Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 United States Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service Foreword (cid:2)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:8)(cid:9)(cid:10)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:9)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:12)(cid:13)(cid:14)(cid:14)(cid:13)(cid:15)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:17)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:19)(cid:14)(cid:14)(cid:4)(cid:20)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:23)(cid:14)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:24)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:25)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:26)(cid:10)(cid:22)(cid:19)(cid:23)(cid:18)(cid:14)(cid:5)(cid:18)(cid:22)(cid:9)(cid:14)(cid:4)(cid:27)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:23)(cid:6)(cid:4)(cid:28)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:29)(cid:19)(cid:23)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:30)(cid:26)(cid:27)(cid:28)(cid:31)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:4) (cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4) (cid:19)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:28)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:4)(cid:26)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:9)!(cid:4)(cid:4)"(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4) (cid:19)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:28)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:4)(cid:26)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:7)(cid:19)(cid:10)(cid:6)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:26)(cid:27)(cid:28)(cid:4)(cid:26)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:11)!(cid:4)(cid:4)#(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:6)(cid:9)(cid:29)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:4)(cid:21)(cid:19)(cid:29)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:25)(cid:12)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:23)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)$%%(cid:4) (cid:7)&(cid:8)(cid:14)(cid:13)(cid:17)(cid:7)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:23)(cid:14)(cid:18)(cid:21)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:10)(cid:4)&(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:4)’(%(cid:4)(cid:11)(cid:23)(cid:19)(cid:7)(cid:3)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:5)(cid:11)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:6)(cid:13)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:25)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:4))%(cid:4)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:23)(cid:6)(cid:4)(cid:14)(cid:13)(cid:23)(cid:9)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:4) (cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:11)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:11)(cid:19)(cid:8)(cid:8)(cid:19)(cid:16)(cid:4)*(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:19)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:9)(cid:16)(cid:4) (cid:26)(cid:14)(cid:9)(cid:24)(cid:9)&(cid:9)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)+(cid:7)(cid:3)(cid:5)(cid:18)(cid:23)(cid:25)(cid:17)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4),(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:25)(cid:11)(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:4)"(cid:7)(cid:3)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:7)(cid:16)(cid:4) (cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:17)(cid:14)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:26)(cid:22)(cid:19)-(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:9)!(cid:4)(cid:4).(cid:18)(cid:22)(cid:4)(cid:26)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:4).(cid:12)(cid:20)(cid:23)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:14)(cid:13)(cid:23)(cid:9)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:4) (cid:28)(cid:5)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:29)(cid:19)(cid:14)(cid:14)(cid:7)(cid:16)(cid:4) (cid:28)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)/(cid:9)&(cid:19)(cid:7)(cid:4)#(cid:6)(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:3)(cid:4)0(cid:7)(cid:14)(cid:5)(cid:9)(cid:4)(cid:28)(cid:5)(cid:9)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:27)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:23)(cid:6)(cid:4)1(cid:7)(cid:3)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:22)! 