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Making a Difference
NIFA-Funded Research Helps Reduce Food Loss
Food loss occurs along every step of the food production pipeline, beginning when farmers face challenges that impact yields and harvest quality.
USDA’S National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s (NIFA) Data Science for Food and Agricultural Systems (DSFAS) program brings together agriculture and artificial intelligence. Through innovative projects, DSFAS helps farmers optimize water use, predict crop success and adapt to climate changes.
A number of DSFAS projects are addressing food loss problems. Read more about some NIFA-funded projects working to reduce food loss with funding from DSFAS. The deadline for DSFAS grant applications is November 14.
Farmer analyzing crop data via tablet. Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.
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NIFA Invests $4.5 Million to Build Nutrition Hub Network
NIFA has announced $4.5 million in funding to establish three additional USDA Nutrition Hubs in communities across the country. The new Nutrition Hubs will provide tailored and scalable approaches to equitably advance food and nutrition security and help prevent diet-related chronic diseases, especially in historically underserved communities.
The additional Hubs will create a network that builds on the work of the pilot Nutrition Hub established last year in partnership with Southern University and A&M College under USDA’s Agricultural Science Center of Excellence for Nutrition and Diet for Better Health (ASCEND for Better Health) initiative.
With funding provided through NIFA’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), the Hubs will focus on providing science-based information tailored to priority communities of interest including Tribal, Hispanic and Insular Areas. Read more about this new funding opportunity.
Health is linked to nutrition. Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.
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Ag InnovatHER Helps Lead NIFA from the Heartland
FarmHer, a blog focused on highlighting women in agriculture, recently featured NIFA Associate Director for Operations Drenda Williams. The blog highlights her career path beginning with her selection to one of USDA’s first classes of the 1890 National Scholars Program.
Williams has since spent her entire career with the USDA, including her role now leading operations for NIFA.
Read the blog featuring Williams.
NIFA Associate Director for Operations Drenda Williams. NIFA image.
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NIFA Invests $8 Million in AFRI Physiology of Agricultural Plants Program
USDA NIFA has announced an investment of $8 million for 16 awards to improve plant production, which is crucial to ensuring the sustainability and competitiveness of United States agriculture. AFRI’s Physiology of Agricultural Plants Program (A1152) supports research that addresses these needs at the molecular, cellular, biochemical and whole-organism levels.
NIFA Invests $3.5 Million to Advance the Sustainable Bioeconomy
USDA NIFA has announced an investment of $3.5 million for five awards as part of AFRI’s Sustainable Bioeconomy through Biobased Products program area priority (A1414). The program area supports integrated projects to advance biobased products, biomass systems or biomass-generated power to enable the bioeconomy in a manner which reduces adverse impacts to the environment.
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July 23, 11 a.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: National Needs Fellowship Q&A
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July 25, 10:30 a.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities (AERC) 2024 RFA
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July 25, 1 p.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: AFRI-EWD Agricultural Workforce Training at Community Colleges RFA
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July 25, 3 p.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: AFRI Food Safety, Nutrition & Health
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July 26, 11 a.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: AFRI BNRE Program Area FY24 RFA
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July 30, 1 p.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: SBIR/STTR FY25 Phase I Request for Applications
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August 5, 4 p.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: Biorefining and Biomanufacturing (A1531) RFA
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August 14, 11 a.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: Tribal Colleges Research Grant Program RFA (FY24)
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September 9, 1 p.m. EDT: Leveraging Extension and University Engagement: Developing and Implementing Novel Projects Using Transdisciplinary Approaches
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September 18, 3 p.m. EDT: Live FAQ Session: Rapid Response to Extreme Weather Events Across Food and Agriculture Systems
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Oregon State University Researchers Discover Novel Way to Make Breast Cancer Cells Die
Oregon State University (OSU) researchers have discovered compounds that convert a protein known for protecting cancer cells into a tumor killer. Scientists say their findings open the door to promising therapies for breast cancer and other malignancies whose cells rely on the Bcl-2 protein to evade treatment and develop drug resistance.
The research led by OSU professors Siva Kolluri and Christiane Löhr involved studying triple-negative breast cancer in cell cultures and mouse models. Triple-negative breast cancer, so called because its cells lack three specific receptors found in other breast cancers, is one of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer.
Kolluri and Löhr have presented their findings in two recently published studies.
The first, which appears in Cancer Research Communications, describes how they discovered and tested a new compound that changes the shape of the Bcl-2 molecule. The change exposes what they call Bcl-2’s “killer conformation,” which leads to cell death.
The second, in ACS Pharmacology and Translational Science, shows that another compound induces the death of breast cancer cells in culture and suppresses breast cancer lung metastasis in a mouse model. Read more about the NIFA-supported work being done at OSU.
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USDA Welcomes 2024 Class of E. Kika De La Garza Fellows
USDA welcomed last week 32 faculty and staff from Hispanic-Serving Institutions and Hispanic-Serving School Districts around the nation to the 2024 class of E. Kika De La Garza (EKDLG) Fellows.
The EKDLG Fellows came to Washington, D.C. to learn how USDA services and programs can benefit them, their students and their communities. This effort is part of USDA’s commitment to advance equity in professional development opportunities and build a more diverse pipeline into public service and the agricultural sector.
Kika De La Garza Education, High School, and Science Fellows will spend one week meeting with leaders from different USDA agencies in the Washington, D.C. area learning more about national and regional issues, policy making and research. Following that weeklong session, E. Kika De La Garza Science Fellows will spend an additional week collaborating with top scientists from USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, Food Safety and Inspection Service, or the U.S. Forest Service. Read more about the EKDLG Fellows program.
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HPAI Animal Health Research Opportunities Webinar Recording Now Available
A video recording of a recent USDA NIFA webinar aboutg relevant program area priorities where proposals related to Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) in animal health will be considered is now available for viewing. Agricultural Biosecurity (A1181) and Diseases of Agricultural Animals (A1221) program area priorities are funded through the AFRI Foundational and Applied Science Request for Applications. The webinar provides details of each of these NIFA program area priorities and provides information related to HPAI-focused proposals.
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The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is committed to ensuring that its programs and services are accessible to all individuals, including individuals with disabilities and individuals with limited English proficiency. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in any NIFA event, please contact the appropriate Program staff no later than 10 days prior to the event. To find Program staff by event, please visit the NIFA Calendar of Events. NIFA Language access services, such as interpretation or translation of vital information, will be provided free of charge to limited English proficient individuals upon request. If you need interpretation or translation services please visit NIFA language services or contact Lois Tuttle, Equal Opportunity Specialist, at Lois.Tuttle@usda.gov or (443) 386-9488 no later than 10 days prior to the event.
NIFA’s mission is to invest in and advance agricultural research, education, and Extension that solves societal challenges. NIFA’s investments in transformative science directly support the long-term prosperity and global preeminence of U.S. agriculture. Keep informed about NIFA, USDA, our Land-grant and non-Land-grant university partners, and stakeholders with the NIFA Update. Read past issues online, sign up for email updates or follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @USDA_NIFA, #NIFAImpacts or LinkedIn @usda-nifa.
If you wish to submit a news item or information, send an email to NIFAUpdate.
USDA is an equal opportunity lender, provider, and employer.
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