News

Nov 19, 2025

Postdoctoral Fellow Laurel Seemiller named a Rising Star in Neuroscience

Laurel Seemiller, a postdoctoral fellow in biology, has been named one of The Transmitter’s 25 Rising Stars in Neuroscience. Seemiller is a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Nikki Crowley, director of the Penn State Neuroscience Institute at University Park, Huck Chair in Neural Engineering and associate professor of biology and of biomedical engineering.

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Acute myeloid leukemia, pictured here, is a cancer of blood and bone marrow that can affect people of all ages but is the most common type of leukemia in adults. Credit: Salah Uddin/Getty Images. All Rights Reserved.

Nov 14, 2025

Two drugs that treat prostate cancer may also be effective against leukemia

Two U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs for treating prostate cancer may also be effective against acute myeloid leukemia (AML), according to a new study by researchers at Penn State.

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Patrick Drew is leading a research team in investigating a rare neuron that appears to play a significant role in regulating blood flow in the brain of mice. Credit: Kelby Hochreither/Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

Nov 13, 2025

It’s not just in your head: Stress may lead to altered blood flow in the brain

Researchers at Penn State find a rare, stress-sensitive neuron appears to help regulate blood flow in the brain of mice.

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A new study involving about 850,000 adults across six continental ancestries, has identified 13 genes associated with obesity across ancestries. While eight of these genes had been found in previous studies, five were identified for the first time, having no previous links to obesity. The colors of the DNA helix in the image represent ancestral difference in genetic background around the world. The black figures represent people who do not carry gene mutations found to be associated with obesity while the red figures carry them. The fraction of red and black figures highlights the differences in genetic mutations across the world. Credit: Deepro Banerjee, Girirajan Laboratory / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 30, 2025

Genes associated with obesity shared across ancestries, researchers find

A new study from Penn State involving nearly 850,000 adults across six continental ancestries has identified 13 genes linked to obesity, including five never before connected to the condition. The findings provide new insight into how genetics influence obesity and related diseases such as Type 2 diabetes and heart failure.

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Entomologists in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences examined the potential for birds to feed on spotted lanternflies. Credit: Anne Johnson / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 27, 2025

Spotted lanternfly may use ‘toxic shield’ to fend off bird predators

Spotted lanternflies may season themselves to the distaste of potential bird predators, according to a new study led by entomologists in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.

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Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 24, 2025

Oct. 24 kicks off 'Plants for the People and the Planet' innovation series

This free seminar series, open to the community at-large, will showcase cutting-edge research and diverse perspectives on how plants can shape a healthier, more sustainable future.

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New research helps explain why disease-associated genetic variants can lead to variable clinical outcomes, influenced both by the patterns of secondary variants, or genetic background, and by how cohorts of individuals in a study are ascertained. In a family, shown on left, secondary variants can influence the severity of clinical outcomes, which is indicated by intensity of blue shading, or which features are present between a parent and a child that both carry the primary variant. However, this relationship between secondary and primary variants is different if the primary variant was discovered in a biobank that includes mostly healthy individuals, in the middle, or people identified for a shared clinical feature, on right. Credit: Corrine Smolen/Girirajan Laboratory / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 09, 2025

Background genetic variants influence clinical features in complex disorders

New study reveals how the complex interplay of genetic background can lead to different clinical presentations in individuals that share a primary genetic variant.

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Charlene Shupp Espenshade, executive director of the Pennsylvania Friends of Agriculture Foundation, prepares to sample microgreens cultivated at Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences during the college’s recent Legislative Research Tour. She is joined by graduate students Auja Bywater and Rishi Ravichandran. Credit: Sean Duke / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 06, 2025

College of Ag Sciences research tour explores connection between food, health

Government and industry stakeholders got a literal taste of the future of agriculture by sampling hydroponically grown greens at one of several presentations during the Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences’ annual Legislative Research Tour, held Sept. 25 at the University Park campus.

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The International Union for Conservation of Nature is formally including all microbial life in its framework by establishing a Microbial Conservation Specialist Group (MCSG), that includes Penn State biologist Seth Bordenstein. Credit: CDC/Unsplash. All Rights Reserved.

Oct 06, 2025

New microorganism survival commission aims to fill critical conservation gap

Global group to examine potential extinction of microbes essential to planetary and human health.

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The team found that a number of populations of Xanthomonas and Pseudomonas bacteria were present on the plants that had developed a resistance against bacterial speck, suggesting they play a role in suppressing the disease. Credit: Dan Gol/Unsplash. All Rights Reserved.

Sep 29, 2025

New clues in how plant microbiomes protect against bacterial speck disease

Bacterial speck is a common disease affecting tomatoes that can result in lower yields for growers. A new study led by researchers at Penn State gives new clues on how a plant’s microbiome can be used to combat the pathogen.

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