1. Home
  2. News

News

Explore the discoveries and breakthroughs advancing the life sciences

Find By:

Penn State and U.S. National Science Foundation representatives cut a ribbon celebrating the official launch of the U.S. National Science Foundation National Synthesis Center for Emergence in the Molecular and Cellular Sciences (NCEMS) with the Penn State Nittany Lion mascot. The NCEMS launch took place on Monday, Nov. 18, and provided information about open calls for working groups, fellowships and internships, as well as a growth trajectory over the next five years. Credit: Keith Hickey/Huck Institutes. All Rights Reserved.

November 27, 2024

Heard on Campus: Launch of new center in molecular and cellular sciences, NCEMS
Xiaojun “Lance” Lian, associate professor of biomedical engineering and of biology at Penn State, will work on generating universal donor stem cells through genome editing of pluripotent stem cells in his lab. Credit: Kate Myers/Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

November 26, 2024

$2.6M grant to advance potential stem cell-based heart disease treatment
Biochar comprises organic waste material and is made by pyrolysis, a process that involves heating the organic material in a limited oxygen environment. Credit: Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

November 26, 2024

Researchers to study how to make carbon-storing product safer, more sustainable
The agroforestry practice of forest farming may be a solution to conservation challenges surrounding the wild exploitation of ramps, often called wild leeks, but it requires proper site selection to be successful. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

November 26, 2024

Better habitats for forest farming wild leeks could help future foraging demands
The researchers said they hope their recent findings will give homeowners the confidence to participate in tick management around their homes and yards. Credit: Dillon Fancher/Unsplash. All Rights Reserved.

November 25, 2024

Tick tubes help reduce the parasites on mice, but time and frequency matters
To recognize Penn State for its impactful cacao and chocolate research, the government of Ecuador gifted a replica of an ancient ceramic vessel containing remnants of cacao dating back 5,300 years. Present at the ceremony were, from left, Monica Sanchez, minister of the foreign service, Ecuador; Soledad Peña, office of deputy chief of mission, Embassy of Ecuador; Cristian Espinosa, ambassador of Ecuador in the United States; Mark Gultinan, professor of plant molecular biology and director of the Penn State Plant Institute; Siela Maximova, research professor of biotechnology and director for Latin America and the Caribbean, Penn State Global; Mariuxi Cárdenas Rodas, cultural and educational attaché; and Deanna Behring, assistant dean and director, Ag Sciences Global. Credit: Daryl Branford. All Rights Reserved.

November 22, 2024

Penn State receives replica of historic ceramic vessel from Ecuador government
Research team leader Heather Preisendanz, professor of agricultural and biological engineering at Penn State, deploys a sampling device in Spruce Creek to detect contaminants of emerging concern in the water. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

November 22, 2024

Alternate stream water-testing method detects emerging contaminants
Igor Aronson, Huck Chair Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Chemistry and Mathematics, and his co-principal investigator Erwin Frey, professor of physics at Ludwin-Maximilians Universität in Munich, Germany, received a $1,058,000 grant from the John Templeton Foundation to advance this research by considering different populations of agents, how they evolve and the different characteristics of such agents. The research team is focused on understanding how simple interactions between microrobots lead to complex, or intelligent-like behavior such as threat detection, disassembling and reorganizing on signal, and shape retention. Credit: Penn State. All Rights Reserved.

November 22, 2024

Q&A: How does ‘collective intelligence’ emerge among tiny robots?
Anyone interested in managing weight while eating satisfying and nutritious foods can learn about a science-based way to accomplish those goals by attending a six-part Penn State Extension webinar series, “The Volumetrics Weigh of Life: Weight Management Plan." Credit: The Ultimate Volumetrics Diet by Barbara Rolls. All Rights Reserved.

