Integrative Genetics and Genomics Graduate Group

CBS Graduate Group Faculty Among Those Recognized for Commitment to Grad Students

Commitment. Passion. Empathy. These descriptors were just a few of the plaudits the winners of the 2024 Graduate Program Advising and Mentoring Award received in their nomination letters.

“[This professor’s] mentorship is always the perfect balance of pushing you to your full capacity, while also supporting at a level that fosters independence, creativity and self-ownership.”

“[This professor] combines a deep sense of empathy with a steely commitment to student development.”

How Plants Become Bushy, or Not

For many plants, more branches means more fruit. But how does a plant branch or not branch? New research from the Department of Plant Biology has shown how plants break down the hormone strigolactone, which suppresses branching, to become more “bushy.” Using a combination of structural biology, biochemistry, and genetic engineering, the team confirmed the specific enzymes responsible for dismantling strigolactone, and their mechanism. Understanding how strigolactone is regulated could have big implications for many crop plants.

Cultivating Inclusive Environments: UC Davis DEIJ Leader Fellowship Projects in Action

The UC Davis College of Biological Sciences champions Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice (DEIJ) through the Graduate Student DEIJ Leader Fellowship program. Now in its second year, the program empowers enterprising graduate students committed to enhancing DEIJ within the CBS community by supporting projects aimed at fostering a more inclusive academic environment. 

How Plants Sense Scent

Plants need to be able to communicate with themselves—by sending signals from their leaves to their roots to their flowers—so that they can coordinate growth and optimize resource use. They also need to communicate with other plants and organisms, which they achieve by releasing volatile organic compounds (VOCs), tiny molecules that are often associated with distinct smells. Scientists know a lot about how plants emit these odorous signals, however very little is known about how they receive and interpret them.

10 Elected as AAAS Fellows, 2 from CBS

Ten faculty from UC Davis are among 502 newly elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the society announced today (April 18). AAAS fellows are scientists, engineers and innovators who have been recognized for their achievements in science, including research, teaching, administration and science communication. 

New Research Suggests Cerebellum May Play Important Role in Autism

Researchers in the College of Biological Sciences have received a grant to study the role of the cerebellum in autism. “We need a more holistic understanding of the brain circuits that drive this disorder,” says Alex Nord, an associate professor of neurobiology, physiology and behavior (NPB), and a researcher at the Center for Neuroscience (CNS). “The cerebellum is a key component that has been largely overlooked until recently.”