Bioengineering and biotechnology

Post-doc in biological engineering Seok Chung points to view of cell-growth as Roger Kamm, professor of biological and mechanical engineering, right, and chemical engineering graduate student Vernella Vickerman look on.

Close encounters with 3-D cell growth

Engineers' new microfluidic device could help with drug development

December 16, 2008

Team sheds light on Alzheimer's mystery

Work could lead to new treatments for debilitating disease

December 10, 2008

Reversing the conventional DNA wisdom

Researchers find DNA is transcribed by divergent polymerases

December 4, 2008

Top image depicts the chemical structure of chondroitin sulfate, the contaminant found in batches of heparin. Bottom image shows the chemical structure of normal heparin.

Conclusive evidence that tainted heparin caused allergic reactions

Epidemiological study provides the final link

December 3, 2008

Kinesin, a small motor protein found in cells, walks stepwise onÂ microtubules to perform cellular processes. In each step, a powerÂ stroke is generated when two mechanical elements (neck linker, in red, and cover strand, in blue) form a beta-sheet that folds to drive the protein forward.

Baby steps

Engineers show how tiny cell proteins generate force to 'walk'

November 24, 2008

Adult brain neurons can remodel connections

Could lead to creating growth in cells and regions normally unable to repair themselves

November 24, 2008

From left to right: Richard Maulsby (United States Patent and Trademark Office), Timothy Lu (grand winner, MIT), Greg Schroll (undergraduate winner, MIT), Paul Podsiadlo (graduate winner, University of Michigan), Neil Conan (NPR host) and Jeff Pan (Abbott representative who was also a judge).

MIT students take top prizes in national inventors' contest

Lu awarded $25,000 grand prize, Schroll takes top undergraduate honors

November 21, 2008

The dendrite ofÂ a new neuron in the brain (labeled in red). The small yellow spots are synapses that the new neuron is receiving.

Not as easy as it may seem

Study sees challenges for integrating new neurons into brain

November 21, 2008

A new class of catalysts

November 16, 2008

Two Scientists named to Discover's 'Top 20 Under 40' list

November 13, 2008

By studying songbirds, McGovern's Professor Michale Fee, left, and post-doc Michael Long move closer to understanding how timing is represented within the brain.

Singing in slow motion

MIT work with songbirds could aid study of humans' timing

November 12, 2008

Untangling DNA regulation

Biologists theorize role for DNA packaging in stem cell development

November 6, 2008

J. Christopher Love, Craig Story, Chih-Chi Andrew Hu and Eliseo Papa designed and tested a system that "prints" the antibodies created by immune cells onto a glass slide, below, coated with capture antibodies, producing protein microarrays.

Immunity, from the cell's point of view

Chemical engineers study immune cells in unprecedented detail

November 3, 2008

Human genes sing different tunes in different tissues

Biologists find almost all genes express multiple messenger RNAs

November 2, 2008

Principal research scientist with Harvard-MIT Health Sciences Lisa Freed, left, and George Engelmayr Jr., post-doc in Harvard-MIT Health Sciences report new scaffold (shown on monitor)for tissue engineering of the heart.

Mending broken hearts with tissue engineering

New scaffold approach could also aid engineering of other tissues