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(cid:18)(cid:3)(cid:19)9(cid:18)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:3)(cid:18)(cid:5)(cid:22)(cid:19)(cid:23)(cid:7)(cid:18)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:23)(cid:9)(cid:14)(cid:4)(cid:8)(cid:22)(cid:13)(cid:8)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:7)(cid:11)8(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:8)(cid:22)(cid:13)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:23)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:6)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:5)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:19)(cid:23)(cid:4)(cid:24)(cid:18)(cid:19)(cid:14)(cid:21)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:10)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:4):(cid:7)(cid:15)(cid:4).(cid:22)(cid:14)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:10)(cid:9)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:11)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:21)(cid:9)&(cid:9)(cid:10)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:24)(cid:17)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4) ;(cid:13)(cid:22)&(cid:13)(cid:11)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:28)(cid:18)(cid:24)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:22)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:22)&(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:7)!(cid:4)(cid:4)7(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:19)(cid:14)(cid:14)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:14)(cid:11)(cid:13)(cid:4)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:24)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:7)(cid:12)(cid:12)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:5)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:13)(cid:4)(cid:19)&(cid:8)(cid:22)(cid:13)(cid:29)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:23)(cid:13)&(cid:8)(cid:7)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:29)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:21)(cid:29)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:5)(cid:9)(cid:10)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)2!(cid:28)!(cid:4) 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7(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:19)(cid:14)(cid:14)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:14)(cid:11)(cid:13)(cid:4)(cid:14)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:22)(cid:4)(cid:7)(cid:12)(cid:12)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:5)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:13)(cid:4)(cid:24)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:7)(cid:12)(cid:12)(cid:7)(cid:23)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:29)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:11)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:15)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:21)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:22)(cid:4)(cid:14)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:13)(cid:4)&(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:11)(cid:18)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:23)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:24)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:12)(cid:13)(cid:13)(cid:5)(cid:8)(cid:22)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:29)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:19)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:11)(cid:4) 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(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:10)(cid:22)(cid:13)(cid:15)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:10)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:10)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)<(cid:7)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:10)(cid:17)=(cid:4)(cid:23)(cid:22)(cid:13)(cid:8)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:12)(cid:13)(cid:22)(cid:4)(cid:7)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:13)(cid:14)(cid:4)(cid:8)(cid:22)(cid:13)(cid:21)(cid:18)(cid:23)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:12)(cid:22)(cid:13)&(cid:4)(cid:23)(cid:7)(cid:14)(cid:14)(cid:18)(cid:14)(cid:13)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:13)(cid:4)(cid:11)(cid:18)(cid:8)(cid:8)(cid:14)(cid:17)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:7)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:10)(cid:17)(cid:4)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:7)(cid:21)(cid:11)(cid:4) 