Structures considered key to gene expression are surprisingly fleeting
Study finds genome loops don’t last long in cells; theories of how loops control gene expression may need to be revised.
How molecular biology could reduce global food insecurity
Mary Gehring is using her background in plant epigenetics to grow climate-resilient crops.
Yukiko Yamashita, unraveler of stem cells’ secrets
The MIT biologist’s research has shed light on the immortality of germline cells and the function of “junk DNA.”
Microbes and minerals may have set off Earth’s oxygenation
Scientists propose a new mechanism by which oxygen may have first built up in the atmosphere
An “oracle” for predicting the evolution of gene regulation
Researchers create a mathematical framework to examine the genome and detect signatures of natural selection, deciphering the evolutionary past and future of non-coding DNA.
Mentorship and medicine
MIT senior Daniel Zhang aims to provide hope for young patients and support to young students.
Probing how proteins pair up inside cells
MIT biologists drilled down into how proteins recognize and bind to one another, informing drug treatments for cancer.
In Down syndrome cells, genome-wide disruptions mimic a senescence-like state
Extra chromosome alters chromosomal conformation and DNA accessibility in neural progenitor cells; study establishes senescence as a potentially targetable mechanism for future treatment.
Differences in T cells’ functional states determine resistance to cancer therapy
Researchers decipher when and why immune cells fail to respond to immunotherapy, and suggest that T cells need a different kind of prodding in order to re-engage the immune response.
Engineers devise a way to selectively turn on RNA therapies in human cells
A new RNA-based control switch could be used to trigger production of therapeutic proteins to treat cancer or other diseases.
Volta Labs: Improving workflows for genetic applications
Udayan Umapathi SM ’17 and Will Langford SM ’14, PhD ’19 are co-founders of a Media Lab spinoff building a full-stack platform to enable automation for genomics and genetic engineering.
Zeroing in on the origins of Earth’s “single most important evolutionary innovation”
A new study shows oxygenic photosynthesis likely evolved between 3.4 and 2.9 billion years ago.
Research collaboration puts climate-resilient crops in sight
MIT professors Dave Des Marais and Caroline Uhler combine plant biology and machine learning to identify genetic roots of plant responses to environmental stress.
New programmable gene editing proteins found outside of CRISPR systems
Researchers find RNA-guided enzymes are more diverse and widespread than previously believed.
A pivot from accounting to neuroscience
Through a summer research program at MIT, Patricia Pujols explored the neuromuscular junction, and a future in science.