MCB News

Carvedilol Shown to have Unique Characteristics Among Beta Blockers

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 22:23:13 +0000

In a new study, researchers report that a class of heart medications called beta-blockers can have a helpful, or harmful, effect on the heart, depending on their molecular activity. The study, which appears in the journal Circulation Research, found that beta-blockers that target both the alpha- and beta-receptors on the heart muscle offer the most benefit to cardiac patients, while those that target only the beta-receptors can actually undermine the structure and function of the heart.

Associate Professor Jonsook Kim Kemper Published in Cell Metabolism

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 22:09:38 +0000

Dr. Kemper is the lead author on "FXR Acetylation Is Normally Dynamically Regulated by p300 and SIRT1 but Constitutively Elevated in Metabolic Disease States."

Benita Katzenellenbogen Receives 2009 Komen Brinker Award

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 18:59:40 +0000

Swanlund Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology and Molecular and Integrative Physiology Benita Katzenellenbogen has received the 2009 Susan G. Komen for the Cure Brinker Award for Scientific Distinction for her work investigating breast cancer treatments.

MCB Director's Seminar

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 15:15:07 +0000

On November 18 at this year's MCB Director's Seminar, special guest Northwestern University Professor of Neurobiology William L. Klein will be delivering the talk: "Synaptotoxic AΒ Oligomers (ADDLs): A Molecular Basis for the Cause, Diagnosis and Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease."

MCB Third Most Popular Major

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 19:00:04 +0000

In a news story published October 17th, Molecular and Cellular Biology was identified as the third most popular major among undergraduates at the University of Illinois.

Richard Gumport (1937-2009)

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 21:01:27 +0000

Richard I. Gumport, Ph.D., 72, professor emeritus of biochemistry, died Oct. 13, 2009, at his home in Chicago.

Roger Adams Lab Ribbon Cutting

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 19:25:35 +0000

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held Friday October 9th to celebrate the completion of phase one of the renovations of historic university building Roger Adams Laboratory. These upgrades, sponsored by the campus and the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, took two years and $8 million to complete, and include massive infrastructure updates throughout two floors and the addition of new biomedical research laboratories.

Raven Huang Discovers First Bacterial RNA Repair Mechanism

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 18:52:51 +0000

In new papers appearing in October in Science and the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), University of Illinois biochemistry professor Raven H. Huang and his colleagues describe the first RNA repair system to be discovered in bacteria. This is only the second RNA repair system discovered to date (with two proteins from T4 phage, a virus that attacks bacteria, as the first).

Colin Wraight Granted 2009 MCB Faculty Excellence Award

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:53:16 +0000

Colin Wraight, former head of the Department of Biochemistry, is the recipient of the 2009 MCB Faculty Excellence Award.

Steven Blanke Published in Science

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 16:44:12 +0000

Unexpected functions for D-amino acids continue to emerge, microbiology professor Steven R. Blanke says in a “Perspective” essay in this week's issue of Science.

Differential Effect of ssDNA-Binding Proteins on DNA Translocation

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:46:50 +0000

Biochemistry professor Maria Spies and biochemistry affiliate Taekjip Ha are contributing authors of an article newly published in Molecular Cell.

Maria Spies receives Margaret Oakley Dayhoff Award

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 21:32:39 +0000

Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics Maria Spies has received the 2010 Margaret Oakley Dayhoff Award from the Biophysical Society.

John Gerlt receives Arthur C. Cope Scholar Award

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 15:40:55 +0000

Gutgsell Endowed Professor of Biochemistry John Gerlt has been selected by the American Chemical Society as an ACS 2010 Award Winner.

The MCB Undergraduate Experience: A Q&A for New Students and Parents from an MCB Graduate

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Mon, 20 Jul 2009 10:14:56 +0000

Outgoing MCB senior Alex Crofts takes a few minutes to provide an informal report, responding to questions about his time at MCB.

Welcoming Dr. Eric Bolton and Dr. Hee Jung Chung

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 19:24:06 +0000

Dr. Eric Bolton and Dr. Hee Jung Chung have accepted offers to join the MCB faculty in the Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology. They arrive and begin work in early January.

