Molecular & Integrative Physiology (MIP)

Meet MCB: Professor Erik Nelson

2020-12-31

Dr. Nelson’s lab focuses on determining how different hormones and metabolite factors impact breast and ovarian cancer progression.

Mouse model of epilepsy may yield insights into relationship between seizures and reproductive cycle in women

2020-12-10

Recent research from Professor Catherine Christian-Hinman in the Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology has identified an animal model capable of modeling some aspects of catamenial epilepsy without hormone treatments, creating exciting possibilities in the field for advancement in...

Study: Gut hormones' regulation of fat production abnormal in obesity, fatty liver disease

2020-11-24

Gut hormones play an important role in regulating fat production in the body. One key hormone, released a few hours after eating, turns off fat production by regulating gene expression in the liver, but this regulation is abnormal in obesity, researchers at the University of Illinois Urbana-...

In Memoriam: Physiology Professor Dennis Buetow, 1932-2020

2020-11-23

Professor Emeritus Dennis E. Buetow, a respected physiology researcher and educator, passed away on Wednesday, Nov. 18, 2020, at home in Champaign with family.

Erik Nelson receives $4.5M grant to study prevention and treatment of metastatic breast cancer

2020-11-03

Erik Nelson, professor of molecular and integrative physiology, has won a $4.5 million Era of Hope Scholar Award from the United States Department of Defense Breast Cancer Research Program.This prestigious award supports individuals early in their careers who have demonstrated significant potential...

Four MCB alumni honored with 2020 LAS alumni awards

2020-10-26

Water fountain next to Alice Campbell Alumni Center.

The winners are being honored during LAS Impact 2020, a weeklong celebration of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences starting on Oct. 26.

Cancer compound originating from U of I scientists leads to major licensing deal

2020-09-30

Researchers discovered a small molecule, ErSO, that eradicates breast cancers in mice by targeting a pathway that protects cancer cells. Photo by L. Brian Stauffer

University of Illinois researchers are leading the science behind a new global licensing agreement between the pharmaceutics company Bayer AG and the cancer drug development company Systems Oncology for a new breast cancer drug called ERSO.

Cholesterol metabolite causes immune system to attack T cells instead of breast cancer, study finds

2020-09-15

In breast cancer tumors, a molecule produced when the body breaks down cholesterol hijacks the myeloid immune cells that normally arm T cells to fight cancer, a new study in mice found. Instead, the hijacked myeloid cells disarm the T cells and even tell them to self-destruct.

MCB researchers shed light that detoxification machinery is kept on in some liver disease states

2020-09-14

Left: Bhoomika Mathur, PhD graduate from the Anakk lab. Right: Professor Sayee Anakk.

Bile acids are cholesterol metabolites that are well known for their role in fat digestion. Many liver diseases such as gallstones, fatty liver disease, congenital disorders lead to cholestasis, which is characterized as accumulation of bile acids in the liver. The Anakk laboratory at the...

Using magnetic resonance elastography to detect epilepsy

2020-09-08

A new study uses magnetic resonance elastography to compare the stiffness of the hippocampus in patients who have epilepsy with healthy individuals. The technique can improve the detection and characterization of the disease.

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