News Archive - Research Alerts

Screen Reveals New Proteins That Control RNA Processing

Researchers at UC San Diego have developed a large-scale screening approach that identifies proteins controlling a fundamental step in gene expression known as alternative polyadenylation (APA). APA determines where an RNA molecule is cut and finished before it is translated into protein.

UC San Diego Study Tracks Shifting US Smoking Norms Over 30 Years

Using data from 1.5 million respondents in the Tobacco Use Supplement to the Current Population Survey, researchers created a “Willingness to Restrict Smoking” (WTRS) scale that captures how strongly people believe smoking should be restricted in public settings.

How Mountains Are Really Made

Scientists have discovered that the southern Andes Mountains don’t rise slowly and steadily as previously thought. Instead, the range builds itself in short, powerful “pulses” every few million years.

What Powered the Earth’s Earliest Life?

Early biological systems that could generate guanosine‑triphosphate (GTP) from prebiotic chemicals would gain a crucial advantage toward self‑replication. Now researchers from the UC San Diego report a version of an RNA enzyme (ribozyme) that makes GTP synthesis more efficient than its predecessor.

Gene Therapy Approach Reduces Muscle Spasticity After Chronic Spinal Cord Injury

New research suggests that a single administration of spinal segment-targeted gene therapy may provide a long-lasting strategy for reducing muscle spasticity caused by spinal cord injury and potentially other neurological conditions associated with abnormal muscle tone.