Notable achievements

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Notable achievements

The history of CALS is filled with achievements that have changed the university, the state and the world. From the groundbreaking discovery of Vitamin A to the crucial mass production of penicillin during World War II to the genetic sequencing of the common cold virus, CALS scientists, researchers and faculty have always pushed the envelope of cutting-edge innovation.

Below is just a sampling of the amazing discoveries, advancements and achievements associated with the exceptional thinkers and doers of CALS.

1890

Stephen Moulton Babcock, pictured here with a dairy churning device.
Stephen Moulton Babcock, pictured here with a churning device, was one of the most important figures in agricultural chemistry at the turn of the century, having developed the Babcock butterfat test in 1890. Babcock served the University from 1888 to 1913. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

The Babcock Butterfat Test

Agricultural chemist Stephen Babcock develops a simple, fast, and inexpensive test to measure butterfat content in milk. Henceforth, buyers could pay farmers according to the fat content of their milk, emphasizing quality over quantity.

1894

No More Exploding Peas

Bacteriologist Harry Russell develops new, higher-temperature sterilization methods for canned peas and other vegetables, changing industry practices nationwide.

1911

Vegetable Industry Savior

Plant pathologist J.C. Walker develops strains of cabbage resistant to a fungus that was threatening Wisconsin’s entire crop. This spawned the later development of disease resistance in onions, potatoes, beans, peas and cucumbers. Several times during the first half of the century, Walker”s research prevented the collapse of key segments of the state’s multimillion-dollar vegetable processing industry.

1913

Vitamins Discovered

CALS biochemists Elmer McCollum and Marguerite Davis discover the first vitamin, vitamin A, in 1913. Two years later Conrad Elvehjem makes large contributions to the discovery of the vitamin B complex, which opened the field of nutrition for the identification of all the vitamins in the 1940s.

1919

A man and woman stand at microphone in the midst of a WHA display at a state fair. Archives
A man and woman stand at microphone in the midst of a WHA display at a state fair. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

“Hello to All You Farmers”

Agricultural information from CALS serves as the content for the nation’s first regular radio broadcasts on WHA, a radio station launched by the University of Wisconsin in 1917.

1923

Harry Steenbock biofortifies food with vitamin D by exposing it to ultraviolet light.
Harry Steenbock at work. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

Vitamin D Advance and Rickets’ Demise

Biochemist Harry Steenbock figures out how to biofortify food with vitamin D by exposing it to ultraviolet light, leading to the almost complete eradication of rickets by the mid-1940s. Also, the college names O.R. Zeasman as the nation’s first soil erosion specialist.

1932

UW faculty and artist in residence John Steuart Curray poses with one of his paintings of a rural farmstead. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives
UW faculty and artist in residence John Steuart Curry poses with one of his paintings of a rural farmstead. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

First University Artist In Residence

CALS hires John Steuart Curry as artist in residence the, first position of its kind at any university in the nation.

1933

Rural Zoning Imagined

CALS helps Oneida County develop the nation’s first rural zoning ordinance, which served as a national model.

1936

“Sunshine Vitamin” Added to Milk

Dairy foods researchers adapt the irradiation process to increase the vitamin D content of milk.

1938

Genetic Recombination in Bacteria

Geneticist Joshua Lederberg discovers sexual reproduction of bacteria and 20 years later wins the Nobel Prize for this work.

1941

Karl Paul Link works with sick cow.
Karl Paul Link works with sick cow as part of his research. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

It All Started with a Sick Cow

After a farmer brought a bucket of blood to campus and asked scientists why his cows were bleeding to death, biochemist Karl Paul Link discovers a powerful anticoagulant in spoiled sweet clover. He goes on to synthesize various forms of dicumarol, a blood-thinning agent that’s used to treat blood clots and is the basis for warfarin, a potent rodent killer. The university earned millions from the patents.

1942

Penicillin Production Ramps Up

Scientists begin work on mass penicillin production, developing techniques that made a once prohibitively expensive drug affordable and widely available. It was used to treat infections of soldiers injured in World War II. The research of CALS alum and bacteriology professor Elizabeth McCoy was instrumental in making this work possible.

1948

Irrigator self-propelled by water pressure.
Irrigator self-propelled by water pressure. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

Irrigation Research Invigorates Central Wisconsin

College crop scientists collaborate on irrigation research that helps makes Wisconsin’s Central Sands — once considered a windblown wasteland — one of the nation’s leading vegetable production areas.

1951

Esther Lederberg in the 1950s.
Esther Lederberg in the 1950s. Photo: Esther M. Zimmer Lederberg Memorial Website.

Genetics Trailblazer

Geneticist and CALS alum Esther Lederberg is the first to isolate bacteriophage lambda, a bacterial virus that can infect E. coli. Lambda phage has since been used extensively both as a model organism and as a tool in genetics research.

1952

Foundation for Foraging

Forage breeders release Vernal alfalfa, a winter-hardy, disease-resistant, high-yielding variety that forms the foundation of Wisconsin’s $10-billion-a-year forage industry.

