Life Sciences Commons^™

Forum: Innovations Through Biotechnology, Jack Okamuro, Kay Simmons

Agricultural Research Magazine

"We need to put a premium on creating innovative solutions to address our current and future problems."- U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack on priorities for the 2012 Farm Bill.

This month in Agricultural Research, we highlight Agricultural Research Service projects grown from seeds planted on what were once the distant horizons of biotechnology- metagenomics, genomic selection, metabolomics, and more.

Each project represents a fusion of leading-edge science and technological innovation that is helping to shape ARS's response to the growing food, fiber, and fuel needs of a U.S. and world population forecasted to exceed 430 million and 9 …

Agricultural Research Magazine April 2012

Agricultural Research Magazine

Tuning In to Technology

Benefits of Biotech,
Computational Tech,
and Nanotech

Back Matter Agricultural Research Magazine 60(4): April 2012

Agricultural Research Magazine

U.S. Department of Agriculture

Agricultural Research Magazine

5601 Sunnyside Ave.

Beltsville, MD 20705-5129

Barcoding Insects To Control Them, Dennis O’Brien

Agricultural Research Magazine

Mention barcodes and it often brings to mind the sales tags and scanners found in supermarkets and other stores. But Agricultural Research Service scientists are using “DNA barcodes” in their search for ways to control and monitor insects that pose the greatest threats to crops as diverse as wheat, barley, and potatoes.

In DNA barcoding, scientists sequence a designated part of an organism’s genome and produce a barcode from it for a systematic comparison with the sequenced DNA of other closely related species. DNA barcodes are being developed on a wide range of plants and animals as part of a …

Cotton Gets Nanotech And Biotech, Jan Suszkiw, Brian Condon

Agricultural Research Magazine

Scientists at the Agricultural Research Service’s Cotton Chemistry and Utilization Research Unit (CCUR) in New Orleans, Louisiana, have a long history of research successes leading to advances in the use, manufacturing, and quality of cotton fiber.

For example, groundbreaking studies led by chemist Ruth Benerito at the Cotton Chemical Reactions Laboratory (CCUR’s predecessor), starting in the 1950s, gave rise to easy-care, permanent-press clothing and other consumer-friendly improvements that helped cotton better compete with synthetic fibers, like polyester and nylon.

New challenges and consumer demands have since emerged, but the ARS lab’s tradition of excellence and innovation in research continues.

High-Tech Tactic May Newly Expose Stealthy Salmonella, Marcia Wood, Bosoon Park

Agricultural Research Magazine

At laboratories of the future, even the smallest quantity of Salmonella bacteria may be easily detected with a technology known as “SERS,” short for “surface-enhanced Raman scattering.”

Agricultural engineer Bosoon Park, in the Agricultural Research Service’s Quality and Safety Assessment Research Unit in Athens, Georgia, is leading exploratory studies of this analytical technique’s potential for quick, easy, and reliable detection of Salmonella and other foodborne pathogens.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Salmonella causes more than 1 million cases of illness in this country every year.

Long-Standing Erosion Calculator, Don Comis, Robert Sowers

Agricultural Research Magazine

Seth Dabney is busy tweaking a soon-to-be-unveiled update of the Revised Universal Soil Loss Equation, Version 2 (RUSLE2), which moves the original equation ever further from its origins in the age of slide rules to the era of computing. Dabney is research leader of the Watershed Physical Processes Research Unit, at the Agricultural Research Service’s National Sedimentation Laboratory in Oxford, Mississippi.

RUSLE2 has retained the integrity of the original Universal Soil Loss Equation (USLE)—in greatly expanded form—and integrated an updated database with a computer model that reflects both the latest in computer technology and scientific discoveries about erosion processes. It …

Digital Detectives Deciper Ingredients, Rosalie Marion Bliss, James M. Harnly, Pei Chen

Agricultural Research Magazine

Television shows featuring crime scene investigators have been keeping viewers intrigued for years. But the Agricultural Research Service’s intriguing “food composition investigators” are just as innovative at deciphering truth from fiction relating to ingredients of plant-based foods and dietary supplements. The researchers are at the ARS Food Composition and Methods Development Laboratory, which is headed by research leader James Harnly. The laboratory is part of the Beltsville [Maryland] Human Nutrition Research Center (BHNRC).

