Ancient alchemists tried to turn lead and other common metals into gold and platinum. Modern chemists in Paul Chirik’s lab at Princeton are transforming reactions that have depended on environmentally unfriendly precious metals, finding cheaper and greener alternatives to replace platinum,…

Brangwynne, an associate professor of chemical and biological engineering at Princeton University, is one of 19 new investigators named by the institute on May 23. The distinction is one of the most sought-after awards in biomedical research.

“I’m incredibly honored,” said Brangwynne, the…

A new study finds that one of the toughest characters in the immune system, the macrophage, has a nurturing side, at least when it comes to guarding the developing breast.

The study published online this week in the journal Science found that macrophages play an important role in…

Most people can name at least a few bones of the human body, but not many know about the cytoskeleton within our cells, let alone the “microtubules” that give it its shape. Now, a group of Princeton researchers has resolved a long-standing controversy by identifying exactly how the body creates these micron-sized filaments.

Using a…

Scientists have recently learned how to use light to control specific groups of neurons to better understand the operation of the brain, a development that has transformed areas of neuroscience. Researchers at Princeton University have now applied a similar method to controlling the metabolism, or basic chemical process, of a living cell. In a…