Biotechnology

Innovative tiny laser has potential uses in drug quality control, medical diagnosis, airplane safety

Wednesday, Jul 24, 2019

by Molly Sharlach, Office of Engineering Communications

In a major step toward developing portable scanners that can rapidly measure molecules on the pharmaceutical production line or classify tissue in patients’ skin, a Princeton-led team of researchers has created an imaging system that uses lasers small and efficient enough to fit on a microchip.

The team demonstrated the system’s resolution by using it to image a U.S. quarter. Fine details like the eagle’s wing feathers, as small as one-fifth of a millimeter wide, were clearly visible.
Fewer fish may reach breeding age as climate change skews timing of reproduction, food availability

Wednesday, Jul 24, 2019

by Joseph Albanese for the Princeton Environmental Institute

Climate change may be depriving juvenile fish of their most crucial early food source by throwing off the synchronization of when microscopic plants known as phytoplankton bloom and when fish hatch, according to Princeton University researchers. The long-term effect on fish reproductivity could mean fewer fish available for human consumption.
New research raises possibility of better anti-obesity drugs

Friday, Jun 28, 2019

by Princeton University

Effective weight-loss strategies call for eating less food, burning more calories — or ideally, both. But for the more than 90 million Americans who suffer from obesity, a disease that contributes to conditions ranging from heart disease to cancer, behavioral change is hard to accomplish or not effective enough, which is why scientists have long sought drugs that would help people shed pounds. Yet effective, long-lasting treatments have thus far eluded them.
How hepatitis B and delta viruses establish infection of liver cells

Tuesday, Jun 18, 2019

by Caitlin Sedwick for the Department of Molecular Biology

Princeton University researchers have developed a new, scalable cell culture system that allows for detailed investigation of how host cells respond to infection with hepatitis B (HBV) and delta virus (HDV). The paper describing their findings was published online on June 17, 2019 in the journal Hepatology.
For hydrogen fuel cells, mundane materials might be almost as good as pricey platinum

Monday, Jun 17, 2019

by Jen A. Miller for the Office of Engineering Communications

As anyone who has purchased jewelry can attest, platinum is expensive. That's tough for consumers but also a serious hurdle for a promising source of electricity for vehicles: the hydrogen fuel cell, which relies on platinum.
Brangwynne receives HHMI technology award for super-high-resolution microscopes

Wednesday, Jun 12, 2019

by Liz Fuller-Wright, Office of Communications

The Howard Hughes Medical Institute has awarded Clifford Brangwynne one of 40 Transformative Technology 2019 (TT19) Awards to create a shared research facility, NanoCIE: Nanoscale Condensate Imaging and Engineering.
Schmidt fund awarded to two transformative bioengineering projects

Monday, Jun 10, 2019

by Catherine Zandonella, Office of the Dean for Research

Two research initiatives that aspire to engineer new biomaterials for unmet medical and research needs have been awarded funding through the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Transformative Technology Fund.
Hop to It: New look upends old concept of bacteria’s movement

Tuesday, May 21, 2019

by Scott Lyon, Office of Engineering Communications

Bacteria get a bum rap. Long cast as deadly enemies, bacteria have emerged as allies in the fights against pollution and disease. But harnessing that potential will require a strategy to control their behavior.
Avalos wins teacher-scholar award

Tuesday, May 14, 2019

by Liz Fuller-Wright, Office of Communications

José Avalos has been named a Camille Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar “for spatial and dynamic control of engineered metabolism for microbial chemical production."
Princeton scientists bioengineer a cellular speedometer

Monday, May 13, 2019

by Liz Fuller-Wright, Office of Communications

An all-Princeton research team has identified bacteria that can detect the speed of flowing fluids.