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(cid:2)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:17)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:4)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:7)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:21)(cid:21)(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:9)(cid:14)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:12)(cid:13)(cid:22)&(cid:9)(cid:5)(cid:19)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:4)(cid:14)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:18)(cid:22)(cid:4)(cid:22)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:22)(cid:23)(cid:6)(cid:4)(cid:18)(cid:3)(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:14)(cid:9)(cid:24)(cid:11)(cid:16)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:14)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:10)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:4)(cid:8)(cid:6)(cid:13)(cid:3)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:3)(cid:18)&(cid:24)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:7)(cid:24)(cid:11)(cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:11)(cid:16)(cid:4) (cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:8)(cid:22)(cid:13)(cid:29)(cid:19)(cid:21)(cid:7)(cid:21)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:24)(cid:9)(cid:23)(cid:25)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:19)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:24)(cid:13)(cid:13)(cid:25)!(cid:4)(cid:4)>(cid:14)(cid:7)(cid:9)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:14)(cid:7)(cid:5)(cid:4)(cid:18)(cid:11)(cid:4)(cid:25)(cid:3)(cid:13)(cid:15)(cid:4)(cid:19)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:15)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:23)(cid:9)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:24)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:11)(cid:7)(cid:22)(cid:29)(cid:19)(cid:23)(cid:7)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:13)(cid:4)(cid:17)(cid:13)(cid:18)! (cid:2)(cid:3)(cid:4)(cid:5)(cid:6)(cid:7)(cid:8)(cid:9)(cid:7)(cid:10)(cid:11)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:7)(cid:14)(cid:11)(cid:6)(cid:15)(cid:16)(cid:17)(cid:18)(cid:6) (cid:19)(cid:5)(cid:20)(cid:6)(cid:15)(cid:12)(cid:16)(cid:15)(cid:7)(cid:21)(cid:18)(cid:22)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:13)(cid:7)(cid:23)(cid:16)(cid:17)(cid:11)(cid:12)(cid:4)(cid:7)(cid:23)(cid:24)(cid:24)(cid:18)(cid:16)(cid:11)(cid:5)(cid:17)(cid:15)(cid:7)(cid:23)(cid:6)(cid:15)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:14)(cid:11)(cid:6)(cid:15)(cid:16)(cid:17)(cid:18)(cid:6) (cid:23)(cid:6)(cid:16)(cid:25)(cid:11)(cid:15)(cid:7)(cid:26)(cid:22)(cid:16)(cid:27)(cid:15)(cid:6)(cid:13)(cid:7)(cid:14)(cid:15)(cid:28)(cid:22)(cid:17)(cid:29)(cid:7)(cid:23)(cid:6)(cid:15)(cid:5)(cid:7)(cid:14)(cid:11)(cid:6)(cid:15)(cid:16)(cid:17)(cid:18)(cid:6) Contents The articles in this volume are reprinted from Agricultural Research magazine, which is published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural 2 Super Soy! Research Service, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., 5 Folk Remedy Yields Mosquito-Thwarting Compound Beltsville, MD 20705-5130; phone (301) 504-1651; fax (301) 504-1641. 6 New Technologies for Cotton Gins Combine for Big Savings The magazine is available on the World 8 Freeing Phosphorus Wide Web at ars.usda.gov/ar. 10 A Wealth of Genetics Technology Under One Roof To subscribe to Agricultural Research 12 Clean Waters and Agriculture: We Can Have It Both Ways! by mail, please contact New Orders, Superintendent of Documents, P.O. Box 16 Killer Fungi 371954, Pittsburgh, PA 15250-7954. 19 What Goes Up? Measuring Air and Soil Carbon Exchange This reprint volume may report research From Conservation Cropping Systems involving pesticides. It does not contain 20 Pterostilbene’s Healthy Potential recommendations for their use, nor does it imply that uses discussed herein have 22 Catfish Genome’s Key to Higher Quality, Profits been registered. All uses of pesticides 23 Squeezing More Sugar From Cane must be registered by appropriate state and/or federal agencies before they can 26 Tung Twister be recommended. 28 A Fungal Fight in the Desert Reference to any commercial product or 30 Fungal Foam Seeks and Destroys Termites service is made with the understanding 33 Research Helps Set the Stage for Ethanol…Southern Style that no discrimination is intended and no endorsement by USDA is implied. 34 Predicting Sugarcane Conversion to Ethanol 36 Blueberries in Biloxi The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in 40 The Roller in the Rye all its programs and activities on the 42 Perfect Pumpkin Pollinators: The Squash Bees! basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, 44 The Touch, the Feel—and Now, the Heal—of Cotton marital status, familial status, parental 47 Pepper Compound Mighty Against Mold status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, 48 Monitoring and Managing Mississippi Delta Watersheds reprisal, or because all or part of an 50 Cross-Linking Cotton individual’s income is derived from 52 Formidable Fungus Goes Toe to Toe With Kudzu any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) 54 Genetic Research Sheds Light on Group B Streptococcus Persons with disabilities who require 56 Hardy New Corn Lines Resist Toxic Fungi alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large 58 Changing CO Promises Surprising Changes in Plant print, audiotape, etc.) should contact 2 Communities USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file 61 Using Doppler Ultrasound To Understand Fescue Toxicosis a complaint of discrimination, write 62 Devoted to Science, Even During Disaster to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, 63 Science Update S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, 66 Also of Interest or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal 104 Mid South Area Contacts opportunity provider and employer. Cover: The broad scope of scientific efforts in the Mid South Area includes research Issued July 2010 on (front cover) chickens, corn, bee, cotton, mixed berries, flowers, catfish, soybean, (back cover) cow, remote sensing techniques, sugarcane, acoustic technology, cotton sheet, rapid enzymatic mannitol test, BAC fingerprinting of catfish genome, termites, and fire ants. Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 1 Medical uses for soy compounds Super may be on the horizon. S o y ! experiencing bone loss,” says Boué, “some plant-derived estrogens could possibly reduce that risk if they are included in the diet.” It’s already known that populations eating a diet rich in soy- bean phytoestrogens have lower incidences of several diseases, including breast and prostate cancer. But before health-conscious consumers go on a soybean binge, scientists first need to figure out which of the plant’s compounds are most helpful to our health. After all, these potent chemicals can have a range of effects on the body. T oofu’s no longer the only answer if you’re after more SCOTT BAUER (D332-5) ssoy in your diet. Today, the options have never been bbetter. There are cereals and snack bars enriched with ssoy protein—or the salty taste of roasted soybeans and soy chips. Even a sweet tooth can find fulfillment with creamy, frozen deserts made from soy milk. There’s good reason for soy’s recent surge in popularity. Despite the legume’s rather dull seed exterior, tucked inside the seed are dozens of dazzling plant chemicals that could prove to be a boon to human health. As researchers across the country are finding, some of these compounds show potential to protect the heart, halt postmenopausal bone loss, and stave off certain cancers. Stephen Boué, a chemist with ARS, studied soy’s intriguing phytochemical makeup at the agency’s Southern Regional Research Center (SRRC) in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Boué is temporarily at ARS in Oxford, Mississippi.) According to Boué, it’s soy’s phytoestrogens—estrogenlike compounds found in some plants—that could play an important role in human health. “Because hormonal fluctuations in postmenopausal women Purified mixture of glyceollins induced from soybeans. These can put them at an increased risk for developing cancer or compounds are being investigated for anticancer activity in mice. SCOTT BAUER (D330-1) Another complicating factor: No matter how many soy-rich foods you eat, you may still be missing out on one of the bean’s best offerings. When Stress Is a Good Thing The soy compounds of greatest interest to Boué are those called glyceollins (GLY-cee-OH-lins). Three years ago, he and collaborators at the Tulane-Xavier Center for Bioenvironmental Research in New Orleans dis- covered that, in lab tests, glyceollins can block the growth of hormone-dependent breast cancer cells. Their results were published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism in 2001. But despite their promising powers, you won’t find any Using high-performance liquid chromatography, chemist Betty glyceollins in soy products now on the market. Other good-for- Shih monitors the purity and quantity of glyceollins produced by you compounds may be missing, too. Aspergillus sojae-treated soybean seeds. 