Research

When Caitlin Bloomer wrestled the massive Crawzilla crawdad — yes, that’s its actual common name — out of the muck during a bio-survey event in Kentucky, she was convinced it was the largest crayfish ever recorded. 

More than a century ago, the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign welcomed Illinois Extension as a vital partner in its mission to deliver research-backed solutions to the people and industries of Illinois.

Smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa adopt agricultural inputs including fertilizer at a low rate, contributing to low agricultural productivity.

When a baby begins to cry, do you expect its caregiver to soothe it? Most infants do, according to a new study from researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. The study also found an association between the mental health of mothers and infants’ expectations about comforting behavior. 

All over the world, from Oregon’s old-growth forests to Queensland’s eucalyptus groves, creatures depend on trees for shelter. A new analysis from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign suggests that as the climate destabilizes, the world’s trees may become an even more important respite. That’s because, the study finds, trees everywhere buffer their animal tenants from temperature extremes.  

A bacterial protein fragment called corisin drives the process of pulmonary fibrosis by infiltrating and disrupting the cell’s quality-control system, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and Mie University in Japan found in a new study. Meanwhile, blocking corisin with an antibody impeded the damage.

Black parents who experienced higher levels of appropriated racial oppression — defined as shaping one’s behavior and self-concept around dominant cultural norms of whiteness — were less likely to transmit positive, culturally protective messages that affirmed racial pride and self-worth to their adolescent children, a recent study found.

In rural India, having a son is a strong social expectation that puts pressure on women to bear male children. A new study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign examines how a firstborn son affects the well-being of childbearing women and their mothers-in-law, as well as the broader implications for household dynamics and economic outcomes.

A new study led by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign scientists reveals critically low genetic variation in one of the country’s primary breeding stocks for corn. The finding relates specifically to grain yield in intermediate-maturity hybrids, which dominate commercial production in the U.S. and represent nearly a third of the world’s corn production.

The researchers say it’s a crisis waiting to happen. 

A new simulation study from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign suggests winter canola could be profitable and environmentally beneficial if added to a conventional corn-soy rotation in the U.S. Midwest.