Microbiology & Environmental Toxicology
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2025 iGEM team investigates solution to common food toxin
The undergraduate research team won a silver medal at the 2025 international jamboree.
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NIH awards Fitnat Yıldız $7.7 million to find new molecular paths for preventing cholera
Grants will fund research to determine the mechanisms and consequences of a molecule produced by the bacteria that causes the disease
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UCSC-led international collaboration sheds new light on bacterial mechanisms of antibiotic resistance
A collaboration between researchers in Santa Cruz and Puebla, Mexico, is working to eliminate the bacterial genes driving antibiotic resistance.
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Ubiquitous plastics may trigger hormone disruption in seabirds, new study finds
Scientists show how ingested microplastics have similar effects on the endocrine systems of fulmars and humans
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New research and art installation demonstrate the viability of using fog as a water source
In a state known for its droughts, where the southern half recently experienced devastating fires, understanding California’s natural water sources is more important than ever. Three University of California, Santa Cruz professors have teamed up to create a multipart scientific and artistic research study, Art+Fog as a collective,
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Science Division debuts ‘degree-defining experiences’ drawing on UC Santa Cruz’s unique strengths
The Science Division has received a $1 million donation to begin a major new program on “degree-defining experiences.” The program will pilot 17 projects across campus that aim to profoundly inspire undergraduate students and fill them with the kind of optimism that forever changes how they see their time at UC Santa Cruz and their…
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Genomics Institute provides seed funds for six multidisciplinary projects
The Genomics Institute has awarded grants of up to $50,000 to six multidisciplinary research projects in the inaugural year of its seed funding program
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Genomes in the Wild: A Q&A with Professor Joanna Lynne Kelley on Evolution, Extremes, and Hibernating Bears
At UC Santa Cruz’s Coastal Science Campus, Kelley is uncovering how life endures in extreme environments.
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Environmental toxicologist wins funding to use feathers to test for lead exposure in birds
Myra Finkelstein, adjunct professor in microbiology and environmental toxicology, was one of nine researchers nationwide honored on July 8 by the Animal Welfare Institute (AWI) for developing humane solutions to human-wildlife conflicts. Each researcher will receive a grant of up to $15,000 as part of the Christine Stevens Wildlife Award, which honors AWI’s late founder…
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Improved nutrition, sanitation linked to beneficial changes in child stress and epigenetic programming
A new study led by a global-health researcher at UC Santa Cruz provides some of the clearest and most comprehensive evidence to date on what is known about stress physiology and “epigenetic programming.”
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Scientists find unexpected proteins in bacteria motors
A team of scientists, co-led by Karen Ottemann, a professor of Microbiology and Environmental Toxicology, recently found three unexpected proteins while studying the motors that power the flagella of a species called Helicobacter pylori. The proteins, which are normally found in another type of appendage on a separate group of bacteria, seem to exert control…