Research

URBANA, Ill. – Parents, you might know the feeling. When kids get pushy and demanding, it’s a tempting fantasy to shove them out of the house and let them survive on their own. Of course, we’d never put our babies in harm’s way, but according to new research from the University of Illinois, many songbird parents give nestlings the boot well before they’re ready.

URBANA, Ill. – Back in March, the University of Illinois meat science research group was wrapping up a big project and the meats judging team was preparing to host a regional contest. Then, in the blink of an eye, COVID-19 hit, sending everyone home.

“Our coolers were absolutely full,” says Anna Dilger, meat scientist and associate professor in the Department of Animal Sciences.

URBANA, Ill. – We don’t know precisely how hot things will get as climate change marches on, but there’s reason to believe animals in the tropics may not fare as well as their temperate relatives. Many scientists think tropical animals, because they’re accustomed to a more stable thermal environment, may be pushed beyond their limits quickly as temperatures soar. And that could lead to massive species loss. 

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Carbon dioxide fuels photosynthesis, the process by which plants generate their food in the form of carbohydrates. The atmosphere’s carbon dioxide levels are rapidly increasing, but there is uncertainty about whether plants can turn these extra resources into higher yields while retaining nutritional quality. 

URBANA, Ill. -- The U.S. backs out of the Paris climate agreement even as carbon dioxide (CO₂) levels continue to rise. Through photosynthesis, plants are able to turn CO₂ into yield. Logic tells us that more CO₂ should boost crop production, but a new review from the University of Illinois shows that some crops, including corn, are adapted to a pre-industrial environment and cannot distribute their resources effectively to take advantage of extra CO₂.

A new breakthrough by University of Illinois researchers, including John Erdman, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition, will make it easier to detect, prevent, and treat nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). The research team’s methods use noninvasive ultrasound, that could be used during a routine physical, to measure the amount of fat in the liver. The discovery could have a major impact on the prognoses of millions of people suffering from NAFLD around the world. Read more.

CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — Five years ago, the United Nations committed to achieving the Sustainable Development Goal of Zero Hunger by 2030. Since then, however, world hunger has continued to rise. Nearly 9 percent of our global population is now undernourished, according to a 2020 report from the FAO, and climate variability is a leading factor driving us off course.

URBANA, Ill. – Continuing its legacy of leadership in the area of sustainable agriculture, the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois is pleased to announce a generous gift of aerial imagery from Aerial Agronomy, Inc. Two multispectral agricultural data sets, valued at $1.5 million, will be used in teaching and research, including efforts towards estimating soil health and carbon flux from agricultural land in the Midwest.

URBANA, Ill. -- An international research team has sequenced the full genome of an ornamental variety of miscanthus, a wild perennial grass emerging as a prime candidate for sustainable bioenergy crops.

The genome project — led by scientists at the Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI), a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Bioenergy Research Center — provides a road map for researchers exploring new avenues to maximize the plant’s productivity and decipher the genetic basis for its desirable traits.

URBANA, Ill. – A new $2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (OREI) will support University of Illinois scientists and collaborators as they develop improved seed corn tailored to the needs of the rapidly growing organic industry.