News | The Huck Institutes (en-US)

Nov 11, 2024

Biology and Ecology Student Research Showcase winners announced

The Biology and Ecology Student Research Showcase, hosted by the Biology Graduate Student Association and Ecology Graduate Student Organization on Nov. 1, featured poster and podium presentations from nearly 30 graduate and undergraduate students.

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Nov 08, 2024

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

To understand how different regions of the brain work together, researchers use a method called resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI). The method measures brain activity by observing changes in blood flow to different parts of the brain; however, rsfMRI does not explain how these blood flow changes to different brain regions relate to what is happening with the brain’s neurons — cells that send and receive messages in the form of electronic signals.

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Jonathan Lynch in Mozambique reviewing a bean experiment with (from left) Celestina Jochua, Magalhaes Miguel and Soares Xerinda, all of whom are scientists with the Mozambican government, who earned their doctoral degrees under Lynch's supervision at Penn State. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

Nov 05, 2024

Distinguished professor in plant nutrition retires after long, impactful career

Jonathan Lynch, distinguished professor of plant nutrition, retired this fall after an innovative and impactful 33-year career in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, focused on conducting research to alleviate world hunger and enhance crop production by subsistence farmers in developing countries.

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The oral microbiome differs with lifestyle, according to a new study led by Penn State biologists. The research team gathered saliva samples from Nepali people over a range of subsistence strategies— from nomadic hunter gatherers to farmers to industrialized groups. Credit: Aashish Jha/New York University Abu Dhabi. All Rights Reserved.

Nov 05, 2024

Microbes in mouth reflect lifestyle choices

New study in Nepal reveals that oral microbiomes differ among traditional foragers, agriculturalists and industrialists, and with behaviors like smoking and diet

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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

Nov 05, 2024

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

A new method, developed by Penn State researchers, can test the activity of thousands of predicted ribozymes in a single experiment.

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Credit: Getty Images - fcafotodigital. All Rights Reserved.

Nov 04, 2024

Nutritional sciences researchers receive funds from McCormick Science Institute

Researchers from the Departments of Nutritional Sciences and Food Science at Penn State have recently received $420,000 in funding from the McCormick Science Institute (MSI) to study the use of herbs and spices in school lunch recipes over the next two years.

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Rangelands offer potential for natural climate solutions — storing vast quantities of carbon in rangeland soils while also supporting the livelihoods of communities. Credit: Conservation South Africa. All Rights Reserved.

Oct 31, 2024

$1.3M NSF grant to fund research into restoration of degraded ecosystems

An international team of researchers led by Ida Djenontin, assistant professor of geography at Penn State, was recently awarded a $1.3 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation’s Dynamics of Integrated Socio-Environmental Systems program to investigate the socioecological outcomes of restoration in degraded woodlands ecosystems.

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Using a new method to turn stripped-down plant cells into other types of cells, a team led by Sarah Pfaff, postdoctoral scholar in biology at Penn State, explored how structures called banding patterns in cell walls can increase their stability. They also studied how the assembly of these patterns goes astray in mutant plants, which could inform methods to break down plant cells for biofuels. Credit: Michelle Bixby / Penn State. Creative Commons

Oct 31, 2024

Stem cell-like approach in plants sheds light on specialized cell wall formation

New method reprograms isolated plant cells to form other cell types.

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Oct 31, 2024

Huck researchers reflect on the 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

This month, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to three scientists credited with historic breakthroughs surrounding proteins and their structures. Three Huck researchers working on similar challenges chime in with their thoughts.

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Oct 30, 2024

Panel discussion to highlight art and science collaborations

Faculty and postdoctoral scholars exhibiting their work in the “Synergies in Art and Science” exhibition at the Borland Project Space (BPS) will participate in a panel discussion, open to the public, on Friday, Nov. 8, noon–1:30 p.m., in the BPS, 125 Borland.

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