PBS to feature Montana scientists who research Yellowstone viruses

BOZEMAN, Mont. (AP) — Two Montana State University scientists who study heat-loving viruses in Yellowstone National Park will appear in a science program on the Public Broadcasting Service. "Wired Science" will air on PBS on Wednesday, Jan. 3.

Trevor Douglas and Mark Young were filmed at Yellowstone and MSU in September and will be featured in one segment of the hourlong show. Jennifer Fulton, an MSU doctoral student, ran the scanning electron microscope and was also involved in the on-campus filming.

Douglas and Young study viruses that live in the thermal pools of Yellowstone Park and look for ways to use the virus' protein shells. The shells are tiny containers that can hold a variety of materials. One goal is to use the containers to carry drugs to specific parts of the body.

Douglas is a faculty member with MSU's Thermal Biology Institute and director of MSU's Center for Bioinspired Nanomaterials. Young is one of the founders of the Thermal Biology Institute and currently a TBI researcher. Fulton is funded by the TBI.

PBS is considering three science shows that could be developed into a series. "Wired Science" is one of them, according to a PBS news release. The first episode takes viewers into the world of meteorite hunters and travels to Yellowstone with Douglas and Young. The show also dives underwater to find NEEMO, NASA's extreme astronaut training program, and introduces viewers to rocket-belt inventors, stem cell explorers and the developer of an electric car that goes zero-to-60 in less than four seconds.

"Wired Science" is a collaboration between Wired Magazine and KCET/Los Angeles, PBS' West Coast flagship station. Wired Magazine focuses on science and technology.