Guðný Rut studies organisms that most people don’t want to know about in their daily routine.
Name: Guðný Rut Pálsdóttir
Age: 40
Occupation: Parasitologist at the Keldur Experimental Station
Your favorite place in Iceland: The Youth Trails, Laugarás in Biskupstungur
Who does the cooking in your home? Myself
What did you want to be when you grew up? I don’t remember having anything specific in mind, but I have always been fascinated by nature and everything that comes with it.
What book do you have on your bedside table? None at the moment
What to do this weekend? I guess I won’t finish my tax return with my morning cup of coffee. Then I’ll do some spring work, sow chili plants and other things. Then I’ll relax in the jacuzzi and sow. An exciting weekend ahead!
Do you have pets? Not at the moment
Coffee or tea? Coffee
What is your main form of exercise? During the winter it’s weightlifting and other activities with great people, but in the spring I get out on my bike and hike in the mountains.
What’s the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten/tasted? Fried insects and crocodile
Summer, winter, spring or autumn? Spring, when everything is coming to life and migratory birds arrive in droves to the country.
Photo: Ólafur Karl Nielsen
Do you have a favorite spring bird? Since spring is my favorite season, all the migratory birds are my favorite, isn’t that right? In recent years, I’ve been more fond of the harbinger of spring, the herring gull (the herring gull), and I understand that it has already arrived at Tjörnin in Reykjavík. The song of the woodpeckers draws me back to my homeland, although they sing differently in the city than in Laugarás. Finally, I really like the ladybird. In Italian, it’s called the white ballerina, but it’s just so much fun to watch it dance in the air after the various insects.
What is your favorite swimming pool (or swimming pool) in the country? I don’t have a favorite, but I’m going to say Grafarvogslaug, as it has both an infrared sauna and a nice jacuzzi.
If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go? I have a few places in mind where nature is still as untouched as possible and there is no mass tourism. Fortunately, there are many such places still around.
How do you contribute to a better visitation with the environment? I sort my trash, go on most short trips by bike in the summer, and usually pick up trash if it’s on my way, for example on the beach or up in the mountains. Old things with a history are charming, and I often try to buy food that I know hasn’t traveled halfway around the world by plane.
What advice would you give to university students currently studying? I wholeheartedly agree with what Erpur Snær said last month. Follow your heart. A burning passion for your work usually gets you far. Going to work should be fun, but as soon as it’s not fun, it becomes so boring.
What is the connection of your research to South Iceland? My roots in the Southern Highlands are firm, although my research has roots much further afield.
Why did you choose this research topic? Parasites fascinated me completely, so much so that I went abroad for two years to learn more. Parasites range from single-celled organisms to more complex organisms. My grandfather Skúli was very interested in what I was working on, I tried to explain it to him in the simplest way I could. He always answered with the question; “Are lice such a parasite?” He was absolutely clear about this.
The dictionary definition of a parasite is an organism that lives in, on, or with another organism (host) for the purpose of obtaining nourishment, growing, or reproducing, often with direct or indirect harm to the host. The goal is never to cause death, but only to survive. Incredible evolutionary adaptations over millions of years, complex life processes that are often difficult to imagine how they could work.
What did you enjoy most about the research work? The variety is what keeps me going. I am equally comfortable both outdoors in the field and inside a laboratory. The worst thing I know is to stagnate somewhere, stuck in a routine with little to no challenges. It is so rewarding to look for ways to get answers to questions that may not have been explored. Apply critical thinking and think outside the box. Research work is usually a team effort, and it’s great to have good colleagues to bounce ideas off of. My first real field trip was a year after I started working as a parasitologist. I was able to join the last collection trip north to Lake Mývatn in a 12-year-long project on the health of the ptarmigan. Long days but incredibly fun as I met many great people and gained valuable experience. I am forever grateful for that experience, and since then, the raven has held a special place in my heart.
Briefly tell us about the research and its results.
I am currently working on a final report for a grant project where we are examining which species of flesh-eating worms ( Sarcocystis spp.) are found in Icelandic cattle. The project is funded by the Icelandic Livestock Development Fund. It is known that flesh-eating worms are found in Icelandic cattle, but so far the species involved have not been thoroughly investigated. Only one species of flesh-eating worm has already been confirmed in this country, and that is S. cruzi, where the definitive host is a dog.
Protists are single-celled organisms that can be found in various animal species around the world. There are seven known types of carnivorous diseases in cattle worldwide. The main definitive hosts of tapeworms in cattle are dogs, cats, and humans. Tapeworm species are very host-specific, so dogs, for example, cannot ingest the tapeworm species found in cats and vice versa.
The life cycle is simple and requires only two hosts, an intermediate host and a definitive host. In our case, the intermediate host is cattle, but the definitive host is usually a predator or omnivore that becomes infected by eating raw, infected muscles or organs of cattle. In the intestinal mucosa of the definitive host, the parasite reproduces sexually and sheds its hard shells into the environment with feces. Cattle become infected by ingesting the helminths from fecal-contaminated food or water. The parasite forms whitish, firm masses (flesh-like structures) in blood-rich muscles or organs. The effects of carnivores on cattle can vary, but the species are different in their pathogenicity. Effects on the final host are usually very minor or even non-existent.
If flesh mites are seen in cattle carcasses in a slaughterhouse, the response will depend on the extent of the infection. The response can range from individual body parts or entire carcasses being frozen or even classified as unfit for human consumption and discarded. This response is usually adopted as there is no information available about which types of carnivores are found in cattle in this country. Freezing kills mites, so they are not contagious after freezing.
Knowing which types of parasites are found in Icelandic cattle gives us an important weapon in the fight against infection. If the species is known, we also know which animal species the cattle are infected with. It gives us the opportunity to break the life cycle by preventing cattle from ingesting food or water contaminated with the feces of an infected definitive host. Similarly, feeding dogs or cats raw muscle or organs from infected cattle can be avoided.
The final report for the project is due at the end of the month, so I won’t go into further detail about the results at this point.
Karl Skírnisson took the cover photo of Gyðnýja during traditional research work.