News Archive [2018]

[ 2018-06 ] Small sample sizes in studies using functional MRI to investigate brain connectivity and function are common in neuroscience, despite years of warnings that such studies likely…

[ 2018-06 ] Neighborhood characteristics such as racial composition and poverty rates are associated with increased risks of late-stage breast cancer diagnoses and higher mortality rates…

[ 2018-05 ] A new genetic study of ancient individuals in the Americas and their contemporary descendants finds that two populations that diverged from one another 18,000 to 15,000 years ago…

[ 2018-05 ] Plants such as soybeans and wheat waste between 20 and 50 percent of their energy recycling toxic chemicals created when the enzyme Rubisco—the most prevalent enzyme in the world—…

[ 2018-05 ] With targeted drug and gene therapies, finding the target cells is only half the battle. Once these agents reach a cell’s surface, they still have to get inside and do their job.…

[ 2018-05 ] Cassava is a staple in the diet of more than one billion people across 105 countries, yet this “orphaned crop” has received little attention compared to popular crops like corn…

[ 2018-05 ] The CRISPR-Cas9 system has given researchers the power to precisely edit selected genes. Now, researchers have used it to develop a technology that can target any gene in the…

[ 2018-05 ] Diets rich in nuts, such as walnuts, have been shown to play a role in heart health and in reducing colorectal cancer. According to a new study from the University of Illinois,…

[ 2018-05 ] Ruby Mendenhall has been named the assistant dean for diversity and democratization of health innovation at the Carle Illinois College of Medicine. Mendenhall is also an associate…

[ 2018-04 ] A new article in the journal Science provides guidance for those intending to study ancient human remains in the Americas. The paper, written by Indigenous scholars and scientists…

[ 2018-04 ] Although it is erroneously treated as a subspecies, the dwindling African forest elephant is a genetically distinct species. New University of Illinois research has found that…

[ 2018-04 ] An international consortium of scientists is proposing a massive project to sequence, catalog and analyze the genomes of all known eukaryotic species on the planet, an undertaking…

[ 2018-03 ] Learn about IGB research, hear about current issues in the life sciences, and connect with other students on campus at the annual Fellows Symposium. This full-day event, sponsored…

[ 2018-04 ] The little-known and smallest member of the rhinoceros family, the Sumatran rhinoceros, is critically endangered. Today between 30 and 100 are isolated on the islands of Sumatra…

[ 2018-03 ] University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign researchers recently received a $1.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to develop a new assay technology that…

[ 2018-03 ] Researchers say they can now produce a vast library of unique cyclic compounds, some with the capacity to interrupt specific protein-protein interactions that play a role in…

[ 2018-03 ] Agriculture already monopolizes 90 percent of global freshwater—yet production still needs to dramatically increase to feed and fuel this century’s growing population. For the…

[ 2018-03 ] Beekeepers face challenges when they monitor the health of their honeybee colonies, and winter poses increased risk because opening a hive in cooler temperatures to collect data…

[ 2018-02 ] The Center for Advanced Bioenergy and Bioproducts Innovation (CABBI) officially launched as a new U.S. Department of Energy Bioenergy Research Center with a celebration on Feb. 1…

[ 2018-02 ] Twelve-foot metal poles with long outstretched arms dot a Midwestern soybean field to monitor an invisible array of light emitted by crops. This light can reveal the plants’…