The University of Arizona

CALS NewsLine from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

CALS NewsLine for College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

CALS NewsLine is dedicated to helping you learn more about our programs and activities. Subscription information is at the end of this newsletter.

IN THIS NEWSLINE ISSUED July 18, 2008:

  1. UA RESEARCHERS ENGINEER SELF-DESTRUCTING VIRUS
  2. NEW UA COLLEGE
  3. AGRICULTURAL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK
  4. BUILDING A PRIVATELY-FUNDED UA FACILITY
  5. NEW BOOK EXAMINES INTERSECTION OF FIRE ECOLOGY AND HUMANS
  6. LATEST ISSUE OF BACKYARDS AND BEYOND
  7. ARIZONA GIVES UA $176K WATERSHED WORK GRANT
  8. NEW PUBLICATION: ARSENIC IN ARIZONA GROUND WATER
  9. ARIZONA 'PODCATS': SHUCKING THE CORN CODE
  10. NINE CALS FOOD PUBLICATIONS UPDATED
  11. UA IDEA: TUCSONANS SAVE WATER; FUNDS GO TO RESTORE OUR RIVERS
  12. CALS FACULTY COMMENT ON THE FARM BILL
  13. THE COMPREHENSIVE SCOPE OF THE IPLANT COOPERATIVE
  14. CALS IN THE NEWS

1 UA RESEARCHERS ENGINEER SELF-DESTRUCTING VIRUS

University of Arizona researchers have sown the seeds of a virus' destruction in its own genetic code--or rather, in the genetic code of the organisms it seeks to infect. Their work could improve both the understanding of how viruses work as well as the ability to make plants and animals more virus-resistant.

Working with a virus that infects bacteria, Bentley Fane, a professor of veterinary sciences and microbiology and a member of the BIO5 Institute, and James Cherwa, a graduate student in Fane's lab, pinpointed a region of a protein that's crucial to building the virus' structure, designed a modified version of that protein, and engineered the bacteria's cells to produce the modified protein.

When the virus infected cells of the bacteria, it "recognized" the modified protein and, following the instructions encoded in its own DNA, the virus tried to incorporate the altered protein into copies of itself. Instead the protein gummed up the works of the replication process, causing the virus to die without producing any offspring. "We were shocked by just how potent the inhibitory protein was," Fane said.

The research casts light on the biology of how viruses work and how the proteins they create interact with one another.

To read the rest of this article published July 10 in UANews, go to the link below.

Fane and Cherewa's research was also covered in the Tucson Citizen on July 9: http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/frontpage/90461.php

Bentley Fane, BIO5 Institute, bfane@email.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://uanews.org/node/20506

2 NEW UA COLLEGE

The most recent college to be designated at The University of Arizona will work to boost access, online enrollments and collaborations throughout the campus and around the state. On July 1, the UA's Continuing Education and Academic Outreach became the Outreach College.

The Outreach College will remain devoted to some of the UA's long-held values, such as student access and expanding the University's reach beyond Tucson, said Michael Proctor, UA senior associate vice president for outreach and international programs. The college is also responsible for coordinating the UA's distance learning component and also oversees the Evening & Weekend Campus, professional development, independent study, continuing education and programs for children and senior members of the community.

The name change will also put the college in a better position to collaborate more effectively with other UA units and off-campus partners to introduce new programs and services, Proctor said. "In the past, we've never had strategies around connecting the University like this," he said.

Becoming designated as a college is part of a larger effort. The University named Eugene G. Sander vice president for outreach and placed a number of units under his purview -- including UA South, International Affairs, Cooperative Extension and the Outreach College. One of the Outreach College's major initiatives over the next five years will be to increase the number of students enrolled in online and evening courses while increasing the number of students who complete degrees, said David E. Cox, the college's dean.

"The goal, and part of the reason for the name change, is so that we can help the other colleges to make their distance, credit outreach and weekend programs more visible both internally and to the public," Cox said.

