News & HighlightsNews
A unique window into "original antigenic sin"
The body's first blush with a pathogen shapes how it will respond to vaccines. New evidence clarifies how this phenomenon works, mechanistically.
How the body's B cell academy ensures a diverse immune response
A diverse immune response hinges on naive B cells mingling with high affinity ones in the late-stage germinal center. Whether that helps or hinders, however, depends on the virus.
Remembering a pioneer of chromatin biology
Charles David Allis, a molecular biologist who shaped the field of chromatin biology, died on January 8 at the age of 71.
Why older fathers pass on more genetic mutations to their offspring
It's not just the number of mutations that matters. It's the failure to fix them too.
Solving a crucial bottleneck in drug discovery
A novel method reduces the time required to identify novel antibiotic-producing DNA from weeks to days.
When the body's B cell training grounds stay open after hours
While most germinal centers shut down after a few weeks, some stay in business for more than six months. A new study helps explain why.
Intriguing science discoveries of 2022
Breakthroughs in genetics, biochemistry, neuroscience, infectious disease, and drug development were a few of the year's highlights.
Markus Library prepares researchers for new NIH data management policy
The library is offering new tools and training to support researchers operating under an updated NIH policy.
How a cell's mitochondria make their own protein factories
The findings shed a rare light on mitoribosomes, the unique ribosomes found within the cell's mitochondria.
How antibody therapy impacts COVID vaccines
People who receive monoclonal antibodies before vaccines may benefit from increased coverage, due to antibody feedback inhibition.
Research on rare genetic disease sheds light on a common head and neck cancer
Patients with Fanconi anemia have an elevated risk for squamous cell carcinoma, a highly aggressive head-and-neck cancer. New findings pinpoint the mechanisms linking the two conditions, and also shed new light on how smoking or drinking may elevate anyone’s cancer risk.
Cancer stem cells are fueled through dialogue with their environments
The findings suggest that many of the mutations in cancer may simply be setting in stone a path already forged by the tumor stem cell’s aberrant dialogue with its surroundings.
Ant pupae secrete fluid as "milk" to nurture young larvae
This newly discovered “social fluid” appears to unite ant colonies across developmental stages into one superorganism.
A new institute devoted to research on global infectious disease is funded by a $75 million grant
Rockefeller’s new Stavros Niarchos Foundation Institute for Global Infectious Disease Research will provide a framework for international scientific collaboration.
Eight Rockefeller scientists designated most influential researchers
Clarivate, a British analytics company, recognizes individuals "who demonstrate significant and broad influence among their peers in their chosen field or fields of research."
From the piano bench to the lab bench
Gabriel D. Victora is unlocking the mysteries of how the body generates antibodies to defend itself from pathogens. But there was a time when science was not even on his radar.
Promising new drug target for a rare liver cancer
Fibrolamellar carcinoma needs one specific mutation in order to thrive, and impeding it reduces tumor growth in mice.
Fruit flies move their retinas much like humans move their eyes
Insects cannot move their eyes the way humans do during a tennis game. But new research suggests fruit flies evolved a different strategy to adjust their vision without moving their heads.
New evidence of biochemical states and force working in concert
When an actin filament bends during cell movement, older actin deforms differently than newer actin, allowing regulatory proteins to tell the two states apart.
Mathematical modeling suggests counties are still unprepared for COVID spikes
If jurisdictions plan to share resources in advance, the study concludes, this could prevent one rare event from overwhelming a county or state.
Shixin Liu wins 2023 Vilcek Prize for Creative Promise in Biomedical Science
Liu is one of four scientists across the country to receive the prestigious prize, which recognizes scientists who have immigrated to the United States for early-career contributions.
Why some people are mosquito magnets
The female mosquito will hunt down any human, but some of us get bitten far more than others. The answer why may be hidden in our skin.
Sohail Tavazoie elected to the National Academy of Medicine
A trailblazing physician-scientist, Tavazoie has substantially expanded our understanding of the mechanisms enabling some tumors to spread from one body site to another. He is the 18th member of Rockefeller’s faculty elected to the academy.
Albany Medical Center Prize awarded to C. David Allis
Allis receives the honor for discovering new mechanisms regulating gene expression.
The brain cells that slow us down when we're sick
New study pinpoints the cluster of neurons that tell mice to eat, drink, and move around less when they're fighting bacterial infections.  
New workshop brings exceptional scholars to campus
Postdoctoral fellows from diverse backgrounds attended the two-day program, designed to ease their transition to independent investigators.
Common mutation linked to COVID mortality
Because three percent of the world population possesses these gene variants, the findings may have implications for hundreds of millions of individuals around the world.
Josefina del Mármol named Blavatnik Regional Award Winner in life sciences
Del Mármol receives the honor for her research leading to the first-ever molecular images of an olfactory receptor at work.
The tech that money can’t buy 
What if the tool needed to move science forward doesn’t yet exist? Here are gadgets and techniques born from improvisation that made impossible experiments possible.
Tim Stearns becomes new dean of graduate and postgraduate studies
Stearns, who assumes the role on September 1, reflects upon his new job and his vision for the university’s educational programs.
Rockefeller postdocs Begüm Aydin and Alain Bonny named Hanna Gray Fellows
Aydin, of the Mucida lab, and Bonny, a member of the Fuchs lab, received HHMI’s prestigious fellowship for exceptional early career scientists on August 24.
Unlocking the mystery of how mosquitoes smell humans
Through questioning their assumptions about how mosquitoes sense and interpret odors, scientists may have discovered why efforts to throw the vectors of dengue and Zika off the human scent have not succeeded.
