Bioengineering and biotechnology

Seen here are two clusters of precancerous cells (lower half of image), which arose in pancreatic cells expressing the pdx1 protein and the cancer gene K-ras.

Possible origins of pancreatic cancer revealed

Tumors can arise from different cell types in the pancreas, depending on the circumstances, according to MIT cancer biologists.

November 3, 2009

PET Scans Showing PiB Uptake in the brain of a cognitively healthy person (left) and in the brain of a person with AD (right).

Back to (brain) basics

MIT neuroscientists are using their knowledge of the brain to generate promising treatments for autism, mental retardation and Alzheimer’s disease.

November 3, 2009

This colorized negative-stained transmission electron micrograph (TEM) depicts the ultrastructural details of a number of influenza virus particles, or “virions."

More jabs needed

Study suggests that vaccinating many more people could slow the seasonal influenza virus's ability to evade vaccines.

October 30, 2009

Left: Tumors are visible in the lungs of a mouse in which the NF-kappaB protein is not inhibited. Right: In the lungs of a mouse in which NF-kappaB is inhibited, tumor growth is significantly slowed. Images were taken at the Koch Institute Microscopy and Imaging Core Facility.

Protein is linked to lung cancer development

Drugs that inhibit the protein, which normally helps defend cells from infection, could target tumors in certain lung cancer patients.

October 22, 2009

A head of time

For the first time, neuroscientists find brain cells that keep track of time with extreme precision.

October 20, 2009

Deshpande Center's latest funding cycle supports goal of 'idea to impact'

Since 2002, the Deshpande Center for Technological Innovation has funded more than 80 projects with over $9 M in grants. The center supports a wide range of emerging technologies including biotechnology, biomedical devices, information technology, new materials, tiny tech, and energy innovations. Eighteen projects have spun out of the center as independent startups, having collectively raised over $150 million in outside financing from investors.

October 17, 2009

$Until recently, scientists theorized that DNA organized itself into a structure known as an equilibrium globule, left. This type of structure is highly tangled, and stretches of DNA located near each other on a chromosome may be far apart in the 3D structure. MIT, Harvard and UMass Medical School researchers have shown that DNA is actually organized as a fractal globule, right, which resists knott...$

A new dimension for genome studies

By revealing the 3-D structure of DNA, scientists explain how it manages to stay untangled. The findings could also help reveal how cells regulate their genes.

October 9, 2009

A capital achievement

In White House ceremony, President Barack Obama presents JoAnne Stubbe with the National Medal of Science in recognition of enzyme research that led to cancer drug.

October 7, 2009