Markita Landry holds a test tube in her lab.

UC Berkeley announces nominees for the inaugural UC Regents Innovation Awards

This year, the University of California system is launching its first-ever Regents Innovation Awards, recognizing faculty and community partners across all ten UC campuses who turn research into real-world impact. Today, UC Berkeley is proud to announce its five nominees for the inaugural awards, listed below, which include two QB3-Berkeley faculty affiliates, Markita Landry and…

Daniel Fletcher & Roberto Zoncu among fifteen visionary scientists named ASCB Fellows

The American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) is proud to announce the election of 15 outstanding scientists as 2026 ASCB Fellows—a prestigious honor recognizing their exceptional contributions to cell biology and the Society. This year’s honorees include Daniel Fletcher and Roberto Zoncu, two QB3-Berkeley faculty affiliates. ASCB Fellows are selected by their peers and approved…

New technique pinpoints human DNA inherited from ‘ghost’ ancestors

Neanderthals and Denisovans interbred with modern human ancestors, leaving behind telltale DNA in our genomes. Now we have evidence of modern human interbreeding with two much older but unknown ancestors. Two mysterious human relatives left their genetic footprints in the modern human genome alongside the DNA of Neanderthals and Denisovans, underscoring the fact that our…

Molecular imaging pioneer Eva Nogales awarded the 2026 Vanderbilt Prize in Biomedical Science

Established in 2006, the Vanderbilt Prize in Biomedical Science recognizes scientists of national reputation who have a stellar record of research accomplishments and are known for mentoring others in science. Eva Nogales, PhD, an internationally known structural biologist whose expertise in cryo-electron microscopy and image analysis has produced groundbreaking insights into the function of macromolecules…

Philomathia Prize advances novel work on the physics of bioelectricity

Karthik Shekhar, assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering (CBE) at UC Berkeley, the John F. Heil Jr. Professor, and a member of the Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, has been selected as the fifth recipient of the Philomathia Prize. The annual prize is awarded to an early-career Berkeley faculty member, from any discipline, who demonstrates…

Collage of faculty

Academic Innovation Catalyst accelerates Berkeley’s pipeline from breakthrough to impact

Matt and Lisa Sonsini’s $13.5 million commitment to fund a new Advanced Technology Entrepreneurial Center and proof-of-concept grants will expand a proven model for moving Berkeley research from the laboratory into the world. A transformational $13.5 million commitment from longtime UC Berkeley supporters Matt and Lisa Sonsini will dramatically expand the university’s capacity to translate…

Headshot of Holger Muller on a gray background with the QB3-Berkeley logo in the bottom left corner.

Making the invisible visible

A landmark achievement in microscopy is poised to reveal the molecular machinery of life inside cells, at near-atomic detail. Inside every living cell, tens of thousands of different types of proteins are at work: ferrying molecular cargo, relaying signals, repairing DNA, deciding whether a cell should divide or die. Most of these proteins are too…

A breakthrough in electron microscopy delivers sharper images of our body’s tiniest proteins

UC Berkeley physicists have introduced phase contrast to the electron microscope, allowing scientists to see much smaller molecules and smaller structures inside cells. Nearly 100 years ago, a seemingly simple discovery revolutionized the microscope. The introduction of phase-contrast, which garnered a Nobel Prize in 1953, brought into clear view structures inside cells that had previously…