They’re using new equipment and a metabolomics approach to discover compounds and to accurately identify ingredients in foods and supplements. They are also looking at chemical composition …

Protein Biomarkers: Identify Disease-Carrying Aphids, Dennis O’Brien

Agricultural Research Magazine

Aphids can transmit viruses that cause crop diseases and reduce the quality and quantity of fresh foods. Spraying insecticides can control aphids and reduce the spread of viruses, but spraying is expensive and can harm the environment. Additionally, not all aphids transmit viruses. So a key question for growers is knowing when and what to spray to control viral diseases.

Agricultural Research Service scientists Michelle Cilia and Stewart Gray, in the Biological Integrated Pest Management Unit at the Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health in Ithaca, New York, have found a way to distinguish aphids that spread viruses …

Metagenomics Offers Insight Into Poultry Diseases, Sandra Avant

Agricultural Research Magazine

Less than 10 years ago, the world marveled at the completion of the human genome project, which involved traditional technology to identify all the genes in a single organism—the human. Today, a more powerful technology is being used to detect thousands of organisms in an entire community.

Unlike traditional gene sequencing, the new molecular technique—metagenomics— eliminates the need to cultivate and isolate individual microbial species. Scientists can apply genomic analysis to mixed communities of microbes instead of to just one organism.

For example, researchers examining viral enteric (intestinal) diseases in poultry can take intestinal samples from different poultry flocks. The …

A New Approach Tomolecular Plant Breeding, Dennis O’Brien, Jean-Luc Jannink

Agricultural Research Magazine

An ARS scientist in Ithaca, New York, is using a new statistical approach to help speed the development of improved varieties of crops.

Plant breeders constantly strive to breed new varieties that yield more, resist emerging pests and pathogens, tolerate heat and drought, and grow in marginal soils and environments. Increasingly, molecular tools are used to speed those efforts. By identifying genes associated with desirable traits, scientists don’t have to wait for timeconsuming field observations.

“To grow wheat and evaluate it for traits in the field takes 5 to 9 years. Using genomic data, we can do it in about …

A Bit Of Gold And Nanotechnology, Sandra Avant, William C. Wilson

Agricultural Research Magazine

All that glitters is not gold, but it is in the case of nanotechnology that’s being used to develop detection tools for viruses that affect animals and people. Scientists at the Agricultural Research Service’s Center for Grain and Animal Health Research (CGAHR) in Manhattan, Kansas, and the University of Wyoming are using surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) with gold nanoparticles to design tests that rapidly identify the virus that causes West Nile fever.

The West Nile virus is spread by infected mosquitoesand can cause headaches, fever, and body aches. In some cases, it causes a more serious and sometimes fatal neuroinvasive …

What's In Your Blood? The Ongoing Hunt For Metabolites, Marcia Wood, John W. Newman

Agricultural Research Magazine

At any given time, blood circulating through your body carries thousands of small molecules known as “metabolites.” Medical and nutrition researchers are eager to discover more about these compounds—amino acids, sugars, fats, and more—that are formed in and by our bodies.

Metabolites are of interest because the presence and concentrations of some of them can provide meaningful profiles, sometimes referred to as “metabolic signatures” or “fingerprints.”

