News | College of Biological Sciences

Start Here to Make a Protein

Structure of mRNA Initiation Complex Could Give Insight Into Cancer and Other Diseases

Researchers at the University of California, Davis, and the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, U.K., have solved the structure of the complex formed when mRNA is being scanned to find the starting point for translating RNA into a protein. The discovery, published Sept. 4 in Science, provides new understanding of this fundamental process.

Cellular and Microbiology

The Late Professor Inoue Would Be Proud

Students Finish His and Their Research, Earn Ph.D.s By Kristin Burns

Four years after plant sciences professor Kentaro Inoue was struck and killed while riding his bike, the last three graduate students from his lab are ensuring his scientific legacy lives on through their published research, careers in industry and academia, and mentoring of future science students.

Campus and Community

Mounting a Molecular Attack: Study Uncovers Strategies Plant Pathogens Use to Manipulate Host’s Cellular Recycling Systems

In a study appearing in Cell Host & Microbe, UC Davis plant biologists highlight key proteins that allow pathogens to target and manipulate the molecular machinery responsible for a host plant's autophagy process.

Food, Agriculture and Plant Biology

Study Provides Insights into Molecular Interactions of Breast Cancer Protein

In a study appearing in Nucleic Acids Research, UC Davis College of Biological Sciences researchers identify and show how two molecular partners affect the overall assembly and structure of the breast cancer protein BRCA2.

Human and Animal Health

College of Biological Sciences Raises $11.5 Million During 2019-2020 Fiscal Year

Thanks to the generosity of over 700 donors, the UC Davis College of Biological Sciences set a new fundraising record during the 2019-2020 fiscal year, raising more than $11.5 million.

Campus and Community

What is the Connection Between Genotype and Phenotype? Study Describes New Statistical Method to Identify Active and Inactive Genes from Transcriptomes

In a study appearing in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, UC Davis researchers present a statistical method that—by virtue of providing a mathematical description of the relevant biological and technical processes associated with transcriptomic data—allows researchers to identify the expression state of genes.

Ecology and Environment

Science Snaps: Neuroscience Graduate Group Student Jaleel Jefferson Explores the Pathology of Neurodegeneration

Neuroscience Graduate Group student Jaleel Jefferson investigates the neuropathology of a condition known as HIV Associated Neurocognitive Disorders (HAND), which encompasses “a spectrum of cognitive, motor, and/or mood problems” that affect people with HIV. In this Science Snapshot, he walks us through some neuronal imagery and shares some of his path to science.

Human and Animal Health

Professor Sharon Strauss Wins Sewall Wright Award from American Society of Naturalists

Congratulations to Professor of Evolution and Ecology Sharon Strauss for winning the American Society of Naturalists’ Sewall Wright Award, which honors a senior and active investigator “promoting the conceptual unification of the biological sciences.”

Awards and Recognition

Distinguished Professor Jodi Nunnari Joins European Molecular Biology Organization as Newly Elected Member

Congratulations to Distinguished Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology Jodi Nunnari for being named as one of the newly elected members to the European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO).

Awards and Recognition

Neuroscience Researcher Receives $1.5 Million Grant from Department of Defense to Develop New Diagnostic Tool for Hearing Loss

A $1.5 million grant from the United States Department of Defense (DoD) will help UC Davis Professor Lee Miller, Department of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior and the Center for Mind and Brain, expand his lab’s research on hearing loss, an issue of relevance to both aging populations and military personnel.

Human and Animal Health