2 Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 The reason for their absence may strike you as odd. It’s because today’s soybeans plants aren’t getting enough stress. “Unlike their ancestors, today’s soybean plants are grown in nice, clean, relatively disease-free fields,” says Ed Cleveland, a microbiologist and research leader of SRRC’s Food and Feed Safety Research Unit, temporarily based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. “This means they’re not being challenged by the pathogens and insects they’d normally encounter in nature. SCOTT BAUER (D333-2) “When confronted with disease or stress, Biologist Carol Carter-Wientjes and microbiologist Ed Cleveland examine soybeans treated soybeans—like most plants—will rev up with the food-grade microorganism Aspergillus sojae to get the beans to produce glyceollins. their natural defenses and pump out protec- tive compounds,” he adds. “It’s these plant- SCOTT BAUER (D336-6) guarding chemicals that are showing such potential in human health studies.” So what would it take to get soybeans to naturally produce higher levels of the beneficial glyceollins? According to Cleveland, “You’d have to grow soybeans in fields that were fungi-infested, diseased—basically under conditions that could destroy the crop.” It Takes a Fungus But Boué discovered a way to elicit this chemical response in the laboratory, without all the mess. Along with biologist Carol Carter-Wientjes, he found just the right fungus to mimic the kind of disease threat needed to SCOTT BAUER (D337-2) Above: ARS chemist Stephen Boué (left) and Tulane University biologist Matthew Burow examine results of breast cancer cells combined with different concentrations of glyceollins. Left: Plate wells are stained so that individual breast cancer cell colonies become visible for counting. Glyceollins decreased cell colony numbers (right) versus controls (left), indicating potential inhibition of cancer cell proliferation. Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 3 They found their answer in an unexpected place: soy sauce. SCOTT BAUER (D331-2) That’s because their best performer is the fungus used to fer- ment soybeans for making soy sauce. The fungus is known as Aspergillus sojae. Cleveland and other researchers studying Aspergillus species at SRRC had already proven that the fungus is innocuous enough for food production—indicating that it would be safe for Boué and Carter-Wientjes’s studies. And almost right away, the researchers got a good sign from their treated soybeans. After soaking soybeans for a few hours to get the seeds close to germination, the researchers sprinkled a dried version of A. sojae onto cut surfaces of the legumes. “Just a couple of days after treatment,” says Carter-Wientjes, “we saw the soybeans’ wound surfaces turning this deep red. We knew that a biochemical reaction was taking place and that glyceollins were being churned out.” With further analysis, Boué confirmed that glyceollins are in- deed being produced by the soybeans. Another SRRC researcher, chemist Betty Shih, isolated enough of the compounds from the laboratory procedure for use in health studies. Boué shared glyceollin samples with medical researchers, including Matthew Burow at Tulane-Xavier. Fruitful Findings So far, results from the medical studies are promising. For their research, Burow’s team at Tulane injected mice with breast cancer cells and then treated the animals with glyceollins. “My Tulane collaborators are finding that the glyceollins from our soybeans are stopping cancer cells from proliferating,” says Boué. “This research could lead to a drug or therapeutic treat- ment for breast cancer.” Boué and his SRRC colleagues also produced a soy protein isolate from their induced soybeans. Also containing the promis- ing glyceollins, the soy protein could be the basis for future health foods, like soy protein bars. Another group of medical researchers is working with Boué to monitor the effects on primates fed a Using prep-scale high-performance diet of the induced-soybean protein. liquid chromatography, Stephen Boué If collaborators continue to unveil positive results, the next step isolates glyceollins from a methanolic for Boué and colleagues will be to devise an effective method for treating soybean seeds on a large scale. extract of Aspergillus sojae-treated “It may involve finding the genes involved in producing soybean seeds. glyceollins,” Boué says, “or developing sprays or elicitor treat- ments that can be safely applied to soybean plants themselves.”— By Erin Peabody, ARS. This research is part of Food Safety (#108) and Human Nutri- tion (#107), two ARS National Programs described on the World Wide Web at www.nps.ars.usda.gov. To reach scientists mentioned in this article, contact Erin Peabody, USDA-ARS Information Staff, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., Beltsville, MD 20705-5129; phone (301) 504-1624, fax (301) 504-1486, [email protected]. ✸ 4 Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 Learning from our elders Folk Remedy Yields Mosquito- just as effective as DEET. (See “DOD Partners with ARS To Protect Troops From Insect Vectors,” Agricultural Research, Thwarting Compound September 2005, p. 12.) DEET, the world’s most-used insect repellent, was itself de- veloped by ARS for the U.S. Army decades ago. R eegional