Recent News

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  Open Philanthropy Awards Grant for Genetic Technology Designed to Stop Malaria

  New funding will support a gene editing system that blocks malaria-spreading parasites

  The grantmaking organization Open Philanthropy has awarded funding for a UC San Diego technology designed to stop the spread of malaria. The $500,000 grant will support the development of a new gene-editing system that blocks mosquitoes from spreading parasites that cause malaria.

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  Researchers Uncover Previously Unexplored Details of Mosquito’s Specialized Detection Mechanisms

  Biologists use cutting-edge imaging technology to probe anatomical adaptations designed to target carbon dioxide emitted by humans

  Researchers have captured unprecedented images of the mechanisms that allow mosquitoes, the world’s deadliest animal, to target our blood. The scientists used advanced imaging technology to assemble detailed visualizations of the neurons within hairs that mosquitoes use to detect us as blood hosts.

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  All Prey Are Not the Same: Marine Predators Face Uneven Nutritional Payoffs

  New study finds that the nutritional value of prey within a single species can widely vary, offering key insights for food web dynamics and ecosystem change

  Researchers are redefining the nutritional value of prey. Studying the dynamics of sea lion predators and their prey, the researchers found that not all prey are the same — even those of similar size and weight of the same species — offering new perspectives for understanding ocean food resources.

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  Nick Spitzer Named 2025 Revelle Medal Recipient

  UC San Diego announced the 2025 recipients of the prestigious Revelle Medal, including Neurobiology Department Distinguished Professor Emeritus Nick Spitzer.

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  Merkin Graduate Fellows Program Receives Renewed Support to Fuel Global Research

  Fellowship enables UC San Diego graduate students to engage in research around the world

  Department of Ecology, Behavior and Evolution doctoral candidate Scott Morton (Shurin Lab) and his work have been shaped by the Merkin Graduate Fellows Program, which has allowed graduate students to further their research around the globe.

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  BioSci Alumnus Wins Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine

  Fred Ramsdell, who received a degree in biochemistry and cell biology in 1983, contributed to key discoveries about the human immune system

  The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine has been awarded to UC San Diego Biological Sciences alumnus Fred Ramsdell. He is being honored for transformative research on the immune system that has led to possible new treatments for a range of diseases.

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  $1.2M Award from the Keck Foundation Supports Innovative Study of Heart Attacks

  Assistant Professor Vineet Augustine’s groundbreaking research linking heart-brain connections could revolutionize cardiovascular care

  The Keck Foundation has awarded $1.2 million to Neurobiology’s Vineet Augustine to study heart attacks as events that combine systems. The research will focus on heart attacks as episodes that cut across neurological and immunological systems, driven by the interaction between the heart and brain.

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  Seeing Red: A UC San Diego Invention is Transforming the Way Scientists Track Genes

  Revolutionary ’RUBY’ — a cost-effective innovation designed to track gene activity — is proving valuable across a range of fields

  UC San Diego biologists have created a transformative new way to monitor genes. The game-changing tool known as RUBY is an inexpensive, easy-to-use technology that allows researchers to visualize genetic changes. The tool has expanded globally from plant biology into a range of other fields.

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  A New Kind of College Course: Learning ‘How to Be Human’

  BioSci Professor Carolyn Kurle offers the 'Guidance Groove' as part of the new Learning Sustainable Well-Being program

  Students can now get course credit for learning about mental health, thanks to the new program. “I want to help students have more peace and contentment in their lives."

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  HHMI Gilliam Fellowship Awarded to Eric Jordahl and Sonya Neal

  Program will support research on the underlying mechanisms of pancreatic cancer

  School of Biological Sciences Graduate Student Eric Jordahl and Associate Professor Sonya Neal have been named student-advisor recipients of the 2025 Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Gilliam Fellows Program, which supports promising PhD students in their early research careers.

To read more about the School of Biological Sciences happenings, see the News Archives.