IFAS News
Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences – University of Florida
UF studies show promise for biological control methods against insect
February 2, 2012
Topic(s): Biocontrols, Green Living, Invasive Species, Pests
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — For years, scientists have tried to use environmentally friendly fungi to control fire ant infestations.
But the ants’ social behaviors — such as hauling their dead off to what entomologists call “bone yards” in isolated spots away from the nests — have prevented commercial development of this method. The fungus can’t spread if infected ants are continually separated from healthy ones.
A new University of Florida study shows, however, that there may be a way to make insect-killing fungi a more potent weapon against fire ants and other pests. Scientists with UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences modified the fungus so that it produces a peptide that helps regulate the fire ants’ nervous system. (more…)
UF research: Blueberry wine has more antioxidants than many grape-based wines
February 1, 2012
Topic(s): Agriculture, Crops, Economics, IFAS, Nutrition, Research
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Blueberry wine can provide more potentially healthy compounds than white wines and many red wines, according to a new University of Florida study.
Researchers with UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences measured antioxidant content in a Florida-produced blueberry wine and compared it to published reports of antioxidant content in white and red wines made from grapes. Antioxidants are compounds that may offer cells protection from damaging molecules called free radicals.
The researchers found the Florida wine, produced from southern highbush blueberries, had more antioxidants than all of the reported white wine values and all but 20 percent of the reported values for red wines, which are considered high in antioxidants.
Deputy Secretary of Agriculture addresses U.S. agriculture needs during UF stop
January 27, 2012
Topic(s): Agriculture, CALS, IFAS
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Opportunities for jobs in agriculture abound, USDA Deputy Secretary of Agriculture Kathleen Merrigan told University of Florida students and faculty Thursday.
“We actually have a gap between the number of qualified graduates and the kind of jobs that we need to fill in American agriculture,” Merrigan said. “And the need, from the projections I’ve seen, is only going to become greater.”
Merrigan’s speech was part of a Florida tour that includes promoting the USDA initiative Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food, which seeks to reconnect agricultural producers and consumers.
Citrus greening costs $3.63 billion in lost revenues and 6,611 jobs, new UF study shows
January 24, 2012
Topic(s): Agriculture, Citrus, Economics, Environment, Invasive Species, Pests
Since 2006, the bacterial disease citrus greening has cost Florida’s economy an estimated $3.63 billion in lost revenues and 6,611 jobs by reducing orange juice production, according to a new study from the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.
The study is the first complete assessment of greening’s economic impact on Florida, said Jack Payne, UF senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources. He called the study an important step in the fight against greening, because it quantifies damages and could show legislators and funding agencies why the invasive disease is one of the state’s biggest challenges.
“This study shows plainly just how imperative it is that we find a cure for citrus greening,” Payne said. “We have dedicated a huge amount of IFAS resources toward that end, and we are very appreciative of the significant support our research is receiving from the citrus industry. Growers are the people most obviously impacted, but the study demonstrates that many other Floridians are hurt as well—when fewer oranges are harvested, there are fewer dollars circulating in our state’s economy.”
First detected in Florida in 2005, greening causes citrus trees to drop fruit prematurely and eventually kills the trees. The disease is caused by a bacterium, and was first described in 1919 in China. The bacterium is transmitted by an invasive insect, the Asian citrus psyllid.
The study compares actual harvests of oranges used to make juice with projected harvests that would have taken place if greening had never struck Florida groves; it covers the growing seasons from 2006-2007 through 2010-2011. During those five years, the disease caused substantial crop losses, said citrus economist Tom Spreen, a professor with the UF/IFAS food and resource economics department.
UF, Buckeye dedicate ethanol production facility in Perry
January 10, 2012
Topic(s): Agriculture, Announcements, Biofuels, Crops, Economics, Environment, Green Living, IFAS, New Technology, Research
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Many building dedications feature a ribbon-cutting; this one included a front-end loader ceremoniously dumping a scoopful of pulverized sugarcane stalks.
It was an appropriate way to mark yesterday’s official launch of the Stan Mayfield Biorefinery Pilot Plant in Perry, a cooperative venture between the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences and Buckeye Technologies Inc.
As 200 guests looked on, State Rep. Debbie Mayfield, R-Vero Beach, stepped up to the big machine and pulled a lever, delivering the first official shipment of feedstock to the biorefinery, which will develop methods for producing fuel ethanol and other compounds from inedible plant material.
The biorefinery is named for Mayfield’s late husband, a member of the state House of Representatives from 2000 until his death in 2008. A UF graduate, Mayfield was a strong advocate of renewable fuels, environmental protection and economic growth.
UF researchers develop first method to accurately measure zinc in humans
December 15, 2011
Topic(s): Announcements, IFAS, New Technology, Nutrition, Research
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Zinc is an essential nutrient, but until now, there has not been an effective way to measure it in our bodies, say University of Florida researchers.
The researchers have uncovered biomarkers that, for the first time, allow for accurate measurement of human zinc nutritional status. Biomarkers are quantifiable substances in organisms that can indicate body irregularities such as nutrient deficiencies or disease.
The biomarkers can be measured from blood samples or from mouth swabs and allow for even marginal zinc deficiencies to be detected, which is something current zinc tests can’t do.
Statistical models inspired from Facebook could help endangered animals, UF researchers say
November 15, 2011
Topic(s): Conservation, Environment, IFAS, Invasive Species, New Technology, Research
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Some endangered animals may live in smaller habitats than scientists realize, leading to inflated estimates of their ability to survive, according to a new University of Florida study.
However, by predicting the animals’ habitat movement using models employed to analyze human interactions on social networks such as Facebook, scientists with UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences find the animals’ predicament could be better understood.
Conservationists can use this improved approach to better prioritize habitat restoration efforts for endangered species, said author Robert Fletcher, a UF wildlife ecology and conservation assistant professor.
Under lab conditions, Salmonella can reach tomato fruits through leaves, IFAS study shows
November 10, 2011
Topic(s): Crops, Food Safety, Research
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Food-safety experts have long believed that Salmonella bacteria could only enter tomatoes through wounds in the stem or fruit — but a new University of Florida laboratory study shows it can also happen another way.
Plant pathologist Ariena van Bruggen, a professor in UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, published a paper today in the online journal PLoS One, with research findings that show — for the first time — that Salmonella can enter tomato plants through intact leaves, travel through the plant and end up in the fruit itself. (more…)
New IFAS study shows corn plants help control major mite pest
November 1, 2011
Topic(s): Agriculture, Biocontrols, Crops, Entomology and Nematology, Environment, IFAS, New Technology, Pests, RECs, Research
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Add one more entry to corn’s list of abilities: helping to biologically control pests.
Already a source of food and biofuel, University of Florida researchers report in a new study that corn plants can help sustain populations of small, flying insects known as gall midges in order to control twospotted spider mites.
Spider mites are hard-to-manage, major pests of hundreds of ornamental and vegetable crops.
UF researchers say they can create grapefruit hybrid that won’t interfere with medicine
October 20, 2011
Topic(s): Citrus, Cultivars, RECs
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GAINESVILLE, Fla. — For years, doctors and pharmacists have warned people to steer clear of fresh grapefruit or grapefruit juice when taking certain medicines.
But University of Florida researchers now believe within the next few years, they’ll be able to release a grapefruit-pummelo hybrid that those who enjoy the zingy fruit can consume, without risking adverse side effects from their medicine.
The researchers’ findings are presented in the current issue of the Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science. (more…)