Carl Woese named in Science

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 16:21:58 +0000

In the eighth essay in Science’s series in honor of the Year of Darwin, Carl Zimmer describes one of the most important transitions in the history of life: the origin of cells with a nucleus, which gave rise to every multicellular form of life.

A New National Center for Research in Reproduction and Infertility

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 15:30:12 +0000

In keeping with the long-standing and rich tradition of research and training in reproductive biology at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHHD) has awarded funds to create a Center for Research in Reproduction and Infertility on this campus. The five-year award from the NICHHD is for $6.8 million, and substantial matching funds were committed by the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, representing the culmination of two years of effort to obtain funding.

Martha Gillette cited by NIH

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 16:21:01 +0000

Alumni Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology Martha Gillette is cited in an article about circadian rhythms published by NIH News in Health, a publication of the National Institutes of Health.

Angela Bizzarri

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 10:29:45 +0000

Angela Bizzarri’s accomplishments in the athletic arena are impressive. In 2009, she was honored with the Dike Eddleman Award for the second consecutive year as the University of Illinois Female Athlete of the Year, after earning All-America honors in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track for the second year in a row. Between 2008 and 2009, she broke five school records. All the while, she continues as an undergraduate in the challenging curriculum of Molecular and Cellular Biology.

Welcoming Susan Martinis

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 10:51:56 +0000

Effective July 16, Dr. Susan Martinis was appointed as Interim Department Head for Biochemistry upon the departure of Dr. Colin Wraight after more than five years of extraordinary service to the Department of Biochemistry and School of Molecular and Cellular Biology.

New Estrogen Source Discovered

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 13:55:36 +0000

A new discovery in the newly created Center for Research in Reproduction and Infertility has revealed a previously unknown site of estrogen synthesis.

MCB Undergraduate Instruction

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 15:38:46 +0000

A cornerstone of the excellence in education for which the University of Illinois is renowned, the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology (MCB) is the largest school in the University of Illinois College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Brian Freeman Receives 2009 Educator's Award

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:51:56 +0000

Assistant Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology Brian Freeman received the 2009 Educator’s Award from the UI Alumni Association in April.

Maria Spies Receives HHMI Early Career Scientist Award

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 13:41:41 +0000

Assistant Professor of Biochemistry Maria Spies has been selected to receive a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Early Career Scientist Award. The award aims to provide generous funding to the most promising early career scientists in the country. According to HHMI, “The new program is aimed at researchers who have run their own labs for two to six years and are now at a critical point in establishing their own vibrant, independent research programs.”

David Clayton Discovers Genetic Basis of Songbird Memory

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 14:07:05 +0000

Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology David Clayton has discovered that the gene expression of a zebra finch is altered when the bird hears a new song by a bird of the same species.

Deborah Paul Creates Endowment at UIUC for AIDS Research

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:42:31 +0000

Deborah Paul (M.S. biology 1979) was one of the first AIDS researchers to develop a method for detecting HIV in the blood.

David Clayton Appointed Fellow of Canadian Institute for Advanced Research

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:58:12 +0000

Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology David Clayton has been appointed a Fellow of the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research.

Dr. Robert Gennis Invested as Harry E. Preble Endowed Professor

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:02:32 +0000

Professor of Biochemistry Robert Gennis has been invested as a Harry E. Preble Endowed Professor.

MCB Professors Discover Unusual Chemical Reaction

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 14:03:56 +0000

Professor of Microbiology William Metcalf, Associate Professor of Biochemistry Satish Nair, and Affiliate Professor of Biochemistry Wilfred van der Donk have identified and analyzed an iron-containing enzyme involved in a bond-breaking reaction.

Neural Systems Modeling, by Thomas Anastasio

communications@mcb.llinois.edu (MCB Communications) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 13:30:09 +0000

In August, 2009, Sinauer Associates Inc. publishes Neural Systems Modeling, by Thomas Anastasio, associate professor of molecular and integrative physiology. The book was selected by the publisher as their featured book for the spring.