1969

Joseph Hickey MS’43 (right) and Hallock Hosford MSx’51 examine a prairie chicken. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

CALS Research Leads to DDT Ban

Wildlife ecologist Joseph Hickey plays a pivotal role in defining the environmental impacts of organochlorine pesticides. Subsequent hearings on DDT in Wisconsin set the stage for a nationwide ban. Hickey was the second professor of wildlife management to be hired at CALS, and he was recruited by the first, Aldo Leopold.

1970

Har Gobind Khorana sits at a desk with a DNA model. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives.
Har Gobind Khorana. Image from the University of Wisconsin–Madison Archives

Nobel Achievements in Genetics

Biochemist Har Gobind Khorana synthesizes the first gene. His work at CALS leading to this achievement earned him a share of the Nobel Prize in 1968.

1979

From Toxin to Treatment

CALS food safety researchers provide purified botulinum toxin for the first trials with human volunteers. The purified toxin made at CALS was the first to be FDA-approved for use in a revolutionary eye treatment that replaced conventional eye surgery. Botulinum toxin is now also used to treat severe neck cramps, cerebral palsy and migraine headaches — as well as to erase wrinkles.

1980

Plant Biotechnology Innovation

CALS horticulturists clone a plant gene for the first time.

1981

Engineered Plants

The first transgenic plant (bean protein in sunflowers) demonstrates the potential for genetic engineering in plants.

1997

E. Coli Education Enhanced

Geneticist Fred Blattner decodes the complete genetic sequence of a harmless strain of the E. coli bacterium, leading to a better understanding of its lethal counterpart.

1998

Collagen Connections

Biochemist Ron Raines discovers the key to collagen’s strength, a protein that acts like a “solder” to give the body its structure and shape.

1998

Jo Handelsman (center), talks with instructors from eight UW System schools and more than a dozen other colleges and universities as they take part in a workshop inside the Discover Lab at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery, which was founded by Handelsman. Photo by Bryce Richter / UW-Madison
Jo Handelsman (center) talks with instructors at a workshop at the Wisconsin Institutes for Discovery. Photo by Bryce Richter

Metagenomics Pioneer

Microbiologist Jo Handelsman helps establish and advance the field of metagenomics, opening the door for scientists to study the genes of large populations of “unculturable” microbes living in soil and other environments.

2002

Two mice in James Ntambi's lab illustrate the power of genes in controlling fat. While both mice eat the same diets, the mouse on the right lacks a gene that is critical to how the body stores fat from foods. Photo from Grow 2008 Summer
While both mice eat the same diets, the mouse on the right lacks a gene that is critical to how the body stores fat from foods.

The Skinny on Obesity

Biochemists James Ntambi and Alan Attie help discover a gene, known as SCD-1, that appears to play a critical role in fat metabolism. When the gene is removed from mice, the animals can eat a rich, high-fat diet without adding weight or risking the complications of diabetes.

2003

Prestigious Potatoes

The U.S. Department of Agriculture bestows its prestigious “Secretary’s Honor Award” on the Eco-Potato Partnership, a group composed of the World Wildlife Fund, Wisconsin potato growers and CALS researchers. The award recognizes the team’s efforts to develop and implement more sustainable methods for growing potatoes. Eco-potatoes are now a model for other sustainably-grown produce.

2004

The Missing Piece

A team led by geneticist Jiming Jiang is the first to sequence a centromere from a higher organism. Although it is widely believed that this section of the chromosome is full of “junk DNA,” Jiang finds more than a handful of active genes within.

2006

Leaf-cutting ants in a bacteriology lab
Leaf-cutting ants in a bacteriology lab grow gardens of fungi to feed themselves.

Symbiotic Ants

Microbiologist Cameron Currie discovers that leaf-cutting ants harbor bacteria inside specialized compartments in their bodies. The ants use the bacteria, which produce antibiotics, to ward off fungi that invade their food source. The ants also feed the bacteria, making the arrangement a classic example of a mutually beneficial symbiotic relationship.

2008

Safe Protein for PKU

Nutritional scientist Denise Ney conducts clinical trials showing that glycomacropeptide, a protein isolated from cheese whey, is safe for people with phenylketonuria (PKU) to eat. Generally, individuals with PKU must avoid dietary protein, which acts like a toxin inside their bodies.

2009

Virologist Ann Palmenberg with DNA model.
Virologist Ann Palmenberg. Photo by John Maniaci

Code of the Common Cold

With virologist Ann Palmenberg as lead author, a multi-institutional team of researchers reports the sequences for all 99 strains of the common cold virus. Four years later, Palmenberg constructs a 3D model of rhinovirus C, one type of common cold virus. With the new structure in hand — alongside the existing models of cold virus strains A and B — it becomes easier to design drugs to effectively thwart colds.

2010

Thriving While Thirsty

In a study that promises to fill in the fine details of the plant world’s blueprint for surviving drought, a team led by biochemist Michael Sussman identifies in living plants the set of proteins that help them withstand water stress.

