Cells lining your skin and organs can generate electricity when injured − potentially opening new doors to treating wounds

Textbooks usually depict the epithelial cells encasing the interior and exterior of your body as passive barriers. But researchers discovered they can produce electrical signals like neurons.

Steve Granick, Professor of Polymer Science and Engineering, UMass Amherst • conversation
March 17, 2025 ~7 min

Artificial muscle flexes in multiple directions, offering a path to soft, wiggly robots

MIT engineers developed a way to grow artificial tissues that look and act like their natural counterparts.

Jennifer Chu | MIT News • mit
March 17, 2025 ~9 min


‘Pac-Man with a ponytail’ proteins regulate everything from night vision to heartbeats – studying what GRKs look like could improve an array of drugs

Master switches of cell communication, G protein-coupled receptor kinases are the target of many drugs across a range of diseases.

Priyanka Naik, Ph.D. Candidate in Structural Biology, Purdue University • conversation
March 7, 2025 ~7 min

Extreme heat silently accelerates aging on a molecular level − new research

People living in locations that experience frequent extreme heat days age faster at the molecular level.

Eunyoung Choi, Postdoctoral Associate in Gerontology, University of Southern California • conversation
March 4, 2025 ~7 min

AI system predicts protein fragments that can bind to or inhibit a target

FragFold, developed by MIT Biology researchers, is a computational method with potential for impact on biological research and therapeutic applications.

Lillian Eden | Department of Biology • mit
Feb. 20, 2025 ~9 min

p53 is both your genome’s guardian and weakness against cancer – scientists are trying to repair or replace it when it goes awry

The gene that codes for p53 is the most frequently mutated in cancer. Researchers are targeting different parts of its complex pathway to restore its ability to stop cancer.

Prosper Obed Chukwuemeka, Ph.D. Candidate in Integrative Systems Biology, University of Pittsburgh • conversation
Feb. 20, 2025 ~7 min

MIT biologists discover a new type of control over RNA splicing

They identified proteins that influence splicing of about half of all human introns, allowing for more complex types of gene regulation.

Anne Trafton | MIT News • mit
Feb. 20, 2025 ~7 min

Engineers turn the body’s goo into new glue

They combined a blend of slimy and sticky proteins to produce a fast-acting, bacteria-blocking, waterproof adhesive for use in biomedical applications.

Jennifer Chu | MIT News • mit
Feb. 17, 2025 ~7 min


Evolving intelligent life took billions of years − but it may not have been as unlikely as many scientists predicted

Humans evolved late in Earth history. While this timing inspired the conclusion that humanlike life is a cosmic improbability, a new study pushes back.

Jennifer L. Macalady, Professor of Geoscience, Penn State • conversation
Feb. 14, 2025 ~10 min

AI model deciphers the code in proteins that tells them where to go

Whitehead Institute and CSAIL researchers created a machine-learning model to predict and generate protein localization, with implications for understanding and remedying disease.

Greta Friar | Whitehead Institute • mit
Feb. 13, 2025 ~11 min

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