Taekjip Ha

Bacteria employ many different strategies to regulate gene expression in response to fluctuating, often stressful, conditions in their environments. One type of regulation involves non-coding RNA molecules called small RNAs (sRNAs), which are found in all domains of life. A new study by researchers describes, for the first time, the impacts of sRNA interactions in individual bacterial cells. Their findings are reported in the journal Nature Communications, with the paper selected as an Editors’ highlight article.

Physics professor Taekjip Ha has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences, one of the highest professional honors a scientist can garner. He is among 84 new members and 21 foreign associates announced by the Academy on April 28, including fellow Illinois professors Renée Baillargeon, Gary Dell, Steve Granick, Catherine Murphy and John A. Rogers.

Advanced techniques yield new insights into ribosome self-assembly

Ribosomes, the cellular machines that build proteins, are themselves made up of dozens of proteins and a few looping strands of RNA. A new study, reported in the journal Nature, offers new clues about how the ribosome, the master assembler of proteins, also assembles itself.

Cellular Decision Making in Cancer Theme Leader Taekjip Ha has been awarded the 2011 Ho-Am Prize in Science by the Ho-Am Foundation in Korea. The Prize was established by Kun-hee Lee, chairman of Samsung, in 1990 to honor the vision of "Ho-Am" Byung-Chull Lee, the founder of Samsung, and to carry forward his commitment to promote activities and people that contribute to the public well-being. The Ho-Am Prizes are widely regarded as the Korean equivalent of the Nobel Prizes.