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Cancer Systems Biology Identifies Master Regulators and New Drug Targets in Therapy-Resistant Cancer

July 2, 2018
New research published today in the Nature Partner journal npj Systems Biology and Applications establishes how genome-wide data in combination with systems biology analyses can identify master regulators and new drug targets in therapy-resistant cancers. The new discovery explains how cancer...

Misbehaving “Killer” Cells Accelerate Progress of Autoimmune Disease

June 29, 2018
In 1998, scientists studying rheumatoid arthritis observed a population of immune cells that weren’t behaving the way they were supposed to. Immunologists noted the strange phenomenon, but decided not to pursue the subject further, and the cells were soon forgotten. But interest in these cells has...

Following a Devastating Pandemic, California’s Sea Stars are Evolving

June 19, 2018
In 2012, Environmental Systems graduate student Lauren Schiebelhut was collecting DNA from ochre sea stars living along the Northern California coast — part of an effort to study genetic diversity in various marine species that serve as indicators of habitat health. She had no idea that just one...

Beaudin Named Campus’ Second Winner of Prestigious Pew Award

June 14, 2018
Biology Professor Anna Beaudin was named a member of the 2018 class of Pew Biomedical Scholars today, one of 22 early-career researchers nationwide to receive this year’s prestigious award. “I am thrilled and humbled to be joining such an accomplished and talented group of scientists as a 2018 Pew...

Study Finds That Gene Transcription Can Serve as Brain’s Timekeeper

May 31, 2018
Neurons keep time. These brain cells – which are responsible for the brain’s “heavy lifting,” from information processing to memory formation – seem to "know" how long they’ve been exposed to sensory stimulation. Now, scientists are starting to understand how they do this. Neurobiology Professor...

Students Discover Cannibal Lizards on Remote Aegean Island

May 23, 2018
It reads like a mashup of Greek mythology and H.G. Wells. “The Odyssey of Doctor Moreau,” perhaps. Explorers find their way to a remote Aegean island and discover it’s inhabited by reptilian cannibals. They describe one encounter as follows: “[I]t began to run away, with the dead lizard torso and...

QSB’s Portia Mira Places Third at GradSlam Finals

May 4, 2018
Portia Mira scored $1,000 for winning third place in the University of California’s 2018 Grad Slam competition , marking UC Merced’s first appearance as a top-three finalist during the systemwide contest. In three minutes, Mira -- a doctoral candidate in the quantitative systems and biology...

Campus’ Spring Open House Draws Record Attendance

April 26, 2018
More than 3,700 individuals visited UC Merced last Saturday during the campus’s annual Bobcat Day — a 26 percent increase over 2017 and more than any previous year. About 1,200 admitted students and twice as many family members and other guests sampled all the campus has to offer, learning about...

QSB’s Portia Mira Wins GradSlam!, Advances to Finals

April 19, 2018
After a fierce round of competition during last week’s UC Merced GradSlam! finals, the third time was the charm for quantitative and systems biology (QSB) student Portia Mira, who emerged as the campus’s new champion. For her success, Mira earned a $5,000 grand prize and the honor of representing...

Researchers Examine Barriers to Organ Donation and Possible Remedies

April 16, 2018
Every 10 minutes, someone is added to the national organ transplant waiting list, and about once every hour, someone on the list is removed — either because they died while waiting or grew too ill for surgery. The number of Americans on the waiting list totals more than 114,000 as of this writing,...

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