News & Announcements

Chelsea Marcho PhD dissertation defense

photo of Chelsea Marcho

Wednesday, July 18, 2018
2:30 PM
Integrated Sciences Building, Room 221
Dissertation Title:  Characterizing dynamic epigenetic phenomena during early mammalian development
Advisor:  Jesse Mager

Sid Advani PhD dissertation defense

photo of Sid Advani

Thursday, August 2, 2018
2:00 PM
Life Sciences Laboratory, Room S330
Dissertation Title:  Targeted localization of Microtubule-Severing Enzymes to create new, local microtubule-disruption tools to study cell division
Advisor:  Jenny Ross

 

Fritz-Laylin to Develop Genetic Tools to Probe Workings of Deadly Pathogen

photo of Lillian Fritz-Laylin

The brain-eating amoeba Naegleria fowleri is an emerging and deadly protist pathogen whose natural range appears to be rapidly expanding, says Lillian Fritz-Laylin, biology, but it has been “largely unstudied” because it is so dangerous and scientists lack adequate tools for gene manipulation. Read more. Recent article.

New Cancer Immunotherapy Shows Promise in Early Tests

photo of Ashish Kulkarni

Much cancer immunotherapy research has focused on harnessing the immune system’s T cells to fight tumors, “but we knew that other types of immune cells could be important in fighting cancer too,” says biomedical engineer Ashish Kulkarni. Now, he and colleagues report that in preclinical models they can amplify macrophage immune responses against cancer using a self-assembling supramolecule. Read more

UMass Amherst Polymer Scientists Report Unexpected New Dynamics for Large DNA Molecules in Liquid Suspension

research graphic

Polymer physicists Murugappan “Muthu” Muthukumar and Di Jia are reporting the unexpected and previously unknown behavior of a charged macromolecule such as DNA embedded in a charged hydrogel, where it displays what they call a “topologically frustrated” inability to move or diffuse in the gel, a phenomenon they describe in the current Nature Communications. Read more

Congratulations to all of the 2017 - 2018 degree recipients!

photo of MCB students and faculty at Commencement
Sai Balchand Ketan Mathavan
Keith Ballard Emrah Ilker Ozay
Payal Damani-Yokota Amrita Palaria
Derrick Deming Yuzhou Tang
Heidi Hu Joe Torres
Muhammad Adil Khan Robert Vass
Barbara Mann Yili Zhu
See more photos

Lydia Lamriben PhD Dissertation Defense

photo of Lydia Lamriben

Monday, June 18, 2018
2:00 PM
Life Sciences Laboratory, Room S340
Dissertation Title:  Identifying functional components of the ER Degradation-Enhancing Mannosidase-Like Protein 1 (EDEM1)
Advisor:  Dan Hebert

Common Antimicrobial Triclosan Linked to Colonic Inflammation, Altered Gut Microbiota 

photo of Zhenhua Liu, Lisa Minter, graduate students Min Gu, Kathy Sanidad and Weicang Wang, postdoctoral fellow Haixia Yang, Hang Xiao and senior author Guodong Zhang

A large research team led by senior author Guodong Zhang at the University of Massachusetts Amherst reports that the antimicrobial ingredient triclosan, found in hand soaps and toothpastes among other products, could have adverse effects on colonic inflammation and colon cancer by altering gut microbiota, the microbes found in our intestines. Read more

Chemists, International Team Develop Blood Test to Detect Liver Damage in Under an Hour 

photo of Vincent Rotello

Chemist Vincent Rotello, with colleagues at University College London, U.K., announced that they have developed a “quick and robust” blood test that can detect liver damage before symptoms appear, offering what they hope is a significant advance in early detection of liver disease. Details appear in Advanced Materials. Read more

Patricia Wadsworth, incoming Director of the Interdepartmental Graduate Programs (IDGP), Awarded the 2018 CNS Outstanding Service/Engagement Award

Patricia (Pat) Wadsworth, Professor and Associate Chair of Biology, who will become the Director of IDGP in June 2018, has been awarded the 2018 CNS Outstanding Service/Engagement Award. CNS Outstanding Achievement Awards recognize excellence and honor faculty and staff members and students who have made important contributions to their discipline, department, college, and university. Recipients are presented with their awards at a special ceremony in the spring. Read More

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