Biologists have provided the first example of cargo within bacteriophage cells transiting along treadmill-like structures. The discovery demonstrates that bacteria have more in common with sophisticated human cells than previously believed.
A multidisciplinary team has found the underlying mechanisms controlling the size of cells. The researchers found that “the adder,” a function that guides cells to grow by a fixed added size from birth to division, is controlled by specific proteins that accumulate to a specific threshold.
Neurobiologists have located the brain area responsible for value decisions. Data from thousands of neurons revealed an area of the brain called the retrosplenial cortex, previously not known for “value-based decision-making,” a behavior that is impaired in a range of neurological conditions.
The National Academy of Sciences announced that Susan Ackerman and Bill McGinnis have been elected to membership in the prestigious organization, one of the highest honors for U.S. scientists. Also elected this year is Jeremy Jackson, professor emeritus with Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
On September 15, 2018, UC San Diego introduced Kit Pogliano, a professor of molecular biology and a faculty member since 1996, as its fourth dean of Biological Sciences and the division’s first female leader.
In a world increasingly filled with insider acronyms and technical jargon, the ability to explain research in clear, concise language to lay audiences is increasingly becoming a rare skill.
Susan Ackerman, Yishi Jin and John Wixted of UC San Diego have been elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, one of the country’s most esteemed honorary societies and independent policy research centers. They will join 200 new members in the organization’s 2019 class.
A series of tests conducted over several years by UC San Diego scientists have shown for the first time that the pesticide Sivanto could pose a range of threats to honey bees depending on seasonality, bee age and use in combination with common chemicals such as fungicides.
Scientists developed a new version of a gene drive that spreads favorable genetic variants, also known as “alleles,” throughout a population. The new “allelic drive” is equipped with a guide RNA that directs CRISPR to cut undesired variants of a gene and replace them with a preferred version.
UC San Diego researchers have discovered an unexpected mechanism that allows bacteria to defend themselves against antibiotics, a finding that could lead to retooled drugs to treat infectious diseases.