New technologies reveal cross-cutting breakdowns in Alzheimer’s disease
“Single-cell profiling” is helping neuroscientists see how disease affects major brain cell types and identify common, potentially targetable pathways.
Scientists discover a new way of sharing genetic information in a common ocean microbe
Prochlorococcus, the world’s most abundant photosynthetic organism, reveals a gene-transfer mechanism that may be key to its abundance and diversity.
Uncovering how cells control their protein output
Gene-Wei Li investigates the rules that cells use to maintain the correct ratio of the proteins they need to survive.
School of Science appoints 10 faculty to named professorships
Those selected for these positions receive additional support to pursue their research and develop their careers.
New CRISPR-based tool inserts large DNA sequences at desired sites in cells
Known as PASTE, the technique holds potential for treating a variety of diseases caused by faulty genes.
Scientists unveil the functional landscape of essential genes
Researchers harness new pooled, image-based screening method to probe the functions of over 5,000 essential genes in human cells.
An interdisciplinary journey through living machines
With NEET, Sherry Nyeo is discovering MIT’s undergraduate research community at the intersection of computer science and biological engineering.
With fractured genomes, Alzheimer’s neurons call for help
Study indicates ailing neurons may instigate an inflammatory response from the brain’s microglia immune cells.
Biologists glean insight into repetitive protein sequences
A computational analysis reveals that many repetitive sequences are shared across proteins and are similar in species from bacteria to humans.
Turning carbon dioxide into valuable products
Assistant Professor Ariel Furst and her colleagues are looking to DNA to help guide the process.
From bridges to DNA: civil engineering across disciplines
Johannes Kalliauer of MIT CSHub uses civil engineering principles to shed new light on molecular dynamics, concrete hinges, and flooding.
When cells’ tiny differences have far-reaching implications
Alex Shalek’s technologies for single-cell RNA profiling can help dissect the cellular bases of complex diseases around the globe.
New CRISPR-based map ties every human gene to its function
Jonathan Weissman and collaborators used their single-cell sequencing tool Perturb-seq on every expressed gene in the human genome, linking each to its job in the cell.
Tracing a cancer’s family tree to its roots reveals how tumors grow
Family trees of lung cancer cells reveal how cancer evolves from its earliest stages to an aggressive form capable of spreading throughout the body.
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.