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Liqian Ma awarded Mead Graduate Fellowship
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.
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Simulated sea slug gets addicted to drug
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.
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MCB's Commitment to Diversity and Equity
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...
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Researchers find mutation hotspots for severe form of genetic epilepsy that give insights into the underlying pathogenesis
The lab of Hee Jung Chung, Associate Professor in the Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, recently released a paper in Scientific Reports titled “Identifying mutation hotspots reveals pathogenetic mechanisms of KCNQ2 epileptic encephalopathy” to help fill in the gaps in our...
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Study reveals neuronal response following chronic activation of an epilepsy- and autism-linked receptor
Group 1 metabotropic glutamate receptors (Gp1 mGluRs) are essential for neuroplasticity, neurodevelopment and cognition, but chronically active Gp1 mGluRs has been linked to many pathologic conditions including epilepsy and autism spectrum disorders. To characterize the effects of chronically...
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Love, science, and a drink remedy for space travel
A unique and lifelong pursuit of knowledge for Carol Greenleaf and her late husband, John, began at Illinois.
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Erik Nelson named Gunsalus Scholar
Erik Nelson, Assistant Professor of Molecular and Integrative Physiology, has been named the 2020-2021 Gunsalus Scholar by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences for his work on cholesterol metabolism and cancer.
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Researchers find a fasting-induced epigenetic pathway that promotes autophagy and lipid degradation
Autophagy or “self-eating” is a fundamental biological process by which cells digest and recycle cellular components for survival of the cells under nutrient-deprived conditions. Autophagy must be tightly controlled since deficient autophagy is associated with many diseases and aging, while...
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MCB faculty collaborate on NSF grants at Beckman
ChBE professor Hyunjoon (Joon) Kong recently received two grants from the NSF to fund interdisciplinary research at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, including a look at how neurons and muscle cells communicate with each other and also to develop a drug delivery system for...
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New cryo-EM structures of a lipid-sensitive ligand-gated ion channel
In biology, it is generally believed that a protein’s sequence determines its structure, which in turn determines its function. However, in the case of membrane proteins, the reality is more complicated than this simple statement. “In recent years, the importance of a protein’s local environment...