News Archive
Light green plants save nitrogen without sacrificing photosynthetic efficiency
Claire Benjamin
The top leaves of crops absorb far more light than they can use, starving lower leaves of light. Scientists designed plants with light green leaves with hopes of allowing more…
Theory: Flexibility is at the heart of human intelligence
Diana Yates
Centuries of study have yielded many theories about how the brain gives rise to human intelligence. Some neuroscientists think intelligence springs from a single region or…
Expanding the potential of metabolic engineering
Emily Scott
For decades, scientists have used the natural processes in cells to create useful products such as chemicals and biofuels.
This process, known as metabolic…
Five Illinois researchers rank among world’s most influential
Five faculty members at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign have been named to the 2017 Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researchers list (previously known as the…
Genomic study explores evolution of gentle 'killer bees' in Puerto Rico
Diana Yates
A genomic study of Puerto Rico's Africanized honey bees - which are more docile than other so-called "killer bees" - reveals that they retain most of the genetic traits of…
Cell phone software creates new possibilities for precision medicine
Claudia Lutz
Embedded in our society is a cultural memory of the old-time family doctor, a medical practitioner who knows of your family, your history, and your daily life, and uses that…
Hacking evolution, screening technique may improve most widespread enzyme
Claire Benjamin
Plants evolved over millions of years into an environment that has dramatically changed in the last 150 years since the Industrial Revolution began: carbon dioxide levels have…
Study reveals how bacteria steal nutrients from human hosts
Steph Adams, with contributions from Serina Tajula
A new study, published in mBio, exposes a zinc-import system in bacteria that could contribute to their ability to cause infection.
The study looked at how the bacterium…
Expanding Brazilian sugarcane could dent global CO2 emissions
Diana Yates
Vastly expanding sugarcane production in Brazil for conversion to ethanol could reduce current global carbon dioxide emissions by as much as 5.6 percent, researchers report in…
Nutrition scientist Sharon Donovan elected to National Academy of Medicine
Sharita Forrest
Sharon M. Donovan, a professor of nutrition and the Melissa M. Noel Endowed Chair in Nutrition and Health at the University of Illinois, was elected today on October 16, 2017…
Cholesterol byproduct hijacks immune cells, lets breast cancer spread
Liz Ahlberg Touchstone
High cholesterol levels have been associated with breast cancer spreading to other sites in the body, but doctors and researchers don't know the cause for the link. A new study…
U.S. Department of Energy grant to fund sorghum research at Illinois
Donald Danforth Plant Science Center and Dave Evensen
An Illinois professor is part of a multi-institutional research project that has received a 5-year, $16 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to work with…