UW researcher studies anti-cancer resource found in Big Horn Mountains

Valtcho Jeliazkov

Wyoming’s Big Horn Mountains contain a valuable resource that could help fight cancer.

Valtcho Jeliazkov, director of the University of Wyoming’s Sheridan Research and Extension Center, found that accessions (members of a plant collection in a particular location) of Rocky Mountain juniper and creeping junipers contain relatively high concentrations of podophyllotoxin (PPT), which is achemical used to facilitate production of the anti-cancer drugs etoposide, etopophos and teniposide.

“Those drugs are used to treat lung and testicular cancer, neuroblastoma, hepatoma and other tumors,” said Jeliazkov. “Other derivatives of PPT are used to treat psoriasis and malaria and are being tested as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. PPT has also demonstrated antiviral activity.”

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Mining, reclamation association meeting first in Wyoming since 2007

Pete Stahl

Mining and reclamation industry representatives will converge on Laramie for a joint conference at which organizers say they hope to boost knowledge and share information industry-wide.

Registrations are at 320 and increasing for the meeting of the American Society of Mining and Reclamation (ASMR) and the Wyoming Reclamation and Restoration Center (WRRC) June 1-7 at the Hilton Garden Inn.

“It is one of the largest professional reclamation conferences in the world, and it’s indicative of the important role Wyoming plays in the field of land reclamation and ecosystem restoration in the United States,” said Pete Stahl, director of the WRRC in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Wyoming.

In 2007, Gillette hosted the most-recent ASMR meeting in Wyoming.

UW reclamation and soils specialists are helping organize and shepherd more than 80 presentations and various tours during the conference.

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UW Extension chooses 4-H-ers for American Youth Leadership Program in Samoa

Four Wyoming 4-H’ers were chosen by the University of Wyoming Extension’s 4-H Youth Development Program for the American Youth Leadership Program (AYLP) in Samoa next winter.

The Wyoming 4-H-ers – along with 18 others from 10 other states – and three adults will travel to Samoa on a three-week cultural trip Dec. 11 to Jan. 1, 2014.

“We were able to select 22 youths and three adults so you can probably imagine the selection process was grueling and awesome at the same,” said Warren Crawford, 4-H youth development specialist.

The Wyoming 4-H-ers and their hometowns are: LaQuisha Buffalo, Lander; Jaycey Lindsey, Wright; Quinton Migneault, Basin; and Mary Schwope, Cowley. Additionally, JD Slagowski from Farson was chosen as one of five alternates.

Applications from 96 youths in 13 states were received and an additional 43 adult applications were submitted.

“We had another tremendous response with such an amazing quality of applicants,” said Crawford. A similar leadership trip to Mongolia occurred in 2012.

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UW entomology doctoral student receives $32,000 fellowship

Doug Smith receives the Lloyd/Kumar Graduate Fellowship in Entomology from Associate Professor Alex Latchininsky, left, and Professor John Tanaka, head of the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management.

A University of Wyoming entomology doctoral student who helped develop a more efficient and less environmentally hazardous method of rangeland grasshopper control has received the $32,000 Lloyd/Kumar GraduateFellowship in Entomology.

Doug Smith of Casper received the scholarship established in 2007 to honor long-time UW entomologists Jack Lloyd and Rabinder Kumar. The fellowship supports graduate student education and helps train future entomologists.

Smith’s master’s research in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources included intensive field collections and processing of collected material in the lab. He published the results in the International Journal of Pest Management.

Alex Latchininsky, associate professor in the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management and UW Extension entomologist, has known Smith for 10 years and is his adviser.

“When Douglas approached me with an inquiry about a possibility of a Ph.D. study, I did not hesitate to provide him with my support,” said Latchininsky.

Smith has taught laboratory classes and assisted teaching courses.

He was part of Latchininky’s team that developed and delivered a new, economical, efficient and environmentally less-hazardous strategy of rangeland grasshopper control.

As part of that team, Smith received the International Integrated Pest Management Award of Excellence at the 7th International IPMSymposium in Memphis, Tenn., last year.

“Not many graduate students are recognized for their research with such a prestigious award of international scope,” said Latchininsky.

Smith is only the second recipient of the Lloyd/Kumar award, said John Tanaka, head of the Department of Ecosystem Science and Management. The first award was in 2010. Entomology faculty members recommend the recipient with Tanaka having the final decision.

Survey queries Wyoming landowner conservation easement opinions

Wyoming landowners may be less likely to accept conservation easements than landowners elsewhere, according to findings in a new bulletin from the University of Wyoming Extension.

Researchers in the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at UW and at Colorado State University surveyed landowners in Colorado and Wyoming to gain an understanding of landowner characteristics and factors that influence their preferences for and decisions about conservation easements.

The survey also showed Wyoming landowners:

* Feel a strong attachment to the land they own or manage,

* Believe their land provides excellent habitat and diversity for plants and animals, and

* Have less experience with conservation easements compared to landowners elsewhere.

Detailed information is available in “Wyoming landowners’ characteristics and preferences regarding conservation easements: Results from a survey,” B-1241. The bulletin is available for free download by going to www.uwyo.edu/ces and clicking Publications in the left-hand column and typing 1241 in the Search Publications field.