Image
Circadian rhythm and the blood-brain barrier
Beckman faculty members Martha Gillette and Hyunjoon Kong received an NIH/DOD grant to study how circadian rhythm affects the blood-brain barrier’s permeability to small molecules and susceptibility to blood leakage. Their team will design a microfluidics-based chip from human stem cells to model...
Image
Study identifies key regulator of cell differentiation
Embryonic stem cells and other pluripotent cells divide rapidly and have the capacity to become nearly any cell type in the body. Scientists have long sought to understand the signals that prompt stem cells to switch off pluripotency and adopt their final functional state.
Image
'Molecular Velcro' enables tissues to sense, react to mechanical force
The Velcro-like cellular proteins that hold cells and tissues together also perform critical functions when they experience increased tension. A new University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign study observed that when tugged upon in a controlled manner, these proteins – called cadherins – communicate...
Image
Twelve faculty, including MCB professor, selected for the 2022 NIH Grant Writing Series mentorship program
The Interdisciplinary Health Sciences Institute (IHSI) is offering the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grant Writing Series virtually during the 2022 spring semester. The NIH Grant Writing Series prepares faculty to submit their first R01 or other individual investigator proposals to the NIH....
Image
Gene mutation leads to epileptic encephalopathy symptoms, neuron death in mice
Mice with a genetic mutation that’s been observed in patients with epileptic encephalopathy, a severe form of congenital epilepsy, exhibit not only the seizure, developmental and behavioral symptoms of the disorder, but also neural degeneration and inflammation in the brain, University of Illinois...
Image
Association of Computing Machinery recognizes researchers for their novel SARS-CoV2 simulations
Congratulations to the University of Illinois scientists who were part of two teams selected as finalists for a prestigious award that celebrates outstanding achievement in high-performance computing.
Image
Study reveals how bacterial pathogen adapts to nutritional stress
In order to cause disease, the human pathogen Staphylococcus aureus must adapt to the changing host environment. Many of these adaptations are mediated through two-component signal transduction systems (TCSs) that coordinate gene expression in response to environmental stimuli. In a new study...
Image
Water disinfection byproduct disrupts reproductive hormones, damages pituitary in female mice
Chemical disinfection makes water from both natural sources and wastewater streams drinkable; however, the process also creates byproducts, not all of which are understood or regulated. A new study from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers has found that one byproduct disrupts...
Image
Seeing is believing: Image of primary visual cortex in a mouse wins second place in NIH research image contest
Congratulations to the Tajkhorshid lab and collaborators who created a stunning research image recently highlighted by the National Institutes of Health.
Image
Scientists discover how antibiotics penetrate Gram-negative bacterial cell walls
In a study reported in the journal Chemical Science, researchers developed a new method to determine how antibiotics with specific chemical properties thread their way through tiny pores in the otherwise impenetrable cell envelopes of Gram-negative bacteria.