University of Delaware researchers in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources have made a new discovery in their work on wooden breast syndrome in chickens. The UD team found white blood cells filled with fat surrounding broiler chickens’ veins and showing signs of swelling are key contributing factors to this muscle degeneration disease in these birds that can ultimately affect their meat quality.

Two University of Delaware professors, Rodrigo Vargas and Deborah Allen, have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) — one of the largest scientific societies in the world and publisher of the Science family of journals. The 2023 class includes 502 scientists, engineers and innovators across 24 disciplines, who are being honored for their scientifically and socially distinguished achievements.

Frank Linam, a plant and soil sciences doctoral student at the University of Delaware, is studying how the wet soil conditions in flooded rice paddies affect the way the roots take in nutrients and filter out toxins. Linam found that the plaque successfully holds onto the arsenic in various environments and soil types so that it doesn’t make it into the roots.

University of Delaware faculty member Kali Kniel traveled to Geneva, Switzerland to participate in an expert committee meeting on viruses and food safety with other experts. Joint Food and Agriculture Organization/World Health Organization Expert Meetings on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) committees are convened to review the state of science on particular topics and in turn provide information that is useful to global guidance, in this case to improve the control of viruses in food. The group ranked the most prevalent viruses transmitted through food and recommended how countries across the world could help combat outbreaks.