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Paul Babitzke, Stanley R. Person Professor of Molecular Biology, Don Bryant Chair in Microbial Physiology in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and director of the Center for RNA Molecular Biology at Penn State, presenting at the RNA Symposium. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Penn State molecular biologist named Don Bryant Chair in Microbial Physiology

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

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

Penn State’s College of Ag Sciences recognizes faculty for research impact

Penn State’s College of Ag Sciences recognizes faculty for research impact

Thomas Bosch, senior research professor at Kiel University, will deliver a talk at Penn State University Park on Dec. 12.  Credit: Thomas Bosch Lab. All Rights Reserved.

Host-microbiome interaction biologist to receive inaugural Microbiome Medal Thomas Bosch, senior research professor at Kiel University, will receive the inaugural Microbiome Medal and speak about his wo

The researchers collaborated with veterinarians in Centre County and several Pennsylvania horse farms, testing nearly 200 horses — some healthy, some sick — to determine the new references and indices. This study is a step toward using routine blood tests to spot inflammation before it becomes serious, they said.  Credit: catnap72/Getty Images. All Rights Reserved.

New method may improve blood test’s ability to detect inflammation in horses

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

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

Zhaoyang Jiang, Biology Ph.D. candidate, records ion channel activity in a living cell with Timothy Jegla, associate professor of biology, overlooking.

Penn State Eberly College of Science launches new neurobiology major

An illustration of neurons. Credit: Benedict Campbell, Wellcome Images/CC. All Rights Reserved.

Penn State launching two neuroscience undergraduate degrees

Leonid Berlyand and his research group apply mathematical principles to better understand and improve deep learning artificial intelligence.  Credit: Michelle Bixby / Penn State. Creative Commons

Q&A: Can mathematics reveal the depth of deep learning AI?

Penn State Beaver Associate Professor of Biology Sarah Nilson discovered Allium buridckii, a second species of wild ramps, growing in southwestern Pennsylvania. Credit: Sarah Nilson/Penn State Beaver / Penn State. Creative Commons

Second species of wild ramps discovered, solving long-standing debate

World leader in AI and antibiotic discovery to deliver lecture at Penn State

World leader in AI and antibiotic discovery to deliver lecture at Penn State

To see how microbial activity changes near and inside roots, the researchers chose crimson clover, or Trifolium incarnatum, as a test plant. It’s a legume commonly grown as a cover crop in the U.S. Northeast that forms root nodules with bacteria like the one shown here. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Novel technique reveals insights into soil microbe alarm clock

A Multi-Ancestry Analysis Reveals Novel Obesity-Related Genes

Headshot of man smiling

New director expands Center for Biodevices scope for higher impact

Massive cross-ancestry study explains why obesity risks differ around the world

Sahil Pawar, a doctoral candidate in entomology in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, studies how soil salinity, drought and climate change influence the interactions between crops and the pests that feed on them. Credit: Contributed photo. All Rights Reserved.

Salty soil, scrappy bugs and shared ideas drive graduate student’s research

With a $450,000, three-year U.S. National Science Foundation grant and equivalent funding from the Binational Science Foundation in Israel, an international team of researchers co-led by Thomas Wood, biotechnology endowed chair and professor of chemical engineering at Penn State, will investigate the role E. coli plays in the gut and how it may affect intestinal inflammation. Credit: Poornima Tomy/Penn State . All Rights Reserved.

Q&A: Bacteria research could be a gut-punch to inflammatory bowel disease

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

Genes associated with obesity shared across ancestries, researchers find

A team of researchers at Penn State College of Medicine and the Allen Institute for Brain Science has produced new detailed brain growth atlas in mice offers insights into brain development. Credit: Courtesy of the Kim Lab / Penn State. Creative Commons

New detailed brain growth atlas in mice offers insights into brain development

three people wearing lab coats in the Metabolomics Core Facility

Modern methods in biological research course to be offered in spring 2026

Feral hogs, like this one pictured in a Louisiana swamp, were an animal mentioned in a new study that analyzed over half a million tweets to understand how the public talks about invasive species. Other frequently mentioned animals included cats, dogs, squirrels, goats, rats and horses.  Credit: Pedro Mendes/Creative Commons. All Rights Reserved.

Small group of users drive invasive species awareness on social media

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

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

Erica Smithwick is a distinguished professor of geography in the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences. Credit: Provided. All Rights Reserved.

Erica Smithwick to participate in panel on communicating climate research

Thomas Wood is investigating a previously overlooked bacterial defense system that can stop viruses in their tracks. Credit: Poornima Tomy/Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

Old dog, new tricks: Prehistoric viruses can be used to defend bacterial cells