The researchers are developing drug-free ways to keep chickens and humans from contracting illnesses.

More than 200 million broilers and layers are raised in the Palmetto State. The industry has moved toward bigger broiler farms with flocks of between 150,000 and 300,000 birds becoming common.

Chickens are susceptible to disease. An illness in a handful of birds can spread throughout a facility housing thousands. Vaccines and medications can be effective but pose risks to growers and consumers. Each flock has particular health and immunity profiles, so chicks from different breeders do not respond to vaccines and diseases the same way. What's more, bacteria can build up "antibiotic resistance" making the drugs less effective.

For consumers, poultry can harbor bacteria, viruses and fungi that do not affect them but do cause human illnesses, especially when poultry is undercooked or mishandled during food preparation.

Researchers are looking for drug-free alternatives. Clemson scientists have made a promising discovery using nanotechnology. Nanotechnology is tiny science--working with materials 1/100,000th the size of a human hair. Scientists are seeking to shrink materials down to the scale of atoms, creating particles that show promise for making better medicines, faster computers and safer foods.

Jeremy Tzeng and Clemson colleagues Fred Stutzenberger, Robert Latour Jr. and Ya-Ping Sun have built nanoparticles that mimic the host cell surface in poultry and locks to the targeted pathogens. The particles then bind together and are purged through the bowel. Tzeng calls it "intelligent chicken feed."

"If we use this physical purging, physical removal, we are not using antibiotics so the chance of the microorganism becoming resistant to it is really small," Tzeng said.

To protect the discovery, Clemson technology transfer officials are patenting it. Tzeng says that it will take more research and testing before the nanoparticle is ready to be used, but in the not-so-distant future, chickens and humans may live better lives due to intelligent chicken feed.

For more information on Clemson's related graduate programs, visit the appropriate link below:
*Biological Engineering - www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Bioeng/index.php
*Biological Sciences - www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/BioSci/index.php
*Chemistry - www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Chemistry/index.php
*Microbiology - www.grad.clemson.edu/programs/Microbio/index.php

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded $2 million to the Center for Biological Interfaces of Engineering (CBIOE) at Clemson University for the development of engineered tissues that will be used to study the causes, progression and treatment of breast cancer.

Breast cancer cells migrate and intertwine with stem cells. Clemson researchers will study the formation of patterns/migration.The tissue engineering technology, which was pioneered at Clemson, is based on inkjet printing and will allow the creation of identical tissue samples that can be used to build cause and effect models.

"We will expose these identical tissue models to different environmental conditions to better understand what causes and then stimulates the development of breast cancer. Our research team includes breast cancer surgeons, engineers and scientists - the breadth of expertise is tremendous and absolutely crucial for this very complex problem," said CBIOE director Karen Burg, who will lead the multi-disciplinary research team.

Other collaborating investigators include Steve Ellis and Susan Duckett in animal and veterinary sciences, Thomas Boland in bioengineering, Amy Moran in biological sciences, Jason McNeill in chemistry and Rick Groff and Timothy Burg in electrical and computer engineering. The initiative will benefit from input from CBIOE partnering institutions Carolinas Medical Center, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte.

The CBIOE, located in Rhodes Engineering Research Building at Clemson University, is a state-approved research and training center. Its mission is to promote the development of clinically relevant biomaterials technology and products for disease treatment and the transfer of this technology for patient care.

The NSF grant was among seven awarded to institutions to advance basic knowledge and control in the area of cellular and biomolecular engineering through the newly established NSF Emerging Frontiers in Research Innovation Office (EFRI). Other institutions receiving EFRI awards are John Hopkins University, University of Maryland, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Stanford University, University of Virginia and University of Wisconsin.

The award is presented, for outstanding undergraduate classroom instruction, to a faculty member nominated by the student body and selected by the Student Alumni Council. Kosinski receives a $2,500 stipend and a plaque. He will be honored at commencement May 11.

Kosinski joined the Clemson faculty in 1984. He earned his B.S. in biology from Seton Hall University in 1972 and his Ph.D. in ecology from Rutgers University in 1977. He teaches the freshman biology course for biology majors.

Nominators said Kosinski's enthusiasm for biology and extensive knowledge of the subject helped them get excited about learning.

"Dr. Kosinski does amazing demonstrations during class, which is usually a highlight to my day," wrote one student nominator.

Another wrote, "He is always excited in class and makes even some of the most dull topics seem interesting and fun."

Many of the students who nominated Kosinski said he was their favorite professor at Clemson.

"This was a tremendous surprise for me," Kosinski said. "I had no idea that 'Alumni Master Teacher' and my name would ever be mentioned in the same sentence."

The professor said his job is to ease the transition for freshmen from high school to college.

"I have to get students ready for upper division biology classes. I help them learn to succeed in a fairly rigorous and demanding course," he said.

"We are delighted that we attracted a scientist with Gene Eidson's accomplishments," said John Kelly, vice president for public service and agriculture at Clemson, who is leading efforts to establish the Restoration Institute. "His background fits the model of public-private partnerships that is needed to solve complex environmental problems. He has an impressive track record of attracting investments to enhance research and graduate education. He fully understands how to integrate the natural environment with economic development."

Eidson has 25 years of experience in ecological research. He founded Southeastern Natural Sciences Academy as a public-private partnership, raising more than $6.5 million to support research, education and outreach programs in watershed research and ecological restoration. He and other Academy scientists have earned recognition for restoration efforts that include:

- conversion of the highly degraded Phinizy Swamp in Augusta to a 1,100-acre nature park and wildlife habitat, including a research and education campus,
- reclamation of the Kennecott Ridgeway Mine pit lakes in Fairfield County that now serve as a research and education site for ecological restoration,
- innovative research methods to assess water quality in Savannah River and track impact of industrial, municipal and nonpoint-source discharges,
- development of environmental education programs for K-12 students that have won national recognition, including the President's Environmental Youth Award.

"We are pleased to have Gene Eidson working with Clemson to advance research and economic development opportunities in ecological restoration," said Clemson Provost Dori Helms. "We have all been very impressed with his commitment to all three missions of Clemson University: teaching, research and public service."

Eidson will continue to serve as president of the Academy; a search will begin for a scientist to serve as director after he begins his duties at Clemson. The Academy will partner with Clemson to address complex environmental challenges through public-private partnerships and expand undergraduate and graduate teaching and research programs through shared faculty resources.

Eidson has served as an adjunct faculty member since 2002, teaching Clemson undergraduate and graduate courses in restoration ecology at Academy sites and serving as a professor for master's and doctoral students at Clemson. Four Academy research scientists received graduate degrees from Clemson.

"We expect the Clemson partnership will greatly accelerate the Academy's vision of becoming a regional science institution and provide significant economic development opportunities by leveraging existing local Academy support with Clemson's university status and diverse academic and scientific resources," Eidson said.

A native of Aiken County, Eidson earned master's and doctoral degrees in zoology from Clemson University and a bachelor's degree in biology from the University of South Carolina. He also serves as adjunct faculty at the University of Georgia's Institute of Ecology.

Editor's Note: A digital photograph of Eidson is available online. To download the photograph, go to http://clemsonews.clemson.edu/WWW_releases/2007/January/Image_pages/Eidson.html.

For more information, go to:
- Clemson University Restoration Institute http://restoration.clemson.edu/
- Southeastern Natural Sciences Academy www.naturalsciencesacademy.org/