2020-08-18
- In a recent publication, the lab of Steven Blanke, Professor of Microbiology and Ralph S. Wolfe Professorial Scholar, has introduced a new approach for observing the effects of the microbe Helicobacter pylori’s single protein toxin, called the vacuolating cytotoxin, or VacA, in the absence of infection. This is an important step towards determining the role of H. pylori’s toxin during gastric...
2020-08-04 - As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, scientists and health care providers are seeking ways to keep the coronavirus from infecting tissues once they’re exposed. A new study suggests luring the virus with a decoy – an engineered, free-floating receptor protein – that binds the virus and blocks infection.
2020-07-24 - iVenture is a year-long program that aids student entrepreneurs from across campus to develop their startup ideas. The program provides students with multiple resources and support to help their venture succeed.
2020-07-15 - Breast cancer patients are 60 percent more likely to die of cancer after surviving a heart attack, according to a new study published in Nature Medicine.
2020-07-14 - Nearly two percent of pregnant women will face recurrent miscarriages, defined as the spontaneous loss of three or more consecutive pregnancies. Of that two percent, half of those miscarriages cannot be explained. Scientists assume genetic factors may play a role, but to date they have not been able to describe why those miscarriages occur. To combat this issue, University of Illinois researchers...
2020-07-07 - A collaborative effort at the University of Illinois to support COVID-19 testing is winding down, but not before it produced enough materials to support some 200,000 coronavirus tests across the state.
2020-06-29 - A method known as CAR-T therapy has been used successfully in patients with blood cancers such as lymphoma and leukemia. It modifies a patient’s own T-cells by adding a piece of an antibody that recognizes unique features on the surface of cancer cells. In a new study, researchers report that they have dramatically broadened the potential targets of this approach – their engineered T-cells attack...
2020-06-25 - Researchers have developed a method to spur the production of new antibiotic or antiparasitic compounds hiding in the genomes of actinobacteria, which are the source of drugs such as actinomycin and streptomycin and are known to harbor other untapped chemical riches. The scientists report their findings in the journal eLife.
2020-06-24 - Benita S. Katzenellenbogen, Professor of Molecular and Integrative Physiology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has been appointed Senior Advisor to the Director of the Cancer Center at Illinois (CCIL), Rohit Bhargava.
2020-06-19 - Due in part to COVID-19, more and more people realize the importance of taking early steps to understand the virulence mechanisms of pathogens, especially in the face of their widespread resistance to drugs. Doing so gives researchers and clinicians a head start in preparing against future outbreaks, which means additional lives can be saved.
2020-06-17 - The University of Illinois School of Molecular and Cellular Biology is pleased to announce the inaugural recipient of the Julie and David Mead Graduate Fellowship.
2020-06-16 - Rhanor Gillette and his colleagues simulated a sea slug brain in a computer model, added a few extra circuits, and gave it access to food and an intoxicating drug. The work offers insight into the process of addiction and will be a useful tool for further studies, Gillette said.
2020-06-08 - Roughly 80% of people with myotonic dystrophy – a common form of muscular dystrophy – experience dangerous heart ailments, and heart rhythm defects are the second-leading cause of death in those with the condition. In a new study, researchers traced the molecular events that lead to heart abnormalities in myotonic dystrophy and recreated the disease in a mouse model.
2020-06-04 - An investigation of two closely related proteins from a pathogenic bacterium has illustrated for the first time how evolution can shape the use of essential metals by enzymes.
2020-06-03 - The School of Molecular and Cellular Biology would like to follow up on the statement sent out by the University of Illinois on Saturday. As noted by UI President Timothy Killeen, “The horrifying image of George Floyd dying as a police officer knelt on his neck is one that will be forever burned into our national consciousness.”