In the future, for instance, yourmetabolic fingerprint—detected in a small sample of blood taken for your annual physical examination—might prove to be a reliable indicator of your health and a predictor of certain diseases. …

Locations Featured In This Magazine Issue April 2012

Agricultural Research Magazine

Locations Featured in This Magazine Issue

Davis, California

Stillwater, Oklahoma

Center for Grain and Animal Health Research

Southern Regional Research Center

Oxford, Mississippi

West Lafayette, Indiana

Athens, Georgia

U.S. Vegetable Laboratory

Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture and Health

Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center

Uso De Molinos Cti Para La Producción Y Uso De Harina De Sorgo, Lily Lopez, Kris Duville, Carla Bermudez, Vilma Ruth Calderón, Lloyd Rooney

INTSORMIL Presentations

El aprovechamiento del sorgo para la alimentación humana permite agregar valor al cultivo y aumentar su rentabilidad, especialmente para pequeños y medianos productores, contribuyendo a la seguridad alimentaria y nutricional del país.

CENTA esta promoviendo el cultivo del sorgo como una alternativa para la produccion de alimentos en las areas rurales.

Desde 2010 cuando el trigo bajo de precio nuevamente, dejo de ser una alternativa para la sustitucion del trigo, pero se le han buscado mercados mas estables, personas alergicas al gluten, personas diabéticas, y productos nutritivos para corregir deficiencias nutricionales como la anemia por falta de hierro, productos artesanales …

The Effects Of Dependent Infants On The Social Behavior Of Mantled Howler Monkeys (Alouatta Palliate), Keziah Katz

Honors Theses and Capstones

Six weeks of observation on eight groups of wild mantled howler monkeys revealed that the presence of a dependent infant alters the frequency of social interactions between a female with an infant and other adult monkeys. Males preferred to spend time with females without infants but still spent more time with females with infants than with males. Females without infants spent significantly less time with females with infants than with males or other females without infants and females with infants decreased their frequency of social interaction overall without preference for males, females or other females with infants.

Sensory Morphology And Chemical Ecology Of The Stable Fly, Stomoxys Calcitrans: Host-Seeking And Ovipositional Selection, Khanobporn Tangtrakulwanich

Department of Entomology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Stable flies cause stress and discomfort to cattle, and other mammals, including humans and pets. Economic losses from stable flies to the U.S. cattle industry from loss of milk production and cattle weight gain exceed $2 billion annually.

Traditional stable fly management employing sanitation and insecticides is costly and often fails to provide acceptable levels of control. A novel method for managing stable flies involves the use of attractants and repellents. This approach could be used to enhance the current level of stable fly control and ultimately be incorporated into a sustainable stable fly management program.

Gravid females’ stable flies …

Comparison Of Regional Eggshell Porosity Between The Brood Parasitic Brown-Headed Cowbird (Molothrus Ater) And Its Hosts: The Dickcissel (Spiza Americana), And Two Non-Parasitic Relatives, The Red-Winged Blackbird (Agelaius Phoeniceus) And The Common Grackle (Quiscalus Quiscula)., Brittany Childs

Honors Projects

The Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) is a generalist brood parasite that lays eggs in the nests of many host species, including the Dickcissel (Spiza americana) and two non-parasitic relatives: the Red-winged Blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) and the Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula). Cowbird eggs reportedly hatch sooner than equivalently-sized host eggs, presumably via accelerated embryonic development enabled by a greater eggshell porosity and consequently greater gas exchange. However, the distribution of pores among apical, equatorial and basal eggshell regions within cowbirds and host species is undetermined. I tested the hypothesis that equatorial porosity would …

The Lobster Bulletin, Spring 2012, Lobster Institute, University Of Maine

Lobster Bulletin

The Lobster Bulletin newsletter includes research updates, and information on lobsters and the lobster industry. The Lobster Institute at the University of Maine is dedicated to protecting and conserving the lobster resource, and enhancing lobstering as an industry and a way of life.

