Regulating the regulators

Tiny microRNAs help destroy unwanted messenger RNAs in cells. New research finds how the body keeps them in check.

---

genetics crispr biology rna research whitehead-institute

Researchers decipher structure of promising battery materials

Family of compounds could someday be useful for fuel cells, supercapacitors, catalysts, and sensors.

---

graphene sustainability energy biology research school-of-engineering school-of-science electrical-engineering-computer-science-eecs materials-science-and-engineering

Vibrations of coronavirus proteins may play a role in infection

Study suggests mechanical properties of spike proteins can predict infectivity and lethality of different coronaviruses.

---

machine-learning medicine artificial-intelligence covid-19 biology pandemic health-care disease viruses research school-of-engineering civil-and-environmental-engineering national-institutes-of-health-nih mit-ibm-watson-ai-lab

SMART researchers develop gelatin microcarrier for cell production

Gelatin-based microcarriers offer higher yield and scalability compared to existing commercial microcarriers.

---

medicine cancer biology research cells school-of-engineering materials-science-and-engineering dmse biological-engineering bioengineering-and-biotechnology singapore-mit-alliance-for-research-and-technology-smart

Chemists discover the structure of a key coronavirus protein

The protein, which acts as an ion channel, could be a target for new drugs against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

---

chemistry covid-19 biology research school-of-science national-institutes-of-nih

Scientists identify specific brain region and circuits controlling attention

Norepinephrine-producing neurons in the locus coeruleus produce attention focus, impulse control via two distinct connections to prefrontal cortex.

---

neuroscience anxiety biology optogenetics research behavior school-of-science brain-and-cognitive-sciences picower-institute

Silencing gene expression to cure complex diseases

Immuneering uses bioinformatics to develop new medicines while also helping large pharmaceutical companies improve their treatments.

---

health medicine genetics cancer startups biology rna alzheimers data disease research drug-development school-of-engineering innovation-and-entrepreneurship-ie alumniae biological-engineering

Learning by doing, remotely

Despite the disruption caused by the pandemic, MIT students have carved out meaningful hands-on experiences.

---

mathematics covid-19 biology pandemic research students graduate-postdoctoral school-of-engineering school-of-science education-teaching-academics electrical-engineering-computer-science-eecs undergraduate school-of-humanities-arts-and-social-sciences vice-chancellor civil-and-environmental-engineering whitehead-institute biological-engineering chemical-engineering misti undergraduate-research-opportunities-program-urop mit-schwarzman-college-of-computing

To make mini-organs grow faster, give them a squeeze

Study finds that compressing cells, and crowding their contents, can coax them to grow and divide.

---

genetics cancer biology research cells mechanical-engineering school-of-engineering biological-engineering

New gene regulation model provides insight into brain development

A well-known protein family binds to many more RNA sequences than previously thought in order to help neurons grow.

---

genetics neuroscience development biology data research school-of-science computer-modeling