Environment

Recent news:

Herr Lab receives