News

'Monster tumors' could offer new glimpse at human development

November 4, 2020

'Monster tumors' could offer new glimpse at human development

Finding just the right model to study human development—from the early embryonic stage onward—has been a challenge for scientists over the last decade. Now, bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have homed in on an unusual candidate: teratomas. Full Story


Energizing Plastics Renewability, Recycling Efforts

October 30, 2020

Energizing Plastics Renewability, Recycling Efforts

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded UC San Diego nanoengineering professor Jon Pokorski $2 million in funding to develop a new kind of biodegradable plastic—one filled with bacterial spores that will aid in breaking down the material at the end of its life-cycle. Co-leading the project will be UC San Diego bioengineer Adam Feist. Full Story


Broadening horizons in a pandemic

October 12, 2020

Broadening horizons in a pandemic

More than 1,200 students from around the world were able to gain experience, advice and insight into their field this summer thanks to the expansion of two previously in-person only summer research programs at the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering.  Full Story


Researchers identify new factors for inflammation after a heart attack

September 30, 2020

Researchers identify new factors for inflammation after a heart attack

A team of engineers and physicians at University of California San Diego and Massachusetts General Hospital published new work Sept. 25 in Science Immunology that provides new comprehensive single-cell datasets defining the immune response to a heart attack, from its origins in the bone marrow and its translational potential in the blood, to its diversification and regulation within the heart. They also discovered new immune cell types and regulatory mechanisms.    Full Story


Engineering graduate students honored as Siebel Scholars

September 23, 2020

Engineering graduate students honored as Siebel Scholars

Five Jacobs School of Engineering graduate students pioneering tools to treat rare genetic disorders, studying microbes in cancer, developing noninvasive wearable biosensors, studying the physical principles underlying cell membrane deformation, and developing noninvasive methods for evaluating cardiovascular function, have been named 2021 Siebel Scholars. Full Story


Add human-genome produced RNA to the list of cell surface molecules

September 10, 2020

Add human-genome produced RNA to the list of cell surface molecules

Bioengineers at UC San Diego have shown that human-genome produced RNA is present on the surface of human cells, suggesting a more expanded role for RNA in cell-to-cell and cell-to-environment interactions than previously thought.  Full Story


Eight teams of engineers and physicians work to tackle COVID-19 related challenges

August 20, 2020

Eight teams of engineers and physicians work to tackle COVID-19 related challenges

The Galvanizing Engineering in Medicine program at UC San Diego is supporting eight COVID-19 related projects in early stages with microgrants. The program is a collaboration between the Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute and the Institute of Engineering in Medicine launched in 2013 to bring engineers and clinicians together to develop innovative technologies and solve challenging problems in medical care.  Full Story


UC San Diego named 4th best public research university in prestigious global rankings

August 17, 2020

UC San Diego named 4th best public research university in prestigious global rankings

Shanghai rankings celebrate campus as a world-renowned research powerhouse. Full Story


Flipping a metabolic switch to slow tumor growth

August 11, 2020

Flipping a metabolic switch to slow tumor growth

The enzyme serine palmitoyl-transferase can be used as a metabolically responsive “switch” that decreases tumor growth, according to a new study by a team of San Diego scientists, who published their findings Aug. 12 in the journal Nature. By restricting the dietary amino acids serine and glycine, or pharmacologically targeting the serine synthesis enzyme phosphoglycerate dehydrogenase, the team induced tumor cells to produce a toxic lipid that slows cancer progression in mice. Further research is needed to determine how this approach might be translated to patients.  Full Story


Biomedical Engineering Society earns Outstanding Chapter Award

July 31, 2020

Biomedical Engineering Society earns Outstanding Chapter Award

UC San Diego's chapter of the Biomedical Engineering Society (BMES) was recognized with the Chapter Outstanding Achievement Award for their 2019-2020 efforts. This is the second time the undergraduate BMES chapter received this prestigious award, after earning the honor in 2017. Full Story