News Archive - Liezel Labios

Growing Strained Crystals Could Improve Performance of Perovskite Electronics

A new method could enable researchers to build more efficient, longer lasting perovskite solar cells and LEDs. By growing thin perovskite films on different substrates, UC San Diego engineers invented a way of fabricating perovskite single crystals with precisely deformed, or strained, structures.

Machine Learning Provides New Paradigm in Understanding Microbial Gene Regulation

UC San Diego bioengineers developed a method that would enable them to understand how E. coli coordinate their expression of thousands of genes. The method uses a machine learning algorithm to automatically interpret gene expression datasets.

New Chip for Waking Up Small Wireless Devices Could Extend Battery Life

A new power saving chip could significantly reduce or eliminate the need to replace batteries in Internet of Things (IoT) devices and wearables. The so-called wake-up receiver wakes up a device only when it needs to communicate and perform its function, saving on power use.

Measuring Cell-Cell Forces Using Snapshots from Time-Lapse Videos of Cells

A new computational method can measure the forces cells exert on each other by analyzing time-lapse videos of cell colonies. It could enable researchers to gain fundamental insights into what role intercellular forces play in cellular biology and how they differ in healthy and diseased states.

Micromotors Push Around Single Cells and Particles

A new type of micromotor—powered by ultrasound and steered by magnets—can move around individual cells and microscopic particles in crowded environments without damaging them. It can also be controlled to move over 3D obstacles. The work could open up new possibilities for nanomedicine.

Study Provides Framework for 1 Billion Years of Green Plant Evolution

An international consortium of nearly 200 plant scientists, including engineers at UC San Diego, has released gene sequences for more than 1100 plant species, the culmination of a nine-year research project. The advance was made possible in large part thanks to new computational tools.

Piranha-Proof Fish Scales Offer Inspiration for Better Armor

Material scientists have discovered what makes the scales of the massive Amazonian freshwater fish, Arapaima gigas, resistant to breaking when a piranha bites. The answer could serve as inspiration for stronger, lightweight and flexible synthetic armors.

Drug-Light Combo Could Offer Control Over CAR T-Cell Therapy

UC San Diego bioengineers are a step closer to making CAR T-cell therapy safer, more precise and easy to control. They developed a system that allows them to select where and when CAR T cells get turned on so that they destroy cancer cells without harming normal cells.

These New Soft Actuators Could Make Soft Robots Less Bulky

UC San Diego engineers have developed a way to build soft robots that are compact, portable and multifunctional. The advance was made possible by creating soft, tubular actuators whose movements are electrically controlled, which makes them easy to integrate with small electronic components.

Study Uncovers Metabolic Cause for Rare Eye Disease

An international team of researchers has discovered a cause for a rare eye disease affecting the macula that leads to loss of central vision, called macular telangiectasia type 2 (MacTel).