Regulating the regulators
Tiny microRNAs help destroy unwanted messenger RNAs in cells. New research finds how the body keeps them in check.
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New molecular therapeutics center established at MIT's McGovern Institute
Collaborative research center funded by Lisa Yang and Hock Tan ’75 blends engineering and neuroscience to advance molecular tools for treating brain disorders.
School of Science grows by 10
Joining the School of Science, 10 faculty members expand the departments of Biology; Chemistry; Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences; Mathematics; and Physics.
Engineering superpowered organisms for a more sustainable world
MIT students explore algal water purifiers, programmable soil bacteria, and other biological engineering approaches to food and water security.
Experimental peptide targets Covid-19
Computational modeling yields a protein fragment that could bind to coronavirus spike proteins and destroy them.
3 Questions: Seychelle Vos on detangling DNA
An unconventional geneticist uses cryogenic electron microscopy and crystallography to understand gene expression and cell fate.
Nature-inspired CRISPR enzymes for expansive genome editing
Applied computational biology discoveries vastly expand the range of CRISPR’s access to DNA sequences.
SHERLOCK-based one-step test provides rapid and sensitive Covid-19 detection
New CRISPR-based research tool delivers results in an hour; researchers share protocol and kits to advance research and move toward clinical validation.
CRISPR-based diagnostic chips perform thousands of tests simultaneously to detect viruses
Diagnostic platform CARMEN combines microfluidics with CRISPR-based detection technology SHERLOCK, and could one day be used for public health efforts.
How could Covid-19 and the body’s immune response affect the brain?
Picower Institute researchers are embarking on experiments to learn the mechanisms by which coronavirus might affect mental health.
3 Questions: How Covid-19 tests work and why they’re in short supply
MIT scientists Omar Abudayyeh and Jonathan Gootenberg explain the current state of Covid-19 testing, and how a CRISPR tool may help solve the supply problem.
In virtual town hall, MIT leadership updates community on Covid-19 responses
Critical research continues, students and staff are receiving support, and contingency planning proceeds for eventual phased reopening.
Pioneering researcher Jonathan Weissman joins Whitehead Institute and MIT
Globally respected cell biologist will be the Whitehead Institute’s inaugural Landon T. Clay Professor of Biology and a professor of biology at MIT.
Genetic screen offers new drug targets for Huntington’s disease
Neuroscientists identify genes that modulate the disease’s toxic effects.
New pathway for lung cancer treatment
MIT researchers identify pyrimidine biosynthesis as a target for the treatment of small cell lung cancer.