wisdom once imparted by a Mississippi grand- “In laboratory tests, isolated callicarpenal was just as effective ffather has led ARS scientists to isolate a natural com- as SS220 in preventing mosquito bites,” says Cantrell. ppound that in laboratory tests was effective in warding Those tests were conducted by Klun against the mosquito spe- ooff mosquito bites. cies Aedes aegypti, which is best known as the yellowfever mos- The efficacy of the isolated compound—called quito, and Anopheles stephensi, which spreads malaria in Asia. “callicarpenal”—was affirmed through tests simulating Klun used the same system he used to test SS220: a six-celled, human skin. But these results may not have been a surprise in in vitro bioassay he and colleagues developed that evaluates northeastern Mississippi as long as a century ago, once the source bite-deterrent properties of compounds intended for human use. of the callicarpenal was revealed. It consists of mosquito-holding cells positioned over compound- Seems that it was known there that fresh, crushed leaves of treated cloth covering six blood-membrane wells. The number American beautyberry, Callicarpa americana, in the family Ver- of insect bites through the cloth determines compound effec- benaceae, helped keep biting insects away from animals such as tiveness. horses and mules. Placing crushed beautyberry leaves under the Cantrell says a patent application has been submitted for cal- animals’ harnesses, residents knew, would mash out a repellent licarpenal. Subsequent work will include tests against ticks and oil. Eventually, some folks there took to mashing the leaves and developing ways of producing large quantities of the compound, rubbing the residue on their own skins. either through synthesis or crops. Toxicity trials will precede any Privy to this knowledge was young Charles T. Bryson, who testing on humans.—By Luis Pons, ARS. was told about it by his granddad, John Rives Crumpton. This research is part of Plant Biological and Molecular Today, Bryson is a botanist in ARS’s Southern Weed Science Processes (#302) and Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Research Unit at Stoneville, Mississippi. And he’s told research- Products (#306), two ARS National Programs described on the ers in ARS’s Natural Products Utilization Unit at Oxford, Mis- World Wide Web at www.nps.ars.usda.gov. sissippi, about beautyberry’s powers. Charles L. Cantrell is in the USDA-ARS Natural Products Uti- This led Oxford chemist Charles Cantrell—with entomologist lization Research Unit, P.O. Box 8048, Oxford, MS 38677-8048; Jerome Klun of ARS’s Chemicals Affecting Insect Behavior phone (662) 915-5898, fax (662) 915-1035, e-mail ccantrell@ Research Laboratory in Beltsville, Maryland, and Oxford msa-oxford.ars.usda.gov. plant physiologist Stephen Duke—to isolate from American Jerome A. Klun is with the USDA-ARS Chemicals Affecting beautyberry and a Japanese counterpart, C. japonica, five insect- Insect Behavior Laboratory, 10300 Baltimore Ave., Bldg. 007, repelling compounds. BARC-West, Beltsville, MD 20705-2350; phone (301) 504- Among them was callicarpenal, which may represent ARS’s 9388, ext. 537, fax (301) 504-6580, e-mail [email protected]. next important contribution against mosquitoes. ARS devel- gov. ✸ oped—and USDA patented in 2003—SS220, a repellent that’s CHARLES T. BRYSON (D419-1) Berries and leaves of American beautyberry, Callicarpa americana, on Pinedale Farm. The Mississippi farm was once owned by John Rives Crumpton, grandfather of ARS botanist Charles T. Bryson. Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 5 T New Technologies for he ginning industry has faced many challenges in recent years. In fact, the number of gins operating in the United States has declined from 2,254 in 1980 to 896 in 2004. Cotton Gins Combine That’s why the Cotton Ginning Research Unit in Stoneville, Mississippi, is committed to helping solve problems facing for Big Savings domestic gins. Initial research at the Stoneville lab in 1931 produced a patented method to remove excess moisture from cotton. Today the Stoneville lab takes a holistic approach to ginning research—from cotton variet- ies to mill processing techniques. W. Stanley Anthony, an agricultural engineer and former research leader in Stoneville, recently retired after more than 35 years with the agency. During that time, ARS was awarded 20 patents for inventions PEGGY GREB (D464-1) created by Anthony and others in his laboratory. The United States is a major producer of cotton, supplying about 20 million bales or about 20 percent of world output. Our export market has recently increased from 6 to 14 million bales, and new machines have been developed to help compete in foreign and domestic markets. Although Eli Whitney’s 1793 invention to