"One of the charges of the Outreach College is to help departments to increase their enrollments in these other kinds of ways," said Cox, who is also associate dean of the UA's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Cox noted that the college is heavily focused on non-traditional students and community members. Among its offerings are Arizona Youth University, a summer program for children and teenagers, and the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, or OLLI, which targets the aging population. Elderhostel is another program offering educational programming to people 55 years old and older.

See the rest of this July 9 UANow article at the link below.

Eugene Sander, CALS Administration, egsander@ag.arizona.edu
Dave Cox, CALS Administration, dcox@ag.arizona.edu
Mike Proctor, CALS Administration, mproctor@cals.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://uanews.org/node/20491

3 AGRICULTURAL ECONOMIC OUTLOOK

Traveling through Spain last month, I was struck by the vast expanses of wheat growing everywhere. Last month in western Tennessee and Mississippi--an area I usually associate with cotton--there it was again: wheat, wheat, wheat.

In Arizona, USDA forecasts that growers will plant nearly double the amount of wheat in 2008 that they planted in 2007. Arizona wheat acres are expected to exceed cotton acres for the first time since 1976. Growers in Arizona and worldwide are responding to market signals as USDA forecasts wheat prices may be as high as $8.25 per bushel this year. Strong wheat prices along with high prices for many other agricultural commodities bode well for U.S. farm income.

To read the rest of this article by CALS economist George Frisvold, published in the July issue of Farm Bureau's "Arizona Agriculture," see the link below.

George Frisvold, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, frisvold@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.azfb.org/news/pdf/AA_07-08.pdf

4 BUILDING A PRIVATELY-FUNDED UA FACILITY

When Soyeon Shim wanted a new building for her school at the University of Arizona, she got to work and raised $24 million in donations to build it. Thanks to her determination and dedication, the John and Doris Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences, which she directs, has moved into the four-story, 72,000-square-foot McClelland Park Building--the first UA academic structure created without tax dollars.

The school's new four-story facility means more space and better technology for students, faculty and staff.

To read the rest of this opinion piece that appeared in the June 12 Tucson Citizen, see http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/frontpage/87965.php.

To hear Shim talk about how her school managed to raise enough private funds to build a brand new building, listen to the June 26 UANews podcast at http://uanews.org/node/20359.

For a comprehensive description of the Norton School and the success its graduates are experiencing, read "Prof raises $24 million for new UA building" in the June 10 Tucson Citizen at the link below.

Soyeon Shim, Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences, shim@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/local/87764.php

5 NEW BOOK EXAMINES INTERSECTION OF FIRE ECOLOGY AND HUMANS

A new book, co-authored by a University of Arizona researcher, looks at how the ancient regime of wildfire in North America has played a role in shaping both nature and human habitat.

The book, "Living with Fire: Fire Ecology and Policy for the 21st Century" (University of California Press), was written by Guy R. McPherson, a UA professor of natural resources and ecology/evolutionary biology, and Sara E. Jensen, a conservation researcher with Defenders of Wildlife.

McPherson and Jensen detail how fire has shaped North American ecosystems, but also now threatens human lives and property. They explore the dilemma of fire through fire policy, fire science and fire management and suggest ways to address these issues.

The book is geared primarily to help scientists, policy makers and the general public, especially residents of fire-prone areas, to understand the history of fire and how to cope with it. They offer abundant historical and analytic information to shed new light on current controversies.

"Living with Fire" also presents a dynamic new paradigm for dealing with fire that recognizes its role in the environment, and how to rebuild important ecological and political processes to manage fire and other complex policy dilemmas. The book is scheduled for release in early August.

McPherson talks about the influence of such plants as well as the history and impact of fires and fire policy on the July 17 edition of "Podcats" at http://uanews.org/node/20628

Guy McPherson, School of Natural Resources, grm@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://uanews.org/node/20529

6 LATEST ISSUE OF BACKYARDS AND BEYOND

The Spring 2008 issue of Arizona Cooperative Extension's rural living magazine Backyards and Beyond is now available. Covering everything from Ponderosa pine density on small lots and timing irrigation with controllers to dealing with kissing bugs and locoweed, the publication has something for everyone. The magazine is designed for the small acreage landowner, new landowner or backyard enthusiast.

