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Social and Life Sciences Imaging Center receives MRI

New 3-Tesla Magnetic Resonance Imaging machine installed in Chandlee Lab as the center piece of the Social and Life Sciences Imaging Center.

Economy and innovation benefit from growth in research funding

Penn State’s record $717 million in research funding for 2007-2008 ranks it among top universities and helps to grow the economies of Pennsylvania and the nation.

Obesity drives desire for sweet foods

Researchers find link between taste and body weight explaining how obesity causes the desire for sugary foods.

Researchers investigating gene regulation

Research into gene regulation has shown that regulatory regions of DNA are not conserved between related species over the course of evolution like once thought.

Student recognized for research in Neuroscience

Christina Ragan has been recognized by Science News for her presentation at the Society for Neuroscience Conference.

Mammoth genome sequenced

Scientists working in a team are the first to report the genome-wide sequence of an extinct animal.

$155,000 raised for scholarships in honor of the Hucks

$155,000 was raised by the Renaissance Fund in honor of this year's honorees, Lloyd and Dorothy (Dottie) Huck.

Global warming causing amphibian decline questioned

Climate change could be one of a combination of reasons leading to the decline of amphibian populations.

Breakthrough could reverse leukemia

A breakthrough that blocks signals from a protein to activate cells in the immune system could help fight leukemia, a rare form of blood cancer.

New NASA astrobiology grant received

An interdisciplinary team, including biologists and biotechnologists, have received a new five-year grant from NASA's Astrobiology Institute for "Signatures of Life from Earth and Beyond" to develop strategies for finding life on other planets and extreme environments here on Earth.

New life form in Yellowstone hot springs

Scientists from Penn State University and Montana State University have found a new heat-loving bacterium that survives by transforming light into chemical energy.

Christine Kapelewski receives Nina Fedoroff Teaching Award

Christine Kapelewski received the Nina Fedoroff Teaching Award for her excellent work as a teaching assistant during the Fall 2007 and Spring 2008 semesters.

Final plans approved for new building

The University's Board of Trustees approved the final plans for the new Millennium Science Complex that will house the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences and the Materials Research Institute.

Nanomedical approach targets multiple cancer genes, shrinks tumors

Cancer researchers at the Penn State College of Medicine may have found potential cure for cancer using nanoparticles filled with a drug targeting two genes that trigger melanoma.

Assmann named ASPB president

Sarah M. Assmann has been named president of the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB). She takes up the presidency in October, 2008.

Study sheds light on mammoth extinction

Analysis of hair from museum specimens suggests that woolly mammoths consisted of two genetically-distinct lineages which diverged from each other more than a million years ago. One of the lineages was found only in Siberia, whereas the other occurred much more widely. The geographically-restricted lineage appears to have gone extinct about 45,000 years ago, long before human hunting is likely have contributed to their demise. Instead, low genetic diversity could have made the mammoths more vulnerable to environmental factors such as climate change or disease.

Clue to melanoma development

Penn State researchers have discovered that the interaction of 2 proteins can lead to development of malignant melanoma, a deadly form of skin cancer. This finding could aid the development of cancer therapies.

Hudson elected to Royal Society

Peter Hudson, Director of the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society.

HIV discovery

Penn State researchers and their collaborators have made a discovery that could lead to new treatments for HIV, the Human Immunodeficiency Virus that causes AIDS. Knocking out a particular enzyme (a tyrosine kinase) makes immune cells less vulnerable to infection with the virus.

Marshall elected to National Academy of Sciences

Barry Marshall, who has a visiting appointment as the Francis R. and Helen M. Pentz Professor of Science at Penn State, has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences.