Molecular Cellular And Integrative Biosciences News | Molecular, Cellular, and Integrative Biosciences

“Tres Comunidades, Un Rio: Life within Peru’s urban Amazonian floodplains" showcases photography, community drawings and research data to portray the relocation, biodiversity, One Health perspective, connections to nature and the overall strength of three floating and stilted communities along the Amazon River in Iquitos, Peru. Credit: Gemina Garland-Lewis. All Rights Reserved.

Feb 12, 2025

Stuckeman School exhibition to showcase urban floodplain communities in Peru

The international traveling exhibition will run from Feb. 17 to March 4 in the Borland Project Space at 125 Borland Building Penn State University Park.

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2024 My Green Lab Consultants Zaman Ataie and Ananya Gollakota check the expiration date on a chemical bottle. Credit: Lydia Vandenbergh. All Rights Reserved.

Feb 11, 2025

Sustainable Labs Program increases participant engagement, welcomes new labs

Two upcoming virtual sessions will cover how labs can learn more and join next year’s cohort.

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Many commercial biological age tests collect genetic information through saliva samples or oral swabs. For accurate measurements, however, blood samples are typically necessary according to a new study led by researchers in the Penn State Department of Biobehavioral Health. Credit: dusanpetkovic/Getty Images. All Rights Reserved.

Feb 06, 2025

Understanding aging requires more than counting birthdays

Types of tissue samples matter when measuring a person’s biological age, or how well their body is functioning, researchers report.

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A new biomaterial developed by Penn State engineers mimics a key building block of human tissue, extracellular matrices, which act like scaffolding and enable cells to heal after damage. Credit: Sheikhi Research Group/Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

Feb 04, 2025

Novel ‘living’ biomaterial aims to advance regenerative medicine

A biomaterial that can mimic certain behaviors within biological tissues could advance regenerative medicine, disease modeling, soft robotics and more, according to researchers at Penn State.

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Director Bruce Logan, fourth from left, stands with the IEE Research Award winners. From left to right are: Hong Wu, Lisa Emili, Nathaniel Warner, Brian Fronk and Margaret Busse. Lauren McPhillips is not pictured. Credit: Brenna Buck. All Rights Reserved.

Jan 28, 2025

Researchers recognized for excellence by Institute of Energy and the Environment

The Institute of Energy and the Environment recognized six Penn State faculty members for their research excellence.

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The findings are a step in identifying beneficial microorganisms that potentially could be used to improve mushroom harvests and prevent disease, the researchers said. Credit: Harshal S. Hirve/Unsplash. All Rights Reserved.

Jan 27, 2025

Harnessing mushroom microbiomes for better crop development

Microorganisms collected from the material in which button mushrooms are grown may benefit the development of future fungi crops, according to a study led by researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences and published in the journal Fungal Biology.

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Yongsoo Kim, associate professor of neural and behavioral sciences at the Penn State College of Medicine, is leading a new five-year, $17.9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health's National Institute of Mental Health. Credit: Jason Plotkin / Penn State. Creative Commons

Jan 23, 2025

$17.9M NIH grant to research neurodevelopment disorders

Illuminating key biological pathways that underlie neurodevelopmental and psychiatric disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, is the goal of a new five-year, $17.9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Mental Health to a national team of researchers.

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Christina Grozinger was appointed the new director of the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at Penn State. Credit: Christina Grozinger / Penn State. Creative Commons

Jan 21, 2025

Christina Grozinger to lead Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences as director

Christina Grozinger, Publius Vergilius Maro Professor of Entomology and director of the Center for Pollinator Research, has been named the new director of the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at Penn State.

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Through a series of experiments, the research team led by Scott Medina, right, William and Wendy Korb Early Career Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Penn State, replaced the water-based solution commonly used in protein-based medications with a perfluorocarbon oil and tested five different proteins with a range of health-related functions such as antibodies and enzymes. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Jan 17, 2025

Discovery could eliminate need to refrigerate vaccines and protein-based drugs

A new storage technique can keep protein-based drugs and vaccines stable without keeping them cold. The discovery, led by researchers at Penn State, could eliminate the need for refrigeration for hundreds of life-saving medicines like insulin, monoclonal antibodies and viral vaccines.

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The study focused on the horned-face bee, which helps pollinate crops like apples and blueberries, and the alfalfa leafcutting bee, which pollinates alfalfa. Credit: Alain C./Flickr. All Rights Reserved.

Jan 07, 2025

Quantity over quality? Different bees are attracted to different floral traits

When it comes to deciding where they’re going to get their next meal, different species of bees may be attracted to different flower traits, according to a study led by researchers at Penn State and published in PNAS Nexus.

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