An annual hard copy subscription to the quarterly publication costs $10.00.

Susan Pater, Cochise County Cooperative Extension, spater@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://cals.arizona.edu/backyards

7 ARIZONA GIVES UA $176K WATERSHED WORK GRANT

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality awarded a grant to the University of Arizona to fund watershed improvement projects in Safford and Prescott. Agency Director Steve Owens announced the $176,150 grant July 9, saying UA does a "terrific job training volunteers to protect our precious water resources."

Program coordinator Candice Rupprecht said the need for training volunteers to protect, restore, monitor and conserve watersheds is critical to Arizona. "We don't have a lot of surface water in Arizona, so it's really important for people to understand what is affecting our watershed," she said. "Training the volunteers to recognize the issues allows them to help address them."

A watershed is the area drained by a stream and its tributaries and can range from under a square mile to hundreds of thousands of square miles. The grant will fund volunteers to work on revegetation projects with the Gila Watershed Partnership in Safford and Prescott Creeks Partnership in Prescott in hopes of lessening pollution that has shown up in those watersheds.

To read more from the July 9 Tucson Citizen, see the link below.

Candice Rupprecht, Arizona Cooperative Extension, candicer@cals.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/frontpage/90724.php

8 NEW PUBLICATION: ARSENIC IN ARIZONA GROUND WATER

Following on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's "Arsenic Rule" decision to lower the allowable arsenic content in drinking water from 50 to 10 parts per billion (ppb) or less, public water systems were required to meet the lower limit by January 23, 2006. Private well owners are not subject to the rule because, under Arizona law, it is the sole responsibility of the private well owner to determine the quality (potability) of their private well water.

However, private well owners across the state have realized the importance of testing their own water supply for arsenic. Measurable levels of arsenic are found in ground water across the state. Arizona Cooperative Extension's new publication, "Arsenic in Arizona Ground Water--Source and Transport Characteristics," features a map of ground water wells sampled for arsenic across Arizona between 1993 to 2007.

The four-page publication outlines regulations, sampling procedures, chemistry, geology and health risks for arsenic, and information on testing wells. Download a copy at the link below.

Kristine Uhlman, Water Resources Research Center, kuhlman@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://cals.arizona.edu/pubs/water/az1453.pdf

9 ARIZONA 'PODCATS': SHUCKING THE CORN CODE

UA plant sciences professor Rod Wing led an international effort to decode the rice genome and has since turned his attention to corn. In the June 5 edition of Arizona "Podcats," Wing talks about the process and importance of mapping the corn genome, explaining that corn components are found in just about every food product. Wing holds the Bud Antle Endowed Chair for Excellence in Agriculture and Life Sciences.

Listen to the podcast at the link below.

Rod Wing, BIO5 Institute, rwing@email.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://uanews.org/node/20026

10 NINE CALS FOOD PUBLICATIONS UPDATED

Would you like to know more about food irradiation, biotechnology and food, vegetarian diets and other timely kitchen-related issues? Several food-related CALS publications have been recently revised and are now available online at the links below.

Scottie Misner, Department of Nutritional Sciences, misner@ag.arizona.edu

11 UA IDEA: TUCSONANS SAVE WATER; FUNDS GO TO RESTORE OUR RIVERS

Why conserve water when what's saved goes to serve more growth?

That question has hung over the city's water-conservation debate for years.
Even though statistics show that many Tucson-area residents have indeed cut back from their use a decade ago, people continue to write letters and speak out at meetings that they see little point in conserving if newcomers keep moving in and slurping up the savings.

Now, a University of Arizona water-research center wants to offer an alternative to ensure that saving water is helping the region's long-dry rivers and streams.

"Conserve to Enhance" is a proposed program in which people who save water could set aside the money they saved by using less water to restore long-barren rivers or streams. It's been under study for some time by the UA's Water Resources Research Center.

