News Archive
Classifying microbes differently leads to discovery
Emily Scott
Changing the way microbes are classified can reveal similarities among mammals’ gut microbiomes, according to a new study.
The study, published in mBio, proposed an…
Success is sweet: researchers unlock the mysteries of the sugarcane genome
Claudia Lutz
For centuries, sugarcane has supplied human societies with alcohol, biofuel, building and weaving materials, and the world’s most relied-upon source of sugar. Now, researchers…
Damaged liver cells undergo reprogramming to regenerate
Steph Adams
In Greek mythology, Zeus punishes the trickster Prometheus by chaining him to a rock and sending an eagle to eat a portion of his liver every day, in perpetuity. It was the…
Author David Quammen to speak about new book featuring Carl Woese
Jodi Heckel
Science writer David Quammen will be at the University of Illinois to speak about his most recent book that features prominently the revolutionary work of microbiologist Carl R…
Scientists search for coral’s new home
Emily Scott
Coral reefs have long faced problems like overfishing, global warming and pollution — but they’re also threatened by how slow they regenerate.
To reproduce, coral…
Researchers develop microbubble scrubber to destroy dangerous biofilms
Lois Yoksoulian
Stiff microbial films often coat medical devices, household items and infrastructure such as the inside of water supply pipes, and can lead to dangerous infections. Researchers…
$5M DOE Grant for Energy Crops Study
Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment
An Illinois Crop Scientist will lead a team of researchers on a five-year study of new crops that could contribute to the production of affordable, sustainable sources for…
Harnessing microbial communities’ division of labor for biofuel, chemical production
Emily Scott
Much like human society, microbial communities have a division of labor. In these complex groups of microorganisms, different microbes are responsible for different tasks, such…
Kidney stones have distinct geological histories
Diana Yates
A geologist, a microscopist and a doctor walk into a lab and, with their colleagues from across the nation, make a discovery that overturns centuries of thought about the…
Unusual biosynthetic pathway offers a key to future natural product discovery
Cluadia Lutz
Bacteria are master engineers of small, biologically useful molecules. A new study in Nature Communications (DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-06083-7) has revealed one of the tricks of…
Workshop seeks common ground in development and behavior research
Emily Scott
A workshop held at the IGB this summer set out to bridge the gap between research in animal development and research in animal behavior.
The two-day workshop brought…
Researchers develop “cytological ruler” to build 3D map of human genome
Ben Short, Rockefeller University Press
It has been almost 20 years since the human genome was first sequenced, but researchers still know little about how the genome is folded up and organized within cells. In a new…