On April 11, the MCB Industrial Affiliates Program (IAP) Spring 2019 Symposium brought together industry and academia to offer UC Berkeley scientists at all career stages an opportunity to build direct connections with nine innovative biotechnology companies. The event was a great success, drawing students and postdoctoral scholars from several departments on campus including MCB, IB, Bioengineering, Biophysics, and Comparative Biochemistry. Continue reading >
Department News
Below are articles from various sources about members of MCB and their research.
New research from Assistant Professor of MCB & Physics Hernan Garcia and scientists at New York University characterizes how the pioneer factor Zelda affects a gene's transcriptional output by enriching Dorsal protein activity at enhancer regions of Drosophila DNA during gene activation.
This finding "uncovers the physical parameters that affect gene activation, thus pushing forward our understanding of how genes are regulated in time and space,” according to NYU Biology Professor Christine Rushlow.
Cal Day 2019 is this Saturday, April 13, from 10 AM – 3 PM! Come by VLSB to learn about the MCB major, meet some of our distinguished researchers, tour the laboratory classrooms, and more.
Congratulations to MCB Professor Rebecca Heald, recipient of the 2018–19 Leon A. Henkin Citation for Distinguished Service! This award recognizes faculty with “exceptional commitment to the educational development of students from groups who are underrepresented in the academy.”
On March 28, the MCB Graduate Network and newly-established MCB Wellness Committee partnered to host the first-ever Wellness Symposium for students, faculty, and staff in the MCB Department. The event, held in honor of MCB PhD alum Cris Alvaro, aimed to focus on the importance of de-stigmatizing discussions of mental health in academia and emphasize mental health as an essential aspect of wellness. Continue reading >
Congratulations to the 11 MCB graduate students who have been named Outstanding Graduate Student Instructors! The OGSI Award recognizes GSIs from each department on campus for excellent work in the teaching of undergraduates.
Congratulations to MCB Assistant Professors Helen Bateup & Dirk Hockemeyer, who have both been named Chan-Zuckerberg Biohub Investigators! This appointment recognizes accomplished junior faculty with well-established research program areas complementary to the current campus Biohub Investigators.
James Olzmann, Assistant Professor of Nutritional Sciences & Toxicology, was also appointed as an Investigator.
New research from the labs of MCB Professors Ehud Isacoff & John Flannery reports that insertion of a gene for a green-light receptor into the eyes of blind mice led to signs of reversed retinal degeneration. This gene therapy may soon be used to help restore vision in humans blindness due to retinal degeration.
![Big Give](/sites/mcb.berkeley.edu/files/images/MCB_BigGive2019_logo.png)
Show your Blue and Gold spirit by participating in this year's Big Give. This is a chance for us all to come together as an entire Cal commuity—alumni, parents, students, faculty, staff, and friends—to support our favorite department. Even the smallest gift can make a big difference!
This year, we're funding two main initiatives:
- Expand tutoring services: As the MCB major continues to grow, we want to expand our tutoring opportunities to students in upper division MCB courses such as MCB 102, 104, and 110.
- Establish a teaching award for outstanding Graduate Student Instructors (GSIs): MCB GSIs are integral to the success of our undergraduates. This award will recognize their invaluable contribution to teaching excellence.
Consider making a donation to the MCB Department to help us create many more great moments in the future!
![Big Give](/sites/mcb.berkeley.edu/files/images/MCB_BigGive_button.png)
New research from the lab of MCB Professor Richard Kramer shows that a new therapy "could help prolong useful vision and delay total blindness" in humans with deteriorating vision. The treatment, which has been successful in trials with mice, utilizes drug or gene therapy to reduce interfering noise generated by nerve cells in the eye. Reduction of this noise can improve vision for those suffering from vision loss, including common age-related macular degeneration.
“This isn’t a cure for these diseases, but a treatment that may help people see better. This won’t put back the photoreceptors that have died, but maybe give people an extra few years of useful vision with the ones that are left,” says Kramer.