Read the rest of this article from the July 16 Arizona Daily Star at the link below.

Sharon Megdal, Water Resources Research Center, smegdal@cals.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/248507

12 CALS FACULTY COMMENT ON THE FARM BILL

Find out what two CALS faculty have to say about the recently passed Farm Bill. Agronomist Jeff Silvertooth and economist George Frisvold offer their views on a segment of "Arizona Illustrated" that aired on KUAT on June 23. View the short feature at the link below.

Jeff Silvertooth, Department of Soil, Water and Environmental Science, silver@ag.arizona.edu

George Frisvold, Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics, frisvold@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://ondemand.azpm.org/videoshorts/watch/2008/6/23/kuat-farm-bill/

13 THE COMPREHENSIVE SCOPE OF THE IPLANT COOPERATIVE

In January 2008, the National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded a University of Arizona-led team $50 million to create a global center and computer cyberinfrastructure to answer plant biology's "grand challenge questions," which no single research entity in the world currently has the capacity to address. Dubbed the iPlant Collaborative, the project will unite plant scientists, computer scientists and information scientists from around the world for the first time to provide answers to questions of global importance and to advance knowledge in all of these fields.

A series of articles describing various aspects of the iPlant Collaborative was recently published in a special combined issue of Arizona Alumnus (the UA Alumni Association) and Advancing Arizona (UA Foundation):

-- iPlant Collaborative to Tackle the World's Most Complex Problems
-- iPlant Collaborative to Engage K-12 Students
-- iPlant's Cyberinfrastructure: Part Facebook, Part Supercomputer

See the link below.

Vicki Chandler, BIO5 Institute, chandler@ag.arizona.edu

Richard Jorgensen, BIO5 Institute, raj@ag.arizona.edu
To learn more: http://www.arizonaalumni.com/Alumnus/sp08/bio5.html

14 CALS IN THE NEWS

VOICE OF KENTUCKY DERBY, UA GRAD, DIES
Luke Kruytbosch, the voice of the Kentucky Derby for the past decade and a graduate of the University of Arizona Race Track Industry Program, died Monday at his home in southern Indiana. He was 47.

Mr. Kruytbosch (pronounced KRITE-boss) began his 10-year run at Churchill Downs at the start of its 1999 spring meet. He had a voice "known throughout the world" by horse-racing enthusiasts, according to a UA representative.

"He was famous within the racing community," said Wendy Davis, associate coordinator of UA's Race Track Industry Program. "You didn't even need to hear him say, 'I'm Luke Kruytbosch,' because as soon as he spoke, you knew who he was."

Read the rest of the story from the July 16 Tucson Citizen at http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/frontpage/91063.php

Wendy Davis, Race Track Industry Program, wdavis@ag.arizona.edu

GENOME COMMUNICATION
In the late 19th century Gregor Mendel used peas to show that one copy of a gene (allele) is inherited from the mother and one from the father. In the progeny, the inherited genes are expressed at the right time and in the right place, but until recently, it was thought that although gene products could be modified during the life of the organism, the genes themselves were unchanged, except for random mutation. Now it appears that one copy of some genes can alter the expression of the other copy, and those changes are passed down to the next generation. These epigenetic alterations, called paramutations may be important in introducing changes when plants and other organisms are environmentally stressed.

Dr. Vicki Chandler and her colleagues have studied paramutations in maize and other plants and have identified some of the genes and mechanisms that operate in this epigenetic process. Dr. Chandler, of the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of Arizona, Tucson, presented this work at a symposium on Maize Biology at the annual meeting of the American Society of Plant Biologists in Mérida, Mexico on June 28.

To read more about paramutations, read the rest of this article that appeared in EurekAlert on June 27 at www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2008-06/asop-gc062308.php

Vicki Chandler, BIO5 Institute, chandler@ag.arizona.edu

THE OLD MAN WHO FARMS WITH THE SEA
A few miles inland from the Sea of Cortez, amid cracked earth and mesquite and sun-bleached cactus, neat rows of emerald plants are sprouting from the desert floor. The crop is salicornia. It is nourished by seawater flowing from a man-made canal. And if you believe the American who is farming it, this incongruous swath of green has the potential to feed the world, fuel our vehicles and slow global warming.

