How looking closely led this cell biologist to world-changing breakthroughs

Hear Randy Schekman, a UC Berkeley professor of Molecular and Cell Biology, explain his Nobel Prize-winning work in just 101 seconds. For Randy Schekman, a UC Berkeley professor of Molecular and Cell Biology, the study of life and basic research has been a calling since he first explored pond scum under a microscope as a…

Two IGI Women in Enterprising Science Fellows Receive $1 Million Each in Seed Funding

Derfogail Delcassian and Yue Clare Lou, Innovative Genomics Institute (IGI) Fellows from the second cohort in the HS Chau Women in Enterprising Science (WIES) Program, were each awarded $1 million in non-dilutive seed funding that can exponentially accelerate the commercialization of their discoveries. All four WIES Fellows presented formal pitches, describing their business ideas and…

Illustration of a resonance chamber.

With a new, incredibly precise instrument, Berkeley researchers narrow search for dark energy

Experiment captures atoms in free fall to look for gravitational anomalies caused by universe’s missing energy. Dark energy — a mysterious force pushing the universe apart at an ever-increasing rate — was discovered 26 years ago, and ever since, scientists have been searching for a new and exotic particle causing the expansion. Pushing the boundaries…

Trees ablaze in a wildfire.

Lisa Barcellos works to uncover biological effects of exposure to wildfire smoke

UC Berkeley Epidemiology and Computational Biology Professor Lisa Barcellos has received $1.46 million to study how wildfire smoke affects the DNA of people living in Alameda and Contra Costa counties. The grant is supported by VoLo Foundation, an organization dedicated to understanding climate change and its long-term effects, and facilitating solutions to address it.. Barcellos…

Graphic of Samantha Lewis in a lab coat looking into a microscope.

Lewis receives NSF CAREER award

QB3-Berkeley faculty affiliate Samantha Lewis recently received an NSF CAREER award for 2024-2029 for her research on Mitochondrial genome partitioning and quality control. Lewis is an assistant professor in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology.

Graphic of headshots of the 2024 Bakar Spark Awardees.

Liana Lareau and Jennifer Listgarten selected for 2024 Spark Awards

This year’s Spark Award recipients embody the spirit of innovation and collaboration that defines UC Berkeley’s entrepreneurial ecosystem. From therapeutics for cancer patients to more sustainable power sources for the AI revolution, our new cohort of Faculty Fellows have proven their readiness to address society’s greatest challenges. The Bakar Fellows Program has been committed to…

Headshot of Abby Dernber

Abby Dernburg elected to National Academy of Sciences

At the conclusion of its annual gathering this week, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) announced the election of 120 new members and 24 new international members, among them UC Berkeley’s Abby Dernburg, professor of molecular and cell biology and a senior scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab). Also elected was Ramamoorthy Ramesh, a…

Headshot of Teresa Head-Gordon

Teresa Head-Gordon receives Humboldt Research Award

Professor Teresa Head-Gordon, Chancellor’s Professor of Chemistry, Bioengineering, and Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering, has been honored with a prestigious research award from the Humboldt Foundation, known for fostering collaboration with German scientists. Established in 1953, this award includes an invitation to engage in up to a year of working with peers at a German research institution. The award, which…