remove seeds from cotton revolutionized the economy of southern states, today’s standard gin equipment still ejects some valuable fiber along with the trash—leaf particles, sticks, stems, seed coat fragments, grass, and bark—that must be removed. Most cotton is processed with the same machine sequence regard- less of its needs, and as a result, good fiber is sometimes wasted. To resolve this problem, Anthony developed and patented several equipment and software technologies. The research culminated in a process-control system known as “IntelliGin,” patented by Anthony and Richard K. Byler, an ARS agricultural engineer. The research unit’s best-known invention, it is now found in about 80 gins. With this technology, ginners can prescription-process cotton, improving its quality and increasing its value and profitability. An independent study found that IntelliGin can increase the net value of a bale of cotton by $8 for farmers. Gin process control systems, such as IntelliGin, also focus on saw- type lint cleaners, which clean cotton fiber after it is removed from the cottonseed. They use 5 to 9 closely spaced grid bars to remove trash. Unfortunately, these types of cleaners also remove about 20 pounds of material per bale and can damage remaining fiber. Anthony invented and patented the louvered lint cleaner, which wastes less fiber and as a result, increases bale weight by 8 to 10 pounds. “It has movable partitions of louvers between each pair of grid bars to allow the cleaning point of the grid bar to be engaged or disengaged Agricultural engineer W. Stanley Anthony examines samples on the fly, based on the needs of the cotton,” Anthony says. It’s mar- of lint and foreign matter and clean cotton fiber that was processed with a new saw-type lint cleaner he developed, keted by Continental Eagle under the trade name “LouverMax,” and marketed under the trade name “LouverMax.” more than 120 units have been sold in less than 3 years. Anthony developed two other machines to clean lint. One is a dual-saw cleaner. It consists of a standard saw-type lint cleaner plus a secondary saw, which prevents the longer fiber from being ejected with the waste. It may include a new doffing brush that reduces noise. 6 Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 PEGGY GREB (D463-1) “The dual-saw cleaner retains about 6 more pounds of good fiber than a standard lint cleaner, with no significant difference in fiber quality,” he says. The device was licensed to a gin equipment manu- facturer in December 2005. A third patented invention combines a modified cylinder cleaner, normally used for seed cotton, with one or more lint cleaner saws. “The new combined lint cleaner was evaluated in five studies, in- cluding operation at a commercial gin for 2 years,” he says. “Average fiber wasted was just 8 pounds per bale, compared to 15 pounds with one lint cleaner and 20 pounds with two lint cleaners.” Cotton farmers using the technology can typically save $3 to $6 per bale. Companies have expressed interest in the combined lint cleaner, which can also be used with flax and kenaf. Gins Do More Than Just Remove Trash Other common problems encountered in gins include controlling cotton moisture levels and bale tie failures. The Stoneville ginning unit also addresses these issues. Maintaining the proper moisture levels is necessary to preserve fiber quality for marketing and textile processing. It’s critical to cotton cleaning, handling, and fiber quality preservation at the gin. Cotton with high moisture content does not handle or clean well, and it degrades during storage. Fiber processed at low moisture is more brittle and easily damaged during ginning. When pressing and baling cotton at improper moisture levels, hydraulic pressure increases and causes excessive equipment wear. This also increases bale tie break- age. Researchers at Stoneville developed and implemented methods W. Stanley Anthony inputs control data into a computerized to properly apply, measure, and control moisture during processing. process control system he developed with agricultural engineer They also established the effect of moisture content on lint fiber color Richard Byler. In the background cotton ginner J. Kim during bale storage for extended periods, resulting in an industry-wide Sabbatini inspects cotton at a gin stand. The control system is recommendation for final bale moisture. marketed under the trade name “IntelliGin.” On average, about 4 percent of U.S.