November 3, 2020
November 3, 2020 —
UC scientists have made a major advance in the use of genetic technologies to control the transmission of malaria parasites. They employed a strategy known as population modification, which uses a CRISPR-Cas9 gene drive system to introduce genes preventing parasite transmission in mosquitoes.
October 20, 2020
October 20, 2020 —
The National Academy of Medicine (NAM) has announced that University of California San Diego Professor Susan Ackerman, a pioneer in the study of homeostasis in developing and aging neurons, has been elected to membership in the prestigious organization.
September 29, 2020
September 29, 2020 —
UC San Diego scientists are providing new clues on how cells defend themselves from attack from viruses. The new study advance’s science’s understanding of interferons— proteins that help combat viruses like SARS-CoV-2—with possible implications for new clinical treatments.
September 18, 2020
September 18, 2020 —
Addressing concerns about gene-drive releases in the wild, UC San Diego scientists and their colleagues have developed two new genetic systems that halt or eliminate gene drives after release. The details are published in the journal Molecular Cell.
September 9, 2020
September 9, 2020 —
With the aid of artificial intelligence, UC San Diego scientists have solved a long-standing puzzle in human gene activation. The discovery described in the journal Nature could be used to control gene activation in biotechnology and biomedical applications.
August 26, 2020
August 26, 2020 —
Molecules known as tRNAs are often overlooked in study of disease processes. Researchers have now found that a mutation in a tRNA gene called n-Tr20—expressed only in the brain—can disrupt the landscape of entire cells, leading to chain reactions that alter brain function and behavior.
August 19, 2020
August 19, 2020 —
An elusive protein that many consider the key of fully understanding the causes of genetic Parkinson’s disease has come much more clearly into focus. Impacting millions around the world, Parkinson’s is a neurological disorder that progressively attacks motor functions.
August 19, 2020
August 19, 2020 —
An elusive protein that many consider the key of fully understanding the causes of genetic Parkinson’s disease has come much more clearly into focus. Impacting millions around the world, Parkinson’s is a neurological disorder that progressively attacks motor functions.
August 18, 2020
August 18, 2020 —
What are the boundaries of natural selection? Research published in PNAS shows that even natural selection has a tough time optimizing performance simultaneously across multiple components of the cell. They call the concept "evolutionary stalling."
July 21, 2020
July 21, 2020 —
Researchers investigating the ways that plants protect themselves—from insects to pathogens—have discovered an “on-off” switch that controls plant defensive mechanisms. The finding lays the groundwork for improved plant disease resistance and food stability.
