Tag Biology
UW-Madison launches Microbiome Initiative
Recent studies have shown that the complement of microorganisms known as the microbiome is an important determinant of human health and disease. Read More
UW botanist leads petition to give Venus flytrap endangered species protection
The plant faces multiple threats: habitat loss, diminished genetic diversity, predators and outbreaks of disease. Read More
Yeast knockouts peel back secrets of cell protein function
The study provided a level of detail not available even five years ago. Improved technology cut the time to analyze all the proteins in a yeast sample from four hours to one hour. Read More
New UW–Madison center offers ultra-speed protein analysis
Knowing which protein forms are present in what quantities, their subcellular location and their function is critical to understanding health and disease. Read More
Lessons of lager: Yeast origin becomes a complex tale
The findings are important as yeasts are critical to many industries — brewing, fermenting other foods, making drugs like human insulin, and producing new biofuels. Read More
UW biotech spinoff Mirus Bio celebrates two decades in business
The company makes cutting-edge products based on discoveries by three UW scientists for delivering DNA and RNA into cells. Read More
UW technology key to growth as firm stays in Madison long after sale
The explosion in next-generation sequencing has opened windows throughout medicine and biology. Read More
In these microbes, iron works like oxygen
Two new studies can shed some light on the perennial question of how life arose, but they also have practical applications in the search for life in space. Read More
Single brain cells reveal genes controlling formation, development
The exploratory analysis may open a new window on understanding complex disorders like autism. Read More
UW–Madison researchers begin work on Zika virus
Very little is known about the virus even though more than 50 years have passed since it was discovered in the Zika Forest in Uganda. Read More
UW–Madison engineers create custom tuning knobs to turn off any gene
An advance by UW–Madison engineers allows scientists to fine-tune biological functions in their bacterial 'employees.' Read More
Lewis Thomas Prize to be awarded to Wisconsin’s Sean Carroll
Carroll was instrumental in building the field of evolutionary developmental biology, known colloquially as evo devo. Read More
Study illuminates war between the sexes: fruit fly edition
New research from the Laboratory of Genetics pinpoints the effect on reproduction of a female's ability to masquerade as a male. Read More
Mycologist says our close relatives break the bounds of biology
The mushroom nicknamed "death cap" made headlines this summer when it poisoned Syrian refugees fleeing through Eastern Europe. Read More
Galapagos tortoise species ID’d from specimen in UW museum
A new species of giant Galapagos tortoise, revealed this week in a study conducted by scientists at Yale University, also happened to be lurking in the collections of the University of Wisconsin–Madison's Zoological Museum, it turns out. Read More
Ancient rocks record first evidence for photosynthesis that made oxygen
A new study shows that iron-bearing rocks that formed at the ocean floor 3.2 billion years ago carry unmistakable evidence of oxygen. The only logical source for that oxygen is the earliest known example of photosynthesis by living organisms, say University of Wisconsin–Madison geoscientists. Read More
Stem cell-derived ‘organoids’ help predict neural toxicity
A new system developed by scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research and the University of Wisconsin–Madison may provide a faster, cheaper and more biologically relevant way to screen drugs and chemicals that could harm the developing brain. Read More
Sustainable nanotechnology center lands new $20 million contract
The Center for Sustainable Nanotechnology, a multi-institutional research center based at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, has inked a new contract with the National Science Foundation (NSF) that will provide nearly $20 million in support over the next five years. Read More
UW 2020: New VCRGE program to support early stage research
In an effort to create a dynamic new funding mechanism for bold research ideas, ideas with potential to drive significant discoveries, the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education (VCRGE), with support from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF), is teeing up a new program to seed potentially groundbreaking research. Read More
Chemical dial controls attraction between water-repelling molecules
Abbott, Gellman and a group of University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers have provided new insights on hydrophobic interactions within complex systems. In a study published today in the journal Nature, the researchers show how the nearby presence of polar (water-attracted, or hydrophilic) substances can change the way the nonpolar hydrophobic groups want to stick to each other. Read More