2024-12-03
- The Graduate Student Association in the School of Molecular & Cellular Biology has been named the 2024 award recipient for Outstanding Student Organization by Illinois International Student and Scholar Services.
This award is traditionally given to an RSO or student organization that has excelled in internationalizing the Illinois campus.
“There are a lot of international students in MCB, and they often have to become experts in immigration law and other technicalities,” said Quang Nguyen, a fifth year PhD student in Molecular & Integrative Physiology and a GSA board member. “We’re...
2024-11-20 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is proud to announce the winners of the 2024 Undergraduate Research Symposium, held on November 13, 2024. This annual event showcases the hard work of our undergraduate researchers, who contribute to advancing knowledge in biochemistry, cell and developmental biology, microbiology, and molecular and integrative physiology. Research experience equips students with valuable skills in leadership, communication, and project management while preparing them for graduate school or careers in research. School of MCB Director’s Award for...
2024-11-18 - A University of Illinois student is helping migrant families in her Chicago hometown by harnessing her academic interests and passion for public health. Hannah McGee, a junior pre-med student in the School of Molecular & Cellular Biology, has teamed up with her friend Sofia Castro, a junior studying Community Health, to co-found Amigos Unidos FC. The free, six-week soccer program is designed to bring some normalcy to the lives of migrant children, offering them a safe place to play and make friends. Hannah, who is majoring in Molecular & Cellular Biology, said...
2024-11-04 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is pleased to congratulate the winners of its “Life Inspiring” art competition, which celebrates the intersection of life sciences and art. Earlier this year, undergraduate and graduate students were encouraged to submit original works of art reflecting the joys of their scientific endeavors. Accepted mediums included graphic design, drawings, paintings, photography, and mixed media pictures. Winning artwork is currently on display in Burrill Hall. Another call for submissions will be announced in the spring.
2024-10-31 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is pleased to welcome Joe Boise as our new MCB Facilities and Lab Safety Assistant. We sat down with Joe recently to learn more about him and his role in the school. Can you tell us a bit about yourself? What led you to this position? I was led to this position by my interest in environmental biology. In 2020, I earned a master’s degree in biological sciences from Eastern Illinois University. During my coursework and after graduation, I worked with the Division of Research Safety here on campus, collecting hazardous waste....
2024-10-28 - The human gut is a diverse and densely populated environment filled with bacteria and other microbes in fierce competition for resources. One major colonizer in the human colon is Bacteroides, a genus of bacteria that can break down a wide variety of complex carbohydrates indigestible by humans. Researchers from the lab of Cari Vanderpool examined these organisms to evaluate their utilization of smaller carbohydrates like raffinose family oligosaccharides, or RFOs. Their findings, reported in the...
2024-10-24 - A new mouse model mimicking the liver symptoms of myotonic dystrophy type 1 — the most prevalent form of adult-onset muscular dystrophy — provides insight into why patients develop fatty liver disease and display hypersensitivity to medications, making treatment difficult. The new model opens avenues for screening new medications for liver toxicity prior to patient trials, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers said. Led by U. of I. biochemistry professor Auinash Kalsotra, the researchers published their ...
2024-10-22 - New vaccinations against influenza and the virus that causes COVID-19 are available and arriving at physician offices and pharmacies. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign microbiology professor Chris Brooke is a virologist who studies respiratory viruses. He sat down with News Bureau biomedical sciences editor Liz Ahlberg Touchstone to discuss what’s in the new vaccines, the best time to get them and why we need them at all. Why do we need yet another COVID-19 shot? That’s a good question. This virus is...
2024-10-15 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology are pleased to welcome Dr. Jason Climer as an assistant professor of molecular and integrative physiology. We recently spoke with him about his research and teaching interests and how he spends his time outside the lab. He joins us on Nov. 1, 2024, from Northwestern University, where he was a postdoctoral researcher in the Dombeck lab. Tell us about your lab and your research focus, including...
2024-10-15 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Department of Biochemistry are pleased to welcome Dr. Diana Ranoa as assistant professor of biochemistry. Dr. Ranoa joins us in November 2024. Tell us about your lab and your research focus, including how you came to choose or specialize in this area. The two major goals of my lab are to: 1) define chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell-mediated mutual reprogramming of tumor and host immune cells...
2024-10-11 - How did your time at Illinois shape your future experiences? The access to undergraduate research definitely shaped me. I started out pre-med, like many in MCB, focusing early on with clinical volunteer experience. Then, in my sophomore year, I took a molecular genetics course and was introduced to epigenetics and chromatin organization. It was mind-blowing, and it pushed me to explore research. I started emailing labs, eventually joining Andy Belmont's lab, which changed my perspective. Instead of pursuing an MD-PhD, I realized research was my primary motivation. Being a...
2024-10-10 - Investigators from the University of Illinois have created a whole-genome map that charts the occupancies of RNA polymerase enzymes in humans, discovering unexpected patterns in the process. Their findings appear in Molecular Cell. DNA transcription — the process of copying sequences of DNA into RNA molecules — involves enzymes called RNA polymerase (Pol). In humans, three distinct RNA polymerase enzymes are conventionally thought to transcribe specific categories of genes; for example, Pol II generally...
2024-10-08 - Preclinical research is an important step of the drug and treatment development process that ensures the safety of a potential treatment modality for human testing. But until recently, most preclinical research studies in animals were only conducted on one sex: typically, male. This tendency to exclude female subjects in preclinical studies had implications for clinical trials and for understanding underlying mechanisms of biological function and disease. “For decades, clinical trials failed women,” said Catherine Christian-Hinman...
2024-10-04 - Ricardo Diaz still remembers the night chemistry professor Joaquin Rodriguez-Lopez walked into a room full of kids and told them to throw ketchup on a volunteer wearing a special shirt. Soon the room was enveloped in ketchup, laughter, and gasps as they watched the shirt magically repel everything they threw at it. In an instant, they grasped the practical uses of hydrophobic nanotechnology. But they also learned another important lesson. It’s the same lesson they’re taught every time Cena y Ciencias is in session, whether they’re...
2024-10-01 - It is with sadness that the School of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology share news of the passing of Professor emeritus Sandy Helman. Dr. Helman, an ion-transport physiologist and biophysicist, died on July 14, 2024, at home with his family. Remembered fondly as a kind and caring colleague, Dr. Helman was on the faculty at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign for 41 years, conducting research, teaching, and mentoring doctoral students as a Professor of Physiology, Biophysics, and Bioengineering. Born and raised in the North End...