.
Hermit crabs are a somewhat common pet but I hardly hear about true crabs. I know it’s controversial because they’re very difficult to breed in captivity, so unfortunately most crabs in the pet trade are wild caught.
But are there any ways they can be ethically obtained and cared for? Maybe a certain species that are easier to breed, or have a breeder or two who have figured it out? Are there rescue crabs lol?
My buddy is moving his family into his late granddad's house and during the process of packing stuff up and sorting through belongings we've found this and we have absolutely no idea what it is.
We've found other silly things that look like jokey nick nacks but this has left us pretty stunned. Any ideas?
His dad is 22lbs, mom 16lbs. How big do you think this handsome boy will be? He is the biggest of his litter
Albino capybaras are exceptionally rare. The estimate is rough, statistics sometimes show that the chance is about 1 to thousands and 1 to a million. Captured cases most of the time occur in captive zoos (like sightings in Uruguay and Brazil zoos). This is the result of they are being one of the easiest targets for predators and can't survive until adulthood in the wild.
Common capybaras have brown, reddish brown, dark brown or blonde, coarse fur that makes them blend into their natural environment. Predators like jaguars, anacondas, and caimans can spot an albino capybara from really far distances, while also exposing the entire herd as the predator gets closer and notices other herd members.
Capybaras are usually spend hours of sunbathing and swimming in the water. Melanin protects their skin from UV rays. Without it, an albino capybara has a much greater risk of sunburns, skin lesions, and a high skin of cancer in the harsh climates of South America.
This rare case of severe lack of pigments also comes with another huge disadvantage for vision and eye development; they are much more sensitive to light and have a poor depth perception. In the wild, a capybara with poor vision cannot navigate rough terrain safely or notice a predator in time.
When an animal loses his camouflage and eye health, it changes the prey and predators act ib the entire habitat. An albino capybara draws attention to apex predators (like jaguars or caimans) directly to the rest of the camouflaged herd, changing the chances of survival in a group and the usual hunting paths of predators.
Image Source: Shared by @alternatus_uruguay on Instagram. You can see the ears, nose and feet appear pink because the lack of melanin.
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Seen on Facebook. People are claiming it's a leucistic chipmunk, but that's not a chipmunk face to me.
Could it be an escaped exotic pet?
**The Core Issue**
Cervical cancer is still one of the most common gynecological cancers worldwide. Even with HPV screening improving outcomes, tumors still find ways to grow, resist treatment, and come back. The molecular machinery driving that resistance hasn't been fully understood until now.
**The Finding**
A new review zeroes in on deubiquitinating enzymes, or DUBs, as key players in cervical cancer progression. DUBs are proteins that remove ubiquitin tags from other proteins. Ubiquitin tags are molecular "destroy this" signals. When DUBs strip those tags off cancer-promoting proteins, those proteins survive longer than they should, and tumors benefit. This review maps out exactly how that happens in cervical cancer.
**Why it Matters**
DUBs don't just protect bad proteins. They interfere with the cell cycle, DNA damage repair, immune responses, and how HPV drives cells toward cancer. Several DUBs are also directly linked to why cervical cancer resists radiation and chemotherapy. That makes them a genuinely new class of targets for treatment, not just another pathway to study.
**Limitations of Study**
This is a systematic review of existing literature, not new experimental data. The therapeutic strategies discussed are still translational. Nothing has cleared clinical trials yet.
**Interesting Statistics**
- DUBs regulate multiple core cancer processes at once: cell cycle control, DNA repair, apoptosis (programmed cell death), and immune signaling
- Several specific DUBs are tied to both chemoresistance and radiosensitivity in cervical cancer
- HPV-associated carcinogenesis is directly influenced by DUB activity
- Oncogenic (cancer-promoting) proteins are actively stabilized by DUBs, accelerating tumor progression
- Tumor suppressor function is also disrupted through DUB-driven regulation
**Link to Study**
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42138186/
**TL;DR**
Proteins called DUBs are quietly shielding cancer-driving molecules from destruction in cervical cancer, and targeting them could crack open a new class of treatments.
I believe that he is leucistic. whatever he is, I love him.
Same soil, same water. Anyone know why this might happen? Seems perfectly healthy and growing strong.
It even feels like a cauliflower...
That side eye 🥹🥹
When mom asked you to go buy some shrimp for your cat but the shrimp ended up being bigger than the cat, wasn't sure where i could share this, he seems too big for r/illegallysmolcats, so here we are.
Today I came across the mother saguaro on my hike through saguaro national forest. I see plenty of unique saguaros every day but never seen any like this before!