Biology

Eight School of Science faculty appointed to named professorships

September 22, 2016

Manoshi Datta, a postdoc in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, pipettes bacterial samples in the lab.

MIT researchers prove fast microbial evolutionary bursts exist

Study reveals closely related microbes can diversify rapidly via horizontal gene transfer.

September 22, 2016

In a new study, MIT biologists have deciphered the structure of one type of long noncoding RNA and used that information to figure out how it interacts with a cellular protein to control the development of heart muscle cells.

Linking RNA structure and function

Biologists have discovered how an enigmatic type of RNA helps to control cell fate.

September 8, 2016

Researchers at MIT have for the first time identified the structure of class I fumarate hydratase enzyme, which could be a target for drugs combatting diseases prevalent in the developing world.

Targeting neglected diseases

New enzyme-mapping advance could help drug development.

August 15, 2016

Membrane structures in plant xylem from different species are being investigated for use in water filtration.

J-WAFS Solutions program awards $750,000 in commercialization grants

Four new projects and one renewal receive $150,000 in funding for 2016-2017.

August 12, 2016

Clockwise from top left: Cathy Drennan, professor of chemistry and biology at MIT; Squire Booker, a professor of chemistry and of biochemistry and molecular biology at Penn State; Martin McLaughlin ’15; and an image of LipA.

Research by MIT undergrad helps crack chemical mystery

Study finds enzyme “cannibalizes” itself to perform an essential reaction.

August 8, 2016

“I love to work on new ideas and develop new kinds of tools to tackle basic questions,” says PhD student Tim Wang.

Targeting genes by the thousands

PhD student Tim Wang uses CRISPR to take a big-picture approach to cancer research.

August 2, 2016

In humans and most other organisms, a circadian clock governed by light regulates the timing of key aspects of human physiology, by controlling cellular activities such as metabolism and division.

Why working the night shift can pose a cancer risk

New study reveals a link between circadian clock disruption and tumor growth.

July 28, 2016

“How lithium acts on the brain has been this great mystery of psychopharmacology,” says Joshua Meisel, an MIT postdoc and lead author of a new study. “There are hypotheses, but nothing’s been proven.”

New clue to how lithium works in the brain

Biologists find a possible explanation for why the drug helps bipolar patients.

July 7, 2016

“This nanoformulation approach allows us to make vaccines against new diseases in only seven days, allowing the potential to deal with sudden outbreaks or make rapid modifications and improvements,” says Daniel Anderson, an associate professor in MIT’s Department of Chemical Engineering and a member of MIT’s Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research and Institute for Medical Engineeri...

Engineers design programmable RNA vaccines

Tests in mice show the vaccines work against Ebola, influenza, and a common parasite.

July 4, 2016

A new report, “Convergence: The Future of Health,” draws on insights from scientists and researchers across academia, industry, and government. The cover of the report is an image of lungs, one of the major sites of metastasis. To help protect the lungs (blue) from this deadly process, bioengineers have created microscopic drug depots (red) to focus the effect of anti-cancer drugs that may hav...

A strategy for “convergence” research to transform biomedicine

Report calls for more integration of physical, life sciences for needed advances in biomedical research.

June 23, 2016

In the top image, a neuronal axon (green) forms many synapses, highlighted in purple. The bottom image shows an axon from a fruit fly lacking the Shank protein. In these flies, not as many synapses form, and some of them (indicated by the white arrows) do not fully mature.

Neuroscientists illuminate role of autism-linked gene

Loss of Shank gene prevents neuronal synapses from properly maturing.

May 24, 2016

“When I came to [MIT’s Campus Preview Weekend], I was just blown away by how everybody was so into whatever they were doing,” Maiko Kitaoka says. “I love that atmosphere.”

Maiko Kitaoka finds elegance in unexpected places

Once an aspiring ballerina, the MIT senior now studies the earliest stages of life.

May 24, 2016

“I am tremendously honored, especially because this is an award conferred by my faculty colleagues at MIT. There is no higher recognition,” Eric Lander said.

Eric Lander wins faculty’s Killian Award

Biologist honored for his scientific leadership, pioneering work in genomics, and inspiring teaching.

May 18, 2016

“This approach overcomes a major hurdle in the human genetics field and addresses an important question surrounding the hidden heritability of many complex traits,” Laurie Boyer says.

New approach to genetic analysis yields markers linked to complex diseases

Study identifies new gene variants that may be targets for treating arrhythmia.

May 10, 2016

MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology

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