News
October 17, 2019
Pioneering bioengineer Shu Chien retires after 31 years at UC San Diego
UC San Diego bioengineering professor Shu Chien made many foundational scientific discoveries over the course of his 62-year academic career, ranging from uncovering a key reason why sedentary lifestyles can be unhealthy to how to more efficiently screen for adverse effects of small molecule drugs in patients. He taught hundreds of students, colleagues and collaborators not only how to do good science, but how to be a better person. Full Story
October 15, 2019
Drug-light combo could offer control over CAR T-cell therapy
UC San Diego bioengineers are a step closer to making CAR T-cell therapy safer, more precise and easy to control. They developed a system that allows them to select where and when CAR T cells get turned on so that they destroy cancer cells without harming normal cells. Full Story
October 3, 2019
Bioengineering Pioneer Y.C. Bert Fung Turns 100
Thousands of professors, engineers, scientists and students around the world work in the field of biomechanics, the study of physics and mechanics applied to living tissues. But they are all somehow connected to Professor Y.C. “Bert” Fung at the University of California San Diego. Some use Fung’s findings in their work. Others were trained by or worked with Fung’s students. A core group studied directly under him. Fung realized that physics and mechanics apply to living tissues just as they do to manmade structures. He is often referred to as “the father of biomechanics.” Full Story
October 1, 2019
Three UC San Diego Researchers Receive Top Honors with NIH Director's Awards
Three UC San Diego researchers have received prestigious awards through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) High-Risk, High-Reward Research Program, including the Pioneer Award and the New Innovator Award. Full Story
September 25, 2019
Five UC San Diego Bioengineering graduate students honored as Siebel Scholars
Five UC San Diego bioengineering graduate students working at the interface of biology, engineering and health have been honored as 2020 Siebel Scholars. They are working to deepen our understanding of the gut microbiome; more accurately diagnose diseases like stroke; develop biomarkers for metastasis; innovate to repair the heart after a heart attack; and engineer T cells to suppress tumor growth. Full Story
September 23, 2019
Strip Steak: Bacterial Enzyme Removes Inflammation-Causing Meat Carbohydrates
When we eat red meat, the animal carbohydrate Neu5Gc is incorporated in our tissues, where it generates inflammation. UC San Diego researchers discovered how gut bacteria enzymes strip our cells of Neu5Gc, introducing the possibility of using the enzymes to reduce the risk of inflammatory diseases. Full Story
September 23, 2019
Perturbed Genes Regulating White Blood Cells Linked to Autism Genetics and Severity
Researchers at UC San Diego say they are getting closer to identifying the mechanisms of autism spectrum disorder, revealing a critical gene network that is disrupted and which helps predict severity of symptoms. Full Story
September 11, 2019
Phase 1 trial shows hydrogel to repair heart is safe to inject in humans--a first
Ventrix, a University of California San Diego spin-off company, has successfully conducted a first-in-human, FDA-approved Phase 1 clinical trial of an injectable hydrogel that aims to repair damage and restore cardiac function in heart failure patients who previously suffered a heart attack. Full Story
September 11, 2019
Study uncovers metabolic cause for rare eye disease
An international team of researchers has discovered a cause for a rare eye disease affecting the macula that leads to loss of central vision, called macular telangiectasia type 2 (MacTel). Using genetic and metabolic data from patients with MacTel, researchers found that the disease is driven by reduced levels of the amino acid serine and accumulation of toxic lipids called deoxysphingolipids. Full Story
September 5, 2019
Synthetic Biologists Extend Functional Life of Cancer Fighting Circuitry in Microbes
Bioengineers at the University of California San Diego have developed a method to significantly extend the life of gene circuits used to instruct microbes to do things such as produce and deliver drugs, break down chemicals and serve as environmental sensors. Most of the circuits that synthetic biologists insert into microbes break or vanish entirely from the microbes after a certain period of time—typically days to weeks—because of various mutations. But in the September 6, 2019 issue of the journal Science, the UC San Diego researchers demonstrated that they can keep genetic circuits going for much longer. Full Story