Francisco Javier Bueso is one of scores of Texas A&M researchers whose work has implications for the space program. But Bueso isn't formulating a new rocket fuel or designing satellite guidance systems: He's engineering a better corn tortilla.

Bueso, who holds a Tom B. Slick Research Fellowship in the Department of Soil & Crop Sciences, is conducting his doctoral research on extending the shelf life of corn tortillas'”while reducing or even eliminating the use of artificial ingredients. Success could mean longer-lasting tortillas on grocery shelves, kitchen pantries and even aboard the International Space Station where months could pass between grocery deliveries.

"NASA is very interested in tortillas for the space station" says Bueso. "Their flexibility makes them a good eating tool, and there are less crumbs than bread, which is better for the air filtering system."

But the same additives that help corn tortillas maintain their flexibility also gives them a rubbery texture which many people find unappealing. That's because the preservative gums used in tortillas are very similarin structure if not chemistry to polymers found in plastics.

"The texture that works well in plastics is not what you want in tortillas." Bueso says. So, he experiments with different means of preventing tortillas from hardening as they age, including substituting a natural enzyme for the chemical gum.

Bueso is one of eight graduate students in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences to receive Slick Fellowships for the year 2002. Established in 1972 by the Tom B. Slick Memorial Trust Endowment to support the research of agriculture graduate students who have advanced academically, the endowment has provided nearly $900,000 in support over just the past 10 years. In just the past 5 years, 40 agriculture graduate students have received Slick Fellowships.

Bueso says funds from the fellowship allow him to dedicate himself to his own research without having to work 20-or-more hours per week as a faculty research assistant. "That's the main advantage; it bought me time to do my research," he says. "I should have my thesis finished by December. That means completing my doctorate in four years instead of five. That is a big difference."

After earning a bachelor's in agronomy in his native Honduras, Bueso came to Texas A&M and earned a master's degree in food science. His current doctoral research is a natural extension of his academic career. He studied grain-storage technology as an undergraduate, and his master's project addressed mold resistance in grain.

Bueso is still considering what he'll do after completing his doctorate. Research in industry or academia is one possibility. Recalling that it was his love of the outdoors that helped lead him to agricultural research, he says "I miss doing research in the field, and I would like to go back to my country. Corn is a staple in Honduras, and I think I would like working directly with the growers, to help them improve their crops."

by Gerard Farrell