Nicola Khuri, theoretical physicist and scientific-community builder, has died
Nicola N. Khuri, a theoretical physicist known for using math to describe and predict what happens when elementary particles collide in giant accelerators, died on August 4 at age 89.
New faculty member unlocks vast chemical spaces for drug discovery
Jiankun Lyu will join Rockefeller as an assistant professor on January 1, 2023.
New faculty member plumbs the depths of fast-track evolution 
Lamia Wahba will join Rockefeller as an assistant professor on January 1, 2023.
Ant colonies behave like neural networks when making decisions 
Colonies decide to flee rising temperatures in much the same way that neural computations give rise to decisions.
How the intestine replaces and repairs itself
A new study suggests that stem cells are able to integrate cues from their surroundings and coordinate their behavior across tissue through networks of vasculature in their close vicinity.
Stem cells are growing up 
The controversy and hype have died down. The science is very much alive­, creating new directions for discovery.
Colorectal cancer tumors both helped and hindered by T cells
Researchers have long disagreed over whether ??T cells in the gut promote or discourage tumor growth, but new evidence suggests they have the capacity to do both.
New study reveals where memory fragments are stored
The research demonstrates the distributed nature of memory processing in the brain, and reveals a dedicated pathway for memory recall, which is less understood than memory formation.
A venerable tree ends its tenure
After gracing the university’s north-south pathway for decades, a London plane tree was cut down due to interior decay and the resulting safety risk. Removal of the deciduous giant required a team of highly-experienced arborists.
Beak speak 
How did songbirds start singing? Neuroscientists are reshaping our understanding of speech—pinpointing the cells and molecules that built it and what happens in the brain when we learn a new word, chirp, or squeal.
New portrait of five trailblazing women scientists from Rockefeller’s past is unveiled
With a new portrait by artist Brenda Zlamany, installed over the fireplace in the Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Reception Hall, the likenesses of scientists Marie Daly, Rebecca Lancefield, Louise Pearce, Gertrude Perlmann, and Florence Sabin have joined the university’s art collection.
Philanthropy 2.0 
Private investments are making it possible to reimagine 21st-century bioscience. Cori Bargmann envisions a future with opportunity for researchers everywhere.
Rockefeller leads an international ranking of research impact
According to this year’s CWTS Leiden Ranking of over 1300 universities from 69 countries, Rockefeller has the highest percentage of most frequently cited scientific publications.
A third vaccine dose may increase protection from Omicron
The booster appears to galvanize memory B cells into producing potent and versatile antibodies that neutralize both the original virus and its many variants.
Rockefeller tops international university ranking in measure of top cited publications
In the U-Multirank rating system for higher education institutions, Rockefeller placed first in a measure of impact based on citations.
40 young scientists receive Ph.D.s at Rockefeller’s 64th convocation
With this week’s ceremony, the first in-person convocation since the start of the pandemic, Rockefeller has granted doctor of philosophy degrees in bioscience to 1,395 students. In addition, Anthony S. Fauci, Katalin Karikó, and Lulu C. Wang received honorary doctor of science degrees.
How intricate patterns arise in developing tissues
In developing bird skin, immature cells move around and form intricate patterns. Scientists are zeroing in on the mechanical forces guiding the process.
Building a human ‘pangenome’ to capture global genomic diversity
The human reference genome, the most widely used resource in human genetics, is getting a major update.
Hundreds of new drug targets to combat tuberculosis
The study highlights genes that, when silenced, render Mycobacterium tuberculosis vulnerable to antibiotics, and identifies existing drugs that may be effective against one prominent strain.
One protein's surprising partnership with single-stranded DNA
Linker histone H1 appears capable of distinguishing between single-stranded and double-stranded DNA, suggesting that its role in maintaining our genomes extends far beyond that of keeping chromosomes compact.
A synthetic antibiotic may help turn the tide against drug-resistant bacteria
The compound attacks MRSA, C. diff, and several other deadly pathogens. Its discovery demonstrates the power of combining computational biology, genetic sequencing, and synthetic chemistry to study bacterial evolution.
The genetic underpinnings of severe staph infections
A mutated gene may explain why some Staphylococcus aureus infections turn lethal, a finding with significant implications for people living with 5p- syndrome.
Titia de Lange elected to the Royal Society
She receives the honor for elucidating mechanisms of telomere protection and genome maintenance.
Antibody therapy controls HIV for months in new clinical trial
Unlike conventional antiretroviral drugs, treatment with broadly neutralizing antibodies does not rely on vigilant daily dosing and could potentially reduce the body’s reservoir of latent viruses.
Shixin Liu, expert in single-molecule studies of biological machines, is promoted to associate professor
Liu’s pioneering research on nano-scale molecular events is furthering our knowledge of how DNA replication and gene expression are regulated.
Kivanç Birsoy, expert on cancer cell metabolism, is promoted to associate professor 
Birsoy's groundbreaking research has highlighted key nutrients that cancer cells need to survive, while shedding light on debilitating mitochondrial diseases and rare genetic disorders.
Richard P. Lifton to be honored with 2023 Kober Medal
Lifton, who pioneered the use of genomics to identify the basis for diseases, is recognized for a lifetime of contributions in science and mentorship.
How a narrow-spectrum antibiotic takes aim at C. diff
A new study reveals how the drug fidaxomicin selectively targets a dangerous pathogen without causing harm to beneficial bacteria. The findings could inform the development of new narrow-spectrum antibiotics for treating other types of infection.
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