2024-01-01
- The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is proud to welcome six new faculty hires during the 2023-2024 academic year.
Get to know our new faculty.
Department of Biochemistry
Chang Cui, assistant professor of biochemistry
Read an interview with...
2023-12-14 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Department of Cell & Developmental Biology are pleased to welcome Haiting Ma as an assistant professor of cell and developmental biology this fall. He join us from the Whitehead Institute...
2023-12-14 - The School of MCB is proud to recognize outstanding members of its community at the annual holiday celebration. On Dec. 7, 2023, several faculty and staff were presented awards for their valuable contributions by School of MCB Director Milan Bagchi, Deborah Paul Professor of Molecular & Cellular Biology. Congratulations to this year's winners! Research Excellence Award Jie Chen...
2023-11-30 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Department of Biochemistry are pleased to welcome Dr. Yan Zhang as assistant professor of biochemistry. Dr. Zhang joined us in November 2023 from the University of California, San Francisco, where she conducted her postdoctoral research. Tell us about...
2023-11-27 - Antibodies—proteins that are produced by our immune system to protect us—are crucial for recognizing and getting rid of unwanted substances, or antigens, in our body. Although their role is universal, antibody structure varies in different animals. In a new study, researchers have analyzed the antibody Immunoglobulin M in rainbow trout to shed light on why these proteins may have evolved over...
2023-11-27 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Department of Microbiology are pleased to welcome Dr. Nkrumah Grant as assistant professor of microbiology. Grant joined us in November 2023 from Michigan State University and the University of Idaho, where he conducted his postdoctoral research. Tell us...
2023-11-21 - Estrogen receptor-positive breast cancer is the most common form of breast cancer, affecting approximately 75 percent of breast cancer patients. In advanced and metastatic form, it is lethal, claiming the lives of nearly 350,000 individuals annually. Presently, no drug is able to eradicate these advanced tumors. University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers ...
2023-11-16 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is pleased to announce the winners of its annual Undergraduate Research Symposium held Nov. 2, 2023. MCB faculty conduct leading research programs in biochemistry, cell and developmental biology, microbiology, and molecular and integrative physiology. Being an undergraduate researcher provides valuable experience for students...
2023-11-09 - When confronted with infection or injury, our body rallies to fight and heal itself and inflammation is a key part of this early defense system. But inflammation can also go awry, as exhibited in chronic illnesses such as obesity and type 2 diabetes. Biochemistry professor Lin-Feng Chen has spent years working...
2023-11-06 - University of Illinois researchers have elucidated a mechanism whereby gastric cells detect and respond to toxin infiltration within the cell’s powerhouse, the mitochondria. The Blanke lab, within the Department of Microbiology in the School of Molecular & Cellular Biology, studies the gastric pathogen Helicobacter pylori, or H. pylori, which...
2023-10-31 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology and Department of Biochemistry are pleased to welcome Chang Cui as an assistant professor of biochemistry. She joins us in November 2023 from Harvard University, where she conducted her postdoctoral research. We recently spoke with Professor Cui about...
2023-10-30 - The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is saddened to share news about the passing of Mary Jane Beasley, research specialist, lab manager, and enthusiastic supporter of the school, its departments, and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. Mary Jane Beasley, known to all as MJ, was a dedicated, productive, and talented Research Specialist/Lab Manager, said Benita Katzenellenbogen...
2023-10-24 - Hypopituitarism occurs when the pituitary gland, a small, pea-sized gland at the base of the brain, does not make enough hormones that are essential for growth, metabolism, and reproduction. Lori Raetzman, a professor of molecular and integrative...
2023-10-22 - In early October, the School of Molecular & Cellular Biology hosted a lecture featuring Nobel Laureate, Dr. Venki Ramakrishnan. Dr. Venki Ramakrishnan received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009 for his work on “studies of the structure and function of the ribosome.” In 2000, Ramakrishnan reported the structure of the 30S subunit of the ribosome in a thermophile bacteria called ...
2023-10-20 - Host tissues and medical devices are ideal surfaces for bacterial pathogens to colonize and infect. Fluid flow is thought to flush bacteria off these surfaces, but University of Illinois researchers have found that some bacteria can strengthen their adhesion to the surface when flow is applied. In the Sanfilippo lab, researchers study bacteria in fluid flow by utilizing interdisciplinary...