LSU AgCenter Researcher Applies Nanotechnology to Pesticides
By Richard Bogren, LSU AgCenter
Nanoparticles made from the corn protein zein may provide the next generation of carriers for agricultural pesticides. A research team led by scientists in the LSU AgCenter has been awarded a four-year grant of $489,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture to study the environmental fate and effects of engineered nanoparticles — particles that are 1,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair — developed to deliver agricultural chemicals.