News

Mar 02, 2023
Guarding the genome: Researchers uncover full 3D structure of p53 protein
The tumor suppressor protein p53, known as "the guardian of the genome," protects the body’s DNA from daily stress or long-term damage by triggering the cells to make repairs or to self-destruct.
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Apr 09, 2021
Antibody binding-site conserved across COVID-19 virus variants
A tiny protein of SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that gives rise to COVID-19, may have big implications for future treatments, according to a team of Penn State researchers.
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Feb 12, 2021
Researchers awarded $1.5M to create stem cell predictive model
Stem cells are the building blocks of the body, according to Penn State researchers. Though similar to one another at their origins, stem cells take on unique characteristics as they mature, becoming specialized cells throughout the body — such as bone, muscle, ligament, tissue or other organ cells.
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Jan 08, 2021
Engineering professor named Microscopy Society of America president-elect
Deborah Kelly, Huck Chair in Molecular Biophysics and professor of biomedical engineering at Penn State, was elected president of the Microscopy Society of America (MSA). Her three-year commitment as first president-elect, then president, then past president, began in January.
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Nov 18, 2020
Deb Kelly named chair of NIH study section
Deborah Kelly, Penn State Lloyd & Dottie Foehr Huck Chair in Molecular Biophysics, director of the Penn State Center for Structural Oncology (CSO) and professor of biomedical engineering, has accepted an appointment as chair of the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Macromolecular Structure and Function B (MSFB) Study Section, directed by the Center for Scientific Review.
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Jul 27, 2020
Podcast features three women at the forefront of cryo-EM research
An all-female trio of Penn State research scientists explain how their work on cancer diagnostics and advanced materials science evolves along with improvements in cryo-electron microscopy.
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Apr 27, 2020
Penn State cancer research center joins pandemic fight
The Penn State Center for Structural Oncology (CSO) is shifting some of its focus from fighting cancer to fighting COVID-19, with three projects. The CSO’s director, Deborah Kelly, believes that the same interdisciplinary research approach and collaborative spirit that drives the CSO’s cancer research can be applied to fighting pandemics.
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Mar 26, 2020
Engineers model mutations causing drug resistance
Whether it is a drug-resistant strain of bacteria, or cancer cells that no longer react to the drugs intended to kill them, diverse mutations make cells resistant to chemicals, and "second generation" approaches are needed. Now, a team of Penn State engineers may have a way to predict which mutations will occur in people, creating an easier path to create effective pharmaceuticals.
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Jan 21, 2020
Aspiring neurosurgeon mapping cancer-suppressing protein
Madison Evans is a Penn State biomedical engineering major who would like to become a neurosurgeon. Before she heads off to medical school, though, the Schreyer Honors Scholar is part of a research project that could change the way her future patients receive treatment.
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Oct 23, 2019
Professor of Biomedical Engineering Deb Kelly hopes to 'outsmart breast cancer'
October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. One of the pioneering researchers in the fight against breast cancer is Deb Kelly, professor of biomedical engineering and director of the Center for Structural Oncology at Penn State.
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