2014

Lignin is a tough organic compound that gives plants like this poplar their structure—and it’s one of the biggest obstacles in breaking down plants to produce biofuel. John Ralph and his team have created a new technology that makes it easier to break down (or “unzip”) the lignin in cell walls to release the cellulose within. Photo by Matthew Wisniewski/Wisconsin Energy Institute
Lignin is a tough organic compound that gives plants like this poplar their structure—and it’s one of the biggest obstacles in breaking down plants to produce biofuel. John Ralph and his team have created a new technology that makes it easier to break down (or “unzip”) the lignin in cell walls to release the cellulose within. Photo by Matthew Wisniewski/Wisconsin Energy Institute

A Major Boon for Biofuels

Researchers start engineering easy-to-digest poplar trees, applying an approach developed by biochemist John Ralph to create a more energy- and cost-efficient way of converting biomass into fuel.

2015

Corn Domestication Mystery Revealed

A team led by plant geneticist John Doebley discovers a key gene involved in teosinte’s evolution into corn. A single nucleotide change in the teosinte glume architectural gene (tga1) stripped away the hard, inedible casing covering teosinte’s kernels, exposing the edible golden kernels.

2017

These disc-shaped resin blocks contain several species of ticks in various life stages as well as insects that are commonly mistaken for ticks. Undergraduate Hannah Fenelon worked with entomology professor Susan Paskewitz to develop the methods for creating the blocks, which have proven to be more effective than photos or illustrations in public education. Photo by Michael P. King/UW–Madison CALS
These disc-shaped resin blocks, used for public education, contain several species of ticks and insects that are commonly mistaken for ticks. Photo by Michael P. King

Tick Check

The Midwest Center of Excellence in Vector Borne Diseases, co-led by entomology professor Susan Paskewitz and CALS alum Lyric Bartholomay is established through a $10 million grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The goal of the center is to help stem the spread of disease carried by ticks and mosquitoes.

2017

Intense hues of magenta and blue colors emanate from LED grow lights in a climate-controlled incubator room at the Wisconsin Crop Innovation Center (WCIC). The agricultural research facility is located in Middleton, Wis., just west of Madison. Photo by Jeff Miller/UW-Madison
Intense hues of magenta and blue colors emanate from LED grow lights in a climate-controlled incubator room at the Wisconsin Crop Innovation Center. Photo by Jeff Miller/UW-Madison

New Home for UW Plant Biotechnology

The Wisconsin Crop Innovation Center is established to help plant scientists develop and improve commercially important plant stocks and methodologies. The 100,000-square-foot biotechnology facility was donated to UW–Madison by Monsanto.

2018

Detail of mucilage exuded from the aerial roots of a nitrogen-fixing corn variety being grown at West Madison Agricultural Research Station. Photo by Michael P. King/UW–Madison CALS
Detail of mucilage exuded from the aerial roots of a nitrogen-fixing corn variety being grown at West Madison Agricultural Research Station. Photo by Michael P. King

Nitrogen-Fixing Corn

A research team including CALS scientists identifies varieties of tropical corn from Oaxaca, Mexico, that can acquire nitrogen from the air by cooperating with bacteria. This discovery of nitrogen-fixing corn opens the door to developing commercial corn varieties with a reduced need for fertilizer.

2019

Close up of a poster at the Dairy Innovation Hub’s Dairy Summit at the University Center at UW–River Falls in 2022. Photo by Pat Deninger/UW–River Falls
Close up of a poster at the Dairy Innovation Hub’s Dairy Summit at the University Center at UW–River Falls in 2022. Photo by Pat Deninger/UW–River Falls

Research Drives Dairy Innovation

The Dairy Innovation Hub is established, a state-supported effort to expand research and teaching at Wisconsin’s three agricultural colleges (including CALS) with the goal of developing new technologies and approaches to strengthen the state’s dairy industry and the communities that depend upon it.

2020

Eric Montemayor, facility manager for the Cryo-EM Research Center, pours liquid nitrogen while demonstrating the process for loading samples into the Thermo Scientific Talos Arctica cryo-transmission electron microscope (cryo-TEM) at the center’s secondary facility in the DeLuca Biochemistry Building. Photo by Michael P. King/UW–Madison CALS
Eric Montemayor, then facility manager for the Cryo-EM Research Center, pours liquid nitrogen while demonstrating the process for loading samples into the Thermo Scientific Talos Arctica cryo-transmission electron microscope. Photo by Michael P. King

Cold, Bold Clarity

UW–Madison is selected by the National Institutes of Health as the site of a new national research and training hub for cryo-electron microscopy and tomography. Through rapid freezing, controlled beams, and advanced lenses, this game-changing research tool reveals the intricate architecture of cells, viruses, and proteins, all at molecular resolution — or better. The hub is overseen by the Department of Biochemistry at CALS and the Morgridge Institute for Research.

⊕ Information is also available in this notable dates in the history of CALS [PDF], published in 1989.

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