The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology

The Beckman Institute focuses on three themes: molecular science and engineering, integrative imaging, and intelligent systems.

Its core research facilities include the Biomedical Imaging Center and the Imaging Technology Group (ITG), which also includes Beckman's Microscopy Suite and Visualization Laboratory.

Neural signaling protein could be therapeutic target for autism-linked gene deletion

Nien-Pei Tsai
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — A particular signaling protein in the brain could be a therapeutic target for neurological disorders arising from the deletion of the autism-linked gene MEF2C, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers found in a new mouse study.Deletions or mutations to MEF2C are...

Emad Tajkhorshid named a 2027 Biophysics Society Fellow

Dr. Emad Tajkhorshid
The School of Molecular & Cellular Biology is pleased to announce that Emad Tajkhorshid, J. Woodland Hastings Endowed Chair and Professor of Biochemistry,...

Emad Tajkhorshid receives Beckman's Vision & Spirit Award

Emad Tajkhorshid poses by journal covers
The Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology honored three faculty and staff members who show visionary spirit and dedication on the 124th anniversary of founder Arnold Beckman’s birth. Congratulations to...

Earliest-yet Alzheimer’s biomarker found in mouse model could point to new targets

A man and woman standing next to lab equipment.
A surge of a neural-specific protein in the brain is the earliest-yet biomarker for Alzheimer’s disease, report University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers studying a mouse model of the disease. Furthermore, the increased protein activity leads to the seizures associated with the earliest...

NIH grant to support research into connections between autism, sensory hypersensitivity

A smiling man in a checkered shirt.
Supported by a $2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, the Auerbach Lab will examine how different genes associated with autism spectrum disorders may similarly impact our brain’s neurons, resulting in heightened sensitivity to sounds.  Autism spectrum disorders are...

Scientists use AI to identify new materials for carbon capture

headshots of Emad Tajkhorshid and Hyun Park
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers Emad Tajkhorshid and Hyun Park In collaboration with scientists from Argonne National Laboratory, the University of Illinois at Chicago, and the University of Chicago, have used AI to identify new materials for carbon capture. Carbon...

$3M grant to fund research into early detection of Alzheimer’s disease

Researchers stand together within the Beckman Institute
What do a synthetic chemist, a medical imaging expert, and a neurologist have in common? They’re coming together in the Biomedical Imaging Center at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology to develop better diagnostic tools and...

From PhD to pre-K: How outreach changed Nicole Godellas's approach to science

Nicole Godellas leads an outreach session with elementary school students.
Nicole Godellas recently earned her PhD in Molecular and Integrative Physiology. Along the way, she joined the Beckman Institute’s outreach team and learned a few lessons about communicating science to the general public....

Bringing cells to life … and to Minecraft: $30 million NSF grant supports whole-cell modeling research

Collage of images of scientists in tech centers from National Science Foundation
A new research center at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign will create whole-cell models that promise to transform our understanding of how cells function. With cutting-edge imaging and simulation tools, the center will advance the study of healthy and diseased cells; accelerate research...

Fetal exposure to PCBs affects hearing health later in life

Photo of Dan Llano sitting in front of a microscope and computer.
Researchers at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology found that early exposure to an environmental chemical called polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, made it more difficult for mice to recover from sound-related trauma sustained later in life.