Headlines in the Spring 2012 issue include:

• Lobster Institute’s 2012 Canadian/U.S. Lobstermen’s Town Meeting Attracts over 100
• Darden Restaurants to Establish a “Lobster Farm” in Malaysia
• National Seafood Marketing Coalition Addresses U.S. Senate
• Lobster Science Symposium Planned for November
• Research Report: Warm Water Affecting Lobsters
• Research Report: Steneck participates in Task Force on Global Fishing
• Lobster Institute’s …

The Seed 2.0: Evolving Intellectual Property Rights Of Agricultural Germplasm, Jennifer Wai-Shing Maguire

Buffalo Intellectual Property Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Integration Of Student Centered Physiology Learning Into Related High School Science Courses, Sowmya Anjur

Faculty Publications & Research

Student centered teaching was previously found to enhance student understanding and even improve performance of students in other courses taken in the same semester in high school (6). In an effort to improve student performance in related science classes, the same student centered methods used in my Physiology and Disease (PAD) class were implemented in a Biophysics class this semester. Initial student surveys showed that students felt that integrating physiology concepts into Biophysics helped them understand the material from two very different perspectives, giving them a "more complete picture". Test scores from each of the four units were compared in …

Coupled Physical And Biological Modeling Of Atlantic Surfclam Larval Transport And Sub-Population Connectivity In The Middle Atlantic Bight And Georges Bank, Xinzhong (Peter) Zhang, Dale B. Haidvogel, John M. Klinck, Roger Mann, Eric N. Powell

CCPO Publications

No abstract provided.

Predicting The Influence Of Seed And Commercial Oyster Fisheries On Metapopulation Genetic Connectivity Using Model Simulations, Daphne Munroe, Eileen E. Hofmann, Eric N. Powell, John M. Klinck

CCPO Publications

No abstract provided.

How Do Marine Protected Area Strategies Influence Metapopulation Genetic Connectivity? A Modeling Study With Oysters, Daphne Munroe, Eric N. Powell, John M. Klinck, Eileen E. Hofmann

CCPO Publications

No abstract provided.

Section Abstracts: Natural History And Biodiversity

Virginia Journal of Science

Abstracts of the Natural History and Biodiversity Section for the 90th Annual Meeting of the Virginia Academy of Science, May 23-25, 2012, Norfolk State University, Norfolk, Virginia.

Exploring The Role Of Sonic Hedgehog In The Lymph Heart Development Of Xenopus Laevis, Laura Barry

Honors Theses

Xenopus as a Model Organism in Evolutionary Developmental Biology

Xenopus laevis, the African clawed frog, is an important model organism in the field of evolutionary developmental biology research. These tongue-less aquatic frogs are basally branching anuran amphibians that display marked sexual dimorphism and have webbed hind feet that sport several small, sharp claws. This species is a useful model organism despite its long generation time and genomic complexity, for historical and practical reasons. The animal adapts well to housing in a laboratory setting, and its reproduction can be …

The Foxes Of Salisbury Beach, Deborah A. Venuti

Visual & Performing Arts Faculty Publications

The author describes her encounter with foxes at Salisbury Beach, MA and Massachusetts legislative policy related to Salisbury Beach's preservation.

Veterinary Vision, Spring 2012, Claire Eldridge

Veterinary Vision Annual Magazine

Veterinary Vision is a publication of The University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine. This yearly magazine explores the research, teaching, and outreach services of the College of Veterinary Medicine.

Third Thursday 4-2012, Institute Of Agriculture

Third Thursday

No abstract provided.

Strawberry Growth, Yield, Fruit Nutrition, And Control Of Verticillium Wilt With Pre-Plant Soil Fumigants, Ozone, And Biological Control, Justin J. Scurich

Master's Theses

Verticillium wilt is a widespread soilborne disease of strawberry historically controlled by soil fumigation with methyl bromide (MB). MB was banned by the United Nations in 1995 and will be completely phased out by 2015. Research has concentrated on alternative methods of disease control without finding a single alternative able to replace MB in widespread disease control and yield increase. For the current study, strawberries were greenhouse grown in container pots filled with soil from both infested and non-infested areas of a commercial strawberry field in Watsonville, CA. Treatments included pre-plant soil fumigation with commercially available formulations of methyl bromide, …