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Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
Journal of Environmental Quality
Prairie soil organic matter shown to be resilient under intensive agriculture
A recent study has confirmed that although there was a large reduction of organic carbon and total nitrogen pools when prairies were first cultivated and drained, there has been no consistent pattern in these organic matter pools during the period of synthetic fertilizer use, that is, from 1957-2002.
State of Illinois, Water Quality Strategic Research Initiative
Contact: Debra Levey Larson
dlarson@illinois.edu
217-244-2880
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
Journal of Biological Chemistry
New family of antibacterial agents uncovered
In this week's JBC, researchers have found a potential new antibiotic agent in the tiny freshwater animal Hydra.
Contact: Nick Zagorski
nzagorski@asbmb.org
301-634-7366
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
Environmental Science & Technology
Biofuel carbon footprint not as big as feared, Michigan State University research says
Some researchers have blasted biofuels' potential to increase greenhouse gas emissions, calling into question the environmental benefits of making fuel from plant material. But a new analysis by Michigan State University scientists says these dire predictions are based on a set of assumptions that may not be correct.
Contact: Bruce Dale
bdale@egr.msu.edu
517-353-6777
Michigan State University
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
International Journal of Health Geographics
Global warming linked to European viral epidemic
An epidemic of the viral disease nephropathia epidemica has been linked to increases in the vole population caused by hotter summers, milder winters and increased seedcrop production by broadleaf trees. Research published in BioMed Central's open access International Journal of Health Geographics links outbreaks of this rodent-borne disease to known effects of global warming.
Contact: Graeme Baldwin
graeme.baldwin@biomedcentral.com
44-020-707-94804
BioMed Central
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
PLoS Pathogens
Possible new hope for crops battling parasitic infection
Scientists from Ghent University and VIB (the Flemisch Institute for Biotechnology) have demonstrated how nematodes, also known as roundworms, manipulate the transport of the plant hormone auxin in order to force the plant to produce food for them. Their findings, published Jan. 16 in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens, could open up new possibilities for the development of nematode-resistant plants.
Contact: Wim Grunewald
Wim.Grunewald@UGent.be
329-264-5967
Public Library of Science
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
Science
UBC researcher gives first-ever estimate of worldwide fish biomass and impact on climate change
Are there really plenty of fish in the sea? University of British Columbia fisheries researcher Villy Christensen gives the first-ever estimate of total fish biomass in our oceans: Two billion tons.
Contact: Brian Lin
brian.lin@ubc.ca
604-822-2234
University of British Columbia
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
Science
New genetic model predicts plant flowering in different environments
A Brown University-led team has created a model that precisely charts the genetic and environmental signals that guide the life cycle of a scientifically important plant species. The model could help scientists better understand how plants will respond to climate change. The paper is published in the online edition of Science.
National Science Foundation, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation
Contact: Richard Lewis
Richard_Lewis@Brown.edu
401-863-3766
Brown University
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
PLoS Computational Biology
A novel explanation for a floral genetic mystery
Scientists at the University of Jena, Germany have put forth a novel explanation of the evolutionary driving force behind a genetic switching circuit that regulates flower development and survival. The hypothesis, based around the obligatory pairing of certain molecules, is published Jan. 16 in the open-access journal PLoS Computational Biology.
Contact: Dr. Peter Dittrich
dittrich@minet.uni-jena.de
49-364-194-6460
Public Library of Science
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
Science
Fish guts explain marine carbon cycle mystery
Research reveals the major influence of fish on maintaining the delicate pH balance of our oceans, vital for the health of coral reefs and other marine life. The discovery, made by a team of scientists from the UK, US and Canada, could help solve a mystery that has puzzled marine chemists for decades. Published in Science, the study provides new insights into the marine carbon cycle, which is undergoing rapid change as a result of global CO2 emissions.
Contact: Sarah Hoyle
s.hoyle@exeter.ac.uk
01-392-262-062
University of Exeter
Public Release: 15-Jan-2009
Current Biology
Strategic farming practices could help mitigate global warming
Researchers say that strategic farming practices might be part of the solution for curbing global warming. According to calculations reported online on Jan. 15 in Current Biology, by planting crop varieties that better reflect sunlight back out to space, summertime temperatures could be reduced by more than one degree Celsius throughout much of central North America and mid-latitude Eurasia.
Contact: Cathleen Genova
cgenova@cell.com
617-397-2802
Cell Press
Public Release: 14-Jan-2009
Environmental Science & Technology
Energy-efficient water purification made possible by Yale engineers
Water and energy are two resources on which modern society depends. As demands for these increase, researchers look to alternative technologies that promise both sustainability and reduced environmental impact. Engineered osmosis holds a key to addressing both the global need for affordable clean water and inexpensive sustainable energy according to Yale researchers.
National Science Foundation, US Office of Naval Research
Contact: Janet Rettig Emanuel
janet.emanuel@yale.edu
203-432-2157
Yale University
Public Release: 14-Jan-2009
Environmental Research Letters
Nations that sow food crops for biofuels may reap less than previously thought
Global yields of most biofuels crops, including corn, rapeseed and wheat, have been overestimated by 100 to 150 percent or more, suggesting many countries need to reset their expectations of agricultural biofuels to a more realistic level.
Contact: Matt Johnston
mjohnston@wisc.edu
608-217-1424
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Public Release: 14-Jan-2009
Nanotech in your vitamins
The ability of the Food and Drug Administration to regulate the safety of dietary supplements using nanomaterials is severely limited by lack of information, lack of resources and the agency's lack of statutory authority in certain critical areas, according to a new expert report released by the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies.
