Neuroscience News | Neuroscience | The Huck Institutes (en-US)

$A new study involving about 850,000 adults across six continental ancestries, has identified 13 genes associated with obesity across ancestries. While eight of these genes had been found in previous studies, five were identified for the first time, having no previous links to obesity. The colors of the DNA helix in the image represent ancestral difference in genetic background around the world. The black figures represent people who do not carry gene mutations found to be associated with obesity while the red figures carry them. The fraction of red and black figures highlights the differences in genetic mutations across the world. Credit: Deepro Banerjee, Girirajan Laboratory / Penn State. Creative Commons$

Oct 30, 2025

Genes associated with obesity shared across ancestries, researchers find

A new study from Penn State involving nearly 850,000 adults across six continental ancestries has identified 13 genes linked to obesity, including five never before connected to the condition. The findings provide new insight into how genetics influence obesity and related diseases such as Type 2 diabetes and heart failure.

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A team of researchers at Penn State College of Medicine and the Allen Institute for Brain Science has produced new detailed brain growth atlas in mice offers insights into brain development. Credit: Courtesy of the Kim Lab / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 30, 2025

New detailed brain growth atlas in mice offers insights into brain development

A team of researchers at Penn State College of Medicine and the Allen Institute for Brain Science has produced new detailed brain growth atlas in mice offers insights into brain development.

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A team of researchers from Penn State and the University of Illinois Chicago has been awarded a grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation to employ biomedical research, clinical data, advanced artificial intelligence and mathematical modeling methods to ultimately support personalized medicine for people with Alzheimer’s disease. The team at Penn State includes Wenrui Hao, professor of mathematics and director of the Center for Mathematical Biology; Rui Zhang, assistant professor of computer science and engineering; and Wenpeng Yin, assistant professor of computer science and engineering. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 24, 2025

Can digital replicas of patients help personalize Alzheimer’s treatment?

New NSF grant supports project to build 'digital twin' replicas of patients using clinical data to study disease progression and treatment options.

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New research helps explain why disease-associated genetic variants can lead to variable clinical outcomes, influenced both by the patterns of secondary variants, or genetic background, and by how cohorts of individuals in a study are ascertained. In a family, shown on left, secondary variants can influence the severity of clinical outcomes, which is indicated by intensity of blue shading, or which features are present between a parent and a child that both carry the primary variant. However, this relationship between secondary and primary variants is different if the primary variant was discovered in a biobank that includes mostly healthy individuals, in the middle, or people identified for a shared clinical feature, on right. Credit: Corrine Smolen/Girirajan Laboratory / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 09, 2025

Background genetic variants influence clinical features in complex disorders

New study reveals how the complex interplay of genetic background can lead to different clinical presentations in individuals that share a primary genetic variant.

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Wenrui Hao, professor of mathematics, was named director of the Center for Mathematical Biology. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 06, 2025

Center for Mathematical Biology appoints new director

Wenrui Hao, professor of mathematics in the Penn State Eberly College of Science and 2025-26 Huck Leadership Fellow, has been named the new director for the Center for Mathematical Biology in the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences.

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A new research network co-led by researchers at Penn State seeks to detect the earliest signs of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias years before symptoms emerge, in order to to reduce the personal and financial impacts of the disease. Credit: Getty Images - Milan2099. All Rights Reserved.

Sep 25, 2025

Penn State to co-lead national brain health and dementia prevention initiative

New network aims to advance early Alzheimer's detection through open-source digital tools and was made possible by a $39M grant from the National Institute on Aging.

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The Huck Institute of the Life Sciences at Penn State University Park. Credit: Patrick Mansell / Penn State. Creative Commons

Sep 16, 2025

Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences names 2025-26 seed grant recipients

The Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences at Penn State has selected eight research teams that span 12 departments across six colleges to receive 2025-26 seed grant funding.

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A team led by a researcher at Penn State has developed a sensor that can help diagnose diabetes and prediabetes on-site in a few minutes using just a breath sample.

Aug 25, 2025

New sensor is a breath of fresh air for diagnosing diabetes

A team led by a researcher at Penn State has developed a sensor that can help diagnose diabetes and prediabetes on-site in a few minutes using just a breath sample.

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Aug 19, 2025

Eberly College introduces Science Matters: Spotlight Sessions outreach events

The Penn State Eberly College of Science is introducing a new series of outreach events — titled Science Matters: Spotlight Sessions — to provide a unique opportunity for the community to engage directly with the brilliant minds working on the front lines of discovery to create positive, real-world impact.

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Aug 05, 2025

Huck names new associate director for graduate education

Penn State Professor of Anthropology David Puts has been named the associate director for graduate education at the Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences.

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