A brief history of expansion microscopy
Since an MIT team introduced expansion microscopy in 2015, the technique has powered the science behind kidney disease, plant seeds, the microbiome, Alzheimer’s, viruses, and more.
From bench to bedside, and beyond
In the United States and abroad, Matthew Dolan ’81 has served as a leader in immunology and virology.
A new vaccine approach could help combat future coronavirus pandemics
The nanoparticle-based vaccine shows promise against many variants of SARS-CoV-2, as well as related sarbecoviruses that could jump to humans.
A new computational model can predict antibody structures more accurately
Using this model, researchers may be able to identify antibody drugs that can target a variety of infectious diseases.
Bacteria in the human gut rarely update their CRISPR defense systems
A new study of the microbiome finds intestinal bacterial interact much less often with viruses that trigger immunity updates than bacteria in the lab.
Killing the messenger
A newly characterized anti-viral defense system in bacteria aborts infection through a novel mechanism by chemically altering mRNA.
Capsid of HIV-1 behaves like cell’s cargo receptor to enter the nucleus
Biologists demonstrate that HIV-1 capsid acts like a Trojan horse to pass viral cargo across the nuclear pore.
Turning history of science into a comic adventure
Associate Professor Lydia Bourouiba and artist Argha Manna take readers through a series of discoveries in infectious disease.
Angela Belcher delivers 2023 Dresselhaus Lecture on evolving organisms for new nanomaterials
MIT professor combines nanoscience and viruses to develop solutions in energy, environment, and medicine.
3 Questions: Darrell Irvine on making HIV vaccines more powerful
Human volunteers will soon begin receiving an HIV vaccine that contains an adjuvant developed in Irvine’s lab, which helps to boost B cell responses to the vaccine.
Germicidal UV lights could be producing indoor air pollutants, study finds
While useful for killing pathogens including SARS-CoV-2, the lights may cause unwanted chemical reactions and should be used with ventilation, researchers say.
Targeting a coronavirus ion channel could yield new Covid-19 drugs
Chemists discover the structures of open and closed states of the channel, which could help the development of antiviral drugs to reduce inflammation.
Studying phages far from home
Biology graduate student Tong Zhang has spent the last two years learning the intricacies of how bacteria protect themselves.
Creating a versatile vaccine to take on Covid-19 in its many guises
Aided by machine learning, scientists are working to develop a vaccine that would be effective against all SARS-CoV-2 strains.
SMART researchers develop quick test to determine immunity against Covid-19
Test that measures a person’s antibodies requires a drop of blood and takes just 10 minutes to show results.