Contact: Colin Finan
colin.finan@wilsoncenter.org
202-691-4321
Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies
Public Release: 14-Jan-2009
USDA Small Changes Summit
Calories from home-cooked recipes grow over time
Research shows that calories in recipes have increased over time. Dr. Brian Wansink, of the Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion said, "The calories in recipes in the cookbook, 'The Joy of Cooking,' have increased 63 percent from its publication, 1937, to its latest edition, 2006. Overweight and obesity have resulted in small steps going the wrong direction. The solution is to bring government, industry and academia together to promote small changes in the right direction."
Contact: John Webster
john.webster@cnpp.usda.gov
703-305-7600
USDA Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion
Public Release: 14-Jan-2009
Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica
Free-range chickens are more prone to disease
Chickens kept in litter-based housing systems, including free-range chickens, are more prone to disease than chickens kept in cages, according to a study published in BioMed Central's open access journal Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica.
Contact: Charlotte Webber
charlotte.webber@biomedcentral.com
44-020-763-19980
BioMed Central
Public Release: 14-Jan-2009
Biodiversity passes the taste test and is healthier too
Cattle and sheep grazed on natural grasslands help maintain biodiversity and produce tastier, healthier meat, according to a study funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. The research, part of the Rural Economy and Land Use program which draws together the social and natural science, concluded that pasture-based farming is good for the environment, the consumer and the producer but needs stronger support from British policy makers if it is to realize its full potential.
Economic and Social Research Council
Contact: Kelly Barnett
kelly.barnett@esrc.ac.uk
44-017-934-13032
Economic & Social Research Council
Public Release: 13-Jan-2009
'Green' gasoline on the horizon
University of Oklahoma researchers believe newer, more environmentally friendly fuels produced from biomass could create alternative energy solutions and alleviate dependence on foreign oil without requiring changes to current fuel infrastructure systems. According to Lance Lobban, director of the School of Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering, the development of "green" fuels is an important part of the world's, and Oklahoma's, energy future.
Contact: Jana Smith
jana.smith@ou.edu
405-325-1322
University of Oklahoma
Public Release: 13-Jan-2009
Voracious sponges save reef
Tropical oceans are known as the deserts of the sea. And yet this unlikely environment is the very place where the rich and fertile coral reef grows. Dutch researcher Jasper de Goeij investigated how caves in the coral reef ensure the reef's continued existence. Although sponges in these coral caves take up a lot of dissolved organic material, they scarcely grow. However, they do discard a lot of cells that in turn provide food for the organisms on the reef.
Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research
Contact: Jasper de Goeij
jmdegoeij@gmail.com
31-065-247-1433
Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research
Public Release: 13-Jan-2009
New digital map of Africa's depleted soils to offer insights critical for boosting food production
Responding to sub-Saharan Africa's soil health crisis, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture announced today an ambitious new effort to produce the first-ever, detailed digital soil map for all 42 countries of the region. This project combines the latest soil science and technology with remote satellite imagery and on-the-ground efforts to analyze thousands of soil samples from remote areas across the continent to help provide solutions for poor farmers.
Contact: Jeff Haskins
jhaskins@burnesscommunications.com
254-729-871 x422
CIAT
Public Release: 13-Jan-2009
Journal of Rural Studies
Tequila boom triggers social, environmental hangover in Mexico
New North Carolina State University research shows that tequila's surge in popularity over the past 15 years has been a boon for industry, but is triggering a significant hangover of social and environmental problems in the region of Mexico where the once-notorious liquor is produced.
Contact: Matt Shipman
matt_shipman@ncsu.edu
919-515-6386
North Carolina State University
Public Release: 12-Jan-2009
Agronomy Journal
Preventing soil erosion in continuous corn
The removal of corn residue for the purpose of creating cellulosic ethanol requires changes in tillage for increased efficiency and protection against soil erosion, and a recent study focused on understanding how residue removal and tillage system affect the response of continuous corn to nitrogen fertilization.
Contact: Sara Uttech
suttech@agronomy.org
608-268-4948
American Society of Agronomy
Public Release: 12-Jan-2009
Soil Survey Horizons
Soil maps generate reliable Quaternary geologic map
New research conducted at Iowa State University led to the successful creation of a detailed Quaternary geological map for the Des Moines Lobe with a user-controlled level of scale, with the results of the research published in the Winter 2008 issue of Soil Survey Horizons.
Contact: Sara Uttech
suttech@agronomy.org
608-268-4948
Soil Science Society of America
Public Release: 12-Jan-2009
Journal of Geophysical Research - Atmospheres
Dirty snow causes early runoff in Cascades, Rockies
Soot from pollution causes winter snowpacks to warm, shrink and warm some more. This continuous cycle sends snowmelt streaming down mountains as much as a month early, a new study finds, which could exacerbate winter flooding and summer droughts. How pollution affects a mountain range's natural water reservoirs is important for water resource managers in the western United States and Canada who plan for hydroelectricity generation, fisheries and farming.
Department of Energy
Contact: Mary Beckman
mary.beckman@pnl.gov
509-375-3688
DOE/Pacific Northwest National Laboratory
Public Release: 12-Jan-2009
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
As super-predators, humans reshape their prey at super-natural speeds
Fishing and hunting are having broad, swift impacts on the body size and reproductive abilities of fish and other commercially harvested species, potentially jeopardizing the ability of entire populations to recover, according to the results of a new study that will appear in the Jan. 12, 2009, online issue of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Contact: Jennifer McNulty
jmcnulty@ucsc.edu
831-459-2495
University of California - Santa Cruz
Public Release: 12-Jan-2009
American Chemical Society's Weekly PressPac -- Jan. 7, 2009
The American Chemical Society News Service Weekly Press Package with reports from 34 major peer-reviewed journals on chemistry, health, medicine, energy, environment, food, nanotechnology and other hot topics.
Contact: Michael Woods
m_woods@acs.org
202-872-6293
American Chemical Society
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