-produced bales—as many as 800,000—experience tie failures each year. Repair costs range from $10 to $45 a bale, an estimated $8 to $36 million annually. Some stor- PEGGY GREB (D465-1) age facilities have even reported tie failures of more than 10 percent. Replacing damaged bale ties on-site is now made simpler with a new device invented by Anthony. The device recompresses the bales only in the specific area where the tie or ties need to be replaced. Two companies are licensed to market the new bale tie replacer. Another, more robust bale tie replacement was invented for more demanding applications. It is currently being evaluated in warehouses in Mississippi and Georgia.—By Jim Core, formerly with ARS. This research is part of Quality and Utilization of Agricultural Products, an ARS National Program (#306) described on the World Wide Web at www.nps.ars.usda.gov. To reach scientists mentioned in this story, contact Linda Tokarz, Tony Deerman, machinist, replaces a broken bale tie on a USDA-ARS Information Staff, 5601 Sunnyside Ave., Beltsville, MD cotton bale using a device patented by Anthony and marketed 20705-5129; phone (301) 504-1658, fax (301) 504-1486, e-mail commercially under the trade name “Ultrabander.” Deerman [email protected]. ✸ constructed this prototype. Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009 7 JAFFOR ULLAH (D550-4) FREEING PHOSPHORUS A newly designed enzyme reaction in animals’ stom- achs, helping them better use unlocks a key nutrient, the tied-up phosphorus in the aiding animal nutrition plants they eat. and the environment Now the two scientists are rebuilding this enzyme Powerful molecular-modeling software allows researchers to to make it even more effec- visualize the phytase molecule in various ways. This particular Phhoosphorus has been tive—especially in the unique model fills in all the spaces between the structural components and ggeetting a bum rap. environments where it needs presents an image of just the surface of the molecule. TThhe mineral is a to perform. bbaasic ingredient for “Phytic acid exists across the natural environment, which lliiffe. For starters, it It Takes Guts plant world, and many organ- includes composting leaves helps make up the DNA in all Phosphorus is tricky to deal isms have evolved this enzy- and decaying plants. That organisms and is needed for with because of its multiple, matic way to make use of it.” means both the fungus and development of strong bones. naturally occurring forms. Since this discovery, re- its enzyme are most vigor- But lately, it’s been getting In rocks, the mineral occurs searchers have developed a ous at a pH of about 5 or 6. more attention as a polluter. as phosphate; in plants, as phytase enzyme that can be But the stomachs of chickens When excess phosphorus phytic acid. But animals with added to livestock diets—to and livestock are much more loads are allowed to drain simple stomachs—including encourage better nutrition and acidic than that, closer to 3 from the land, they can tilt pigs, chickens, and people— reduce the costs associated or 3.5. the fragile balance of life in can’t make use of these with phosphorus supplemen- “The enzyme isn’t nearly rivers and oceans, causing alternate forms. Our bodies tation. But despite its $500 as effective at degrading numbers of some marine just don’t churn out the right million-per-year market, the phytic acid if it’s not in the species to rocket and others enzymes. enzyme has its shortcomings. conditions it favors most,” to crash. “Think of lactose intoler- Its source, the A. niger fun- Ullah says. Now ARS scientists ance,” says Mullaney. “Some gus, is finicky—growing best Since researchers can’t at the Southern Regional people can’t digest the sugar in conditions that mimic its really alter the complex mi- Research Center (SRRC) in milk because their bodies in New Orleans, Louisiana, don’t produce enough of the have discovered a way to enzyme lactase.” REGIS LEFEBURE (K5657-3) help animal producers rein So, in their search for a in this runaway nutrient. way to help livestock unlock Their logic: If livestock and tied-up phytic acid, the poultry could retain more researchers turned to one of the phosphorus in their of nature’s most efficient plant-based feeds, less would degraders. The organism, a be excreted. And that would fungus called Aspergillus mean less potential nutrient niger, is typically known waste and pollution. for its food-spoiling ways, In 1986, the SRRC re- causing a black mold to searchers—geneticist Edward grow on stored fruits, nuts, Mullaney and biochemist Jaf- and seeds. But it does have a for Ullah—were the first to redeeming quality. characterize a natural enzyme “A. niger produces phytase, that could accomplish this which allows the fungus to tall task. Called phytase, the break down the phytic acid A newly designed phytase enzyme added to animal feed enables swine to use more phosphorus in the feed and excrete less of the enzyme sparks a chemical in plants,” says Mullaney. phosphorus in their waste. 8 Agricultural Research Reprint: Mid South Area Research Highlights 2006-2009