Biomolecular Engineering
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David Haussler honored by International Society for Computational Biology
The International Society for Computational Biology (ISCB) has awarded its Senior Scientist Accomplishment Award to David Haussler, professor of biomolecular engineering in the Baskin School of Engineering at UCSC.
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Losses of long-established genes contributed to human evolution, scientists find
The evolution of new genes is not the only way for a species to change. UCSC scientists have now carried out the first systematic computational analysis to identify long-established genes that were lost during human evolution.
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UCSC faculty receive $4.5 million in new grants for stem cell research
Two UCSC faculty members have received major grants totalling $4.5 million for stem cell research from the California Insitute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM).
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Ancient retroviruses spurred evolution of gene regulatory networks in primates
Ancient retroviruses helped a gene called p53 become an important “master gene regulator” in primates, according to a new study.
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UCSC awarded $5 million grant for genome research
The National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) announced a $5 million grant to UCSC as part of a four-year project to build a “parts list” of biologically functional elements in the human genome.
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State funds stem cell research facility at UC Santa Cruz
The California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) has approved a $2.7 million grant to fund a stem cell research facility at UC Santa Cruz.
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Phillip Berman appointed to Baskin Endowed Chair in Biomolecular Engineering
UC Santa Cruz has appointed Phillip Berman, professor and chair of biomolecular engineering, to the Jack Baskin Endowed Chair in Biomolecular Engineering.
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Infectious disease expert to discuss deadly epidemics in public lecture at UCSC on Tuesday, May 22
Dr. Donald P. Francis, executive director and chief medical officer of Global Solutions for Infectious Diseases, will discuss “Confronting Deadly Epidemics Around the World” in a free public lecture at UC Santa Cruz on Tuesday, May 22.
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UCSC offers new major in bioengineering
UCSC has approved a new major in bioengineering, an interdisciplinary program focusing on the applications of engineering to medicine and the biological sciences.
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NIH award supports research on nanopore DNA sequencer
William Dunbar, an assistant professor of computer engineering at UC Santa Cruz, has received a career development award from the National Institutes of Health. The Mentored Quantitative Research Career Development Award is designed to encourage researchers with backgrounds in quantitative science and engineering to focus on questions relating to health and disease. William Dunbar Dunbar,…
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Newly discovered gene may hold clues to evolution of human brain capacity
Scientists have discovered a gene that has undergone accelerated evolutionary change in humans and is active during a critical stage in brain development. Although researchers have yet to determine the precise function of the gene, the evidence suggests that it may play a role in the development of the cerebral cortex and may even help…
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AIDS vaccine expert Phillip Berman to head UCSC Biomolecular Engineering Department
The University of California, Santa Cruz, has recruited Phillip Berman, a pioneer in the development of recombinant vaccines for AIDS and other infectious diseases, to serve as professor and chair of the Department of Biomolecular Engineering. Berman, who joined the faculty of UCSC’s Baskin School of Engineering in July, has nearly 25 years of experience…