November 20, 2024

With the new year, establish new healthy habits with Volumetrics series
New research shows that binge drinking in early adult mice can lead to long-lasting and potentially permanent dysregulation in the brain. The researchers used patch-clamp electrophysiology, shown here, to understand how signaling in the brain was impacted by alcohol after a long period of abstinence. Credit: Kelby Hochreither / Penn State. Creative Commons

November 19, 2024

Early adult binge drinking has lasting impact on aging brain in mice
A study led by researchers at Penn State analyzed data from 430 rivers across the U.S. and found that phosphorus loss from agricultural lands has increased over the past four decades, despite efforts to reduce it. This loss of phosphorus can potentially lead to decreased crop yields, which can possibly drive up the cost of food, the researchers explained. Credit: Tyler Groh / Penn State. Creative Commons

November 18, 2024

American soil losing more crop nutrients due to heavier rainstorms, study shows
Credit: Anne Marie Vardo-Zalik. All Rights Reserved.

November 15, 2024

York professor helps students engage in ecology research in California
Early career researchers from 14 countries and five continents joined together to conduct research at the Dickinson College Farm in Carlisle. They were broken into four research groups based on the water-energy-food nexus paradigm: soil health, waste management, renewable fuels, and livestock and water quality. Credit: Contributed photo. All Rights Reserved.

November 15, 2024

Penn State water-energy-food nexus project takes a global approach
A sample of a microbe collected on Penn State’s University Park campus grows on an agar plate. Microbes are the foundation of our agricultural, environmental and human ecosystems, and they flow between these three environments to shape health and disease risk within each system. Credit: Michelle Bixby / Penn State. Creative Commons

November 14, 2024

Q&A: How do microbiomes influence the study of life?
Neuroscience graduate student Chad Brunswick

November 13, 2024

Neuroscience student wins National Research Service Award fellowship
Three Penn State researchers have be selected to receive grants from the Charles E. Kaufman Foundation. From left: Grayson Sipe, assistant professor of biology, was selected to receive a New Investigator grant; and David Radice, associate professor of physics and of astronomy and astrophysics, and Romit Maulik, assistant professor of information sciences and technology, were selected to receive a New Initiatives grant. Credit: Provided. All Rights Reserved.

November 13, 2024

Three Penn State researchers awarded scientific grants from Kaufman Foundation

November 13, 2024

Is It Time to Worry About Bird Flu?

November 13, 2024

This 2-step hack to reduce the calories in white rice is going viral — and dietitians say it actually works
Suk Lan Ser, winner of the first-place graduate poster prize, presents her research at the Biology and Ecology Student Research Showcase on Nov. 1, 2024. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

November 11, 2024

Biology and Ecology Student Research Showcase winners announced
A consistent bedtime will help children fall asleep at the same time, according to researchers in the College of Health and Human Development and College of Medicine. Credit: Getty Images - Jecapix. All Rights Reserved.

November 11, 2024

Consistent bedtime linked with better child emotion and behavior regulation

November 08, 2024

Penn State’s chemical engineering program celebrates 100 years
Nanyin Zhang, the Dorothy Foehr Huck and J. Lloyd Huck Chair in Brain Imaging and professor of biomedical engineering at Penn State. Credit: Poornima Tomy/Penn State . All Rights Reserved.

November 08, 2024

Uncharted territory: A Q&A with Nanyin Zhang on mapping brain activity

November 08, 2024

Can Ozempic Make You A Better Runner?
The novel Cleavage High-throughput Assay (CHiTA) developed at Penn State provides a scarless method to characterize thousands of diverse small self-cleaving RNA enzymes, called twister ribozymes, in a single experiment. The image shows 2D models of some of the tested ribozymes that had imperfections in their helical and loop elements but were still active, demonstrating that twister ribozyme's ability to self-cleave is tolerant of these slight structural imperfections. Credit: Lauren McKinley and Philip Bevilacqua / Penn State. Creative Commons

November 05, 2024

Testing thousands of RNA enzymes helps find first ‘twister ribozyme’ in mammals