He is Carl Hodges, a Tucson-based atmospheric physicist who has spent most of his 71 years figuring out how humans can feed themselves in places where good soil and fresh water are in short supply. The founding director of the University of Arizona's highly regarded Environmental Research Lab, his work has attracted an eclectic band of admirers. They include heads of state, corporate chieftains and Hollywood stars, among them Martin Sheen and the late Marlon Brando.

Read the rest of this story that appeared in the July 10 Los Angeles Times:
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-seafarm10-2008jul10,0,3389394.story

Carl Hodges, Environmental Research Laboratory, (520) 626-3328

TOP TUCSON HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS IN UA LABS THIS SUMMER
Twenty five exceptional Tucson high school students are learning lab skills, engaging in research projects and presenting their findings to their peers, mentors and parents during the KEYS (K-12 Engaging Youth in Science) summer research internship program. The summer research internship program is currently taking place at the BIO5 Institute and the College of Pharmacy at The University of Arizona.

"It is a fantastic opportunity for these students to see what science is all about," said Kevin Hall, director of research training and career development for the BIO5 Institute. "It's one thing to follow a step-by-step lab 'recipe' in a class with fellow students, and another to design an experiment to solve a problem, to adjust the experiment when the data requires it and to try a new approach again and again. It really opens their eyes to the process, and ultimately gives them confidence in their ability to conduct a scientific experiment."

The summer research internship focuses on biomedical and environmental health sciences. The students, which had to apply through a competitive process in order to be selected for the program, select research topics from genetics/molecular biology, pharmacology/toxicology and computational biology/bioinformatics.

They will work with nearly 30 renowned UA researchers, including Vicki Chandler, BIO5 director as well as Rod Wing and David Gang, also with BIO5. Other contributors include the department of plant sciences, the Arizona Respiratory Center's Fernando Martinez and Nathan Cherrington and Georg Wondrak from the College of Pharmacy.

Read the rest of this article that appeared in UANews on July 7 at http://uanews.org/node/20429

Vicki Chandler, BIO5 Institute, chandler@ag.arizona.edu

PLANTINGS BOOST NEIGHBORHOOD, WATER QUALITY
An old neighborhood south of the University of Arizona is conserving water and fighting pollution with the help of a local nonprofit group and a $100,000 grant from the state. The main goal of the project is to improve the quality of water that flows from High School Wash into the Santa Cruz River, said Lisa Shipek, executive director of the nonprofit Watershed Management Group.

The Rincon Heights neighborhood, bordered by East Sixth Street, North Campbell Avenue, Broadway and North Park Avenue, floods quickly during summer storms. Project volunteers are digging retention basins and planting trees and bushes in the strips between the curbs and the property lines in the public right of way, Shipek said.

Read the rest of this article from the July 6 Tucson Citizen at http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/daily/frontpage/90190.php

Jim Riley, Environmental Research Laboratory, jriley@ag.arizona.edu

UA RESEARCHER PROBES POTENTIAL FOR PLANTS' POWER IN MEDICINE
David Gang's laboratory and the kitchen he shares with his wife and six children contain some of the same ingredients.

At the University of Arizona, where he is a professor in the Department of Plant Sciences, Gang grows turmeric and ginger plants in greenhouses on the roof of a parking garage on East Sixth Street.

He raises basil plants in controlled chambers in the basement of the Bio5 Research Institute across campus.

Read the rest of this article from the July 14 Arizona Daily Star at http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/248162

David Gang, BIO5 Institute, gang@ag.arizona.edu

To find out about available CALS publications and upcoming events, go to http://cals.arizona.edu/. If you have questions or comments about NewsLine, send an email to newseditor@ag.arizona.edu. Previous issues can be viewed at http://cals.arizona.edu/pubs/newsline/previous-issues.html

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