Search Stories

Graduate student and lead author Lauren Stopfer in the lab

Counting your antigens

A new platform that precisely quantifies antigens presented on cell surfaces may help researchers and clinicians improve the effectiveness of cancer immunotherapies.

June 2, 2020

MIT chemical engineers have developed a new series of lipid nanoparticles to deliver RNA vaccines.

Delivery system can make RNA vaccines more powerful

Vaccines packaged in novel nanoparticles could offer a new way to fight cancer and infectious diseases.

September 30, 2019

MIT engineers have devised a way to stimulate T cells (shown in red) to attack tumors by activating them with a vaccine that accumulates in the lymph nodes. B cells in the lymph nodes are labeled in blue.

New vaccine strategy boosts T-cell therapy

Super-charging a treatment for leukemia also makes it effective on solid tumors.

July 11, 2019

A new technique prevents cell-killing proteins called cytokines from escaping once they have been injected into a tumor.

Confining cell-killing treatments to tumors

Attaching a Velcro-like molecule may prevent immune proteins called cytokines from leaking out of cancerous tissue after injection.

June 26, 2019

MIT biologists have identified a drug that blocks a DNA repair pathway used by cancer cells, making them more susceptible to chemotherapy drugs that damage DNA.

Drug makes tumors more susceptible to chemo

Compound that knocks out a DNA repair pathway enhances cisplatin treatment and helps prevent drug-resistance.

June 6, 2019

MIT researchers have devised a way to simultaneously image in multiple wavelengths of near-infrared light, allowing them to determine the depth of particles emitting different wavelengths.

New optical imaging system could be deployed to find tiny tumors

Near-infrared technology pinpoints fluorescent probes deep within living tissue; may be used to detect cancer earlier.

March 7, 2019

MIT researchers are developing ribonucleases as potential drugs to treat cancer. In a new study, they found that the drugs work better when given with already-approved drugs known as kinase inhibitors.

New drug combination could be more effective against melanoma

Chemists discover an unexpected synergy between two types of cancer drugs.

December 3, 2018

MIT engineers have designed nanoparticles that can be attached to T cells and release T-cell-stimulating molecules called cytokines (yellow spheres). These cytokines activate T cells (blue) to attack nearby tumor cells.

Nanoparticles give immune cells a boost

Drugs carried in cellular “backpacks” help T cells to destroy tumors.

July 9, 2018

Great progress has been made in reducing the cancer death toll through better prevention and screening, according to a new article by MIT Professor Emerita Nancy Hopkins and colleagues.

3Q: Nancy Hopkins on the impact and potential of cancer prevention

Mechanism-based cancer prevention is poised to further decrease the numbers of U.S. cancer deaths, says MIT professor emerita.

June 25, 2018

Through a Bridge Project collaboration with David Weinstock (left) of the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), and MIT Professor Scott Manalis (center), cell-weighing technology is being evaluated in a clinical laboratory at DFCI. MIT visiting scientist Mark Stevens is pictured at right.

Over the river and do some good

The Bridge Project collaboration accelerates new, highly original, and powerful approaches to defeating cancer.

November 22, 2017

MIT engineers have devised a way to assess a cell’s mechanical properties simply by observation. The researchers use standard confocal microscopy to zero in on the constant, jiggling motions of a cell’s particles.

Fast, noninvasive technique for probing cells may reveal disease

Researchers gauge a cell’s stiffness, which can reflect cancer or other conditions, simply by watching it.

August 3, 2017

The MIT Department of Biology has welcomed three new members: (left to right) Sebastian Lourido, Stefani Spranger, and Eliezer Calo.

Department of Biology welcomes three new faculty members

Recent additions bring diverse expertise and cultural perspectives to research community.

July 25, 2017

T cells — immune cells that are targeted to find and destroy a particular antigen — are key to the adaptive immune response. In this image, the top row shows few T cells in untreated mice, while the bottom rows show many T cells produced after immunotherapy treatment.

Fighting cancer with the power of immunity

New treatment elicits two-pronged immune response that destroys tumors in mice.

October 24, 2016

Clockwise from top, left: Itay Tirosh, Benjamin Izar, Aviv Regev, Alex Shalek, Orit Rozenblatt Rosen, and Levi Garraway

Taking on melanoma, one cell at a time

In step toward personalized medicine, researchers are using single-cell analysis to unravel cancer’s secrets.

April 7, 2016

(Left to right) Miles Miller, Frank Gertler, Douglas Lauffenburger, and Madeleine Oudin in the Gertler Lab at MIT.

Why some tumors withstand treatment

Researchers uncover a mechanism that allows cancer cells to evade targeted therapies.

March 16, 2016

MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology - On Campus and Around the world

Browse By

Topics

Departments

Centers, Labs, & Programs

Schools