News & Announcements
Study Demonstrates ‘Tunability’ of Molecular Chaperone
Study Demonstrates ‘Tunability’ of Molecular Chaperone
For decades, molecular biologists studying a class of molecular chaperones known as heat shock proteins (Hsp70s) have relied on the Hsp70s found in bacteria as the model system. Now, Lila Gierasch, one of the world’s experts on the molecule and her team report that their investigation into whether Hsps from mammalian cells behave like those in bacteria reveals “key evolutionary variations” between them. Read more
Clark Elected Fellow of Entomological Society of America
Clark Elected Fellow of Entomological Society of America
John Clark, professor of veterinary and animal sciences, has been elected by the governing board of the Entomological Society of America as a research fellow and was recognized during the society’s joint annual meeting of the Entomological Societies of America, Canada and British Columbia, on Nov. 11-14, in Vancouver, British Columbia. Read more
Rotello Delivers Keynote at Science Teachers’ Conference
Rotello Delivers Keynote at Science Teachers’ Conference
Vincent Rotello, Distinguished Professor of chemistry, delivered the Nov. 2 keynote, “Multidisciplinary Thinking Outside the Box: Fighting Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria using Nanomaterials,” at the annual conference of the Massachusetts Association of Science Teachers in Boxborough. Read more
MCB Alumna, Yadilette Rivera-Colon, featured InFocus: STEM education programs
MCB Alumna, Yadilette Rivera-Colon, featured InFocus: STEM education programs
Yadilette Rivera-Colon, currently a member of the Girls Inc. Board of Directors and an Assistant Professor of Biology and Undergraduate Research Program Coordinator at Bay Path University, was interviewed on 22News InFocus for a discussion about some of the many STEM educational programs available in western Massachusetts. They spoke with people involved with creating those programs and the STEM educators who work with students every day. Yadilette also recently returned to UMass to participate in a panel discussion about Teaching at Smaller Institutions organized by the Office of Professional Development. Full interview (~32:15)
Research Team Aims to Improve Accuracy in Sequencing Large Genomes
Research Team Aims to Improve Accuracy in Sequencing Large Genomes
Theoretical physicist Murugappan Muthukumarat has a four-year, $1.39 million grant from the National Institutes of Health’s National Human Genome Research Institute to overcome known hurdles that are hindering work to sequence mammalian-sized genomes. Read more
Researcher Finds GRE Scores Not Predictive of STEM Doctoral Degree Completion
Researcher Finds GRE Scores Not Predictive of STEM Doctoral Degree Completion
Researchers led by Sandra L. Petersen, professor of neuroendocrine studies, have found convincing evidence that Graduate Record Exam (GRE) scores are not predictive of STEM doctoral degree completion, and that relying on scores from the quantitative section (GRE Q) of the exam is likely to exclude talented students who score below arbitrarily defined “acceptable” scores, but who have other characteristics that are likely better predictors of success. Read more
2018 MCB Retreat at Stratton Mountain
2018 MCB Retreat at Stratton Mountain
UMass Amherst Chemists Publish ‘Breakthrough’ Article on RNA Sequencing
UMass Amherst Chemists Publish ‘Breakthrough’ Article on RNA Sequencing
Chemist Craig Martin and colleagues including first author and doctoral student Yasaman Gholamalipour report they have solved the longstanding mystery of what’s happening to cause RNA sequences to replicate inaccurately in high-yield situations. Details of the work supported by the National Science Foundation appear in Nucleic Acids Research, where journal editors tagged the paper as a “breakthrough article” that presents “high-impact studies answering long-standing questions in the field of nucleic acids research and/or opening up new areas and mechanistic hypotheses for investigation,” and representing “the very best papers published at NAR.” Read more
UMass Amherst Researchers Plan to Develop Alternative Energy Source for Muscle
UMass Amherst Researchers Plan to Develop Alternative Energy Source for Muscle
Muscle biophysicist Ned Debold in the kinesiology department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst’s School of Public Health and Health Sciences, with Dhandapani Venkataraman and Jianhan Chen of the chemistry department, are collaborating on a project to develop a compound to serve as an alternative energy source for skeletal and cardiac muscle during times of stress. The work is supported by a two-year, $200,000 Innovative Project Award from the American Heart Association. Read more
Trustees Approve Tenure Awards for 4 Faculty Members
Trustees Approve Tenure Awards for 4 Faculty Members
Four faculty members were awarded tenure following approval by the Board of Trustees at its Sept. 19 meeting in Lowell:
William Hite, music and dance
Mario Parente, electrical and computer engineering
Alicia R. Timme-Laragy, environmental health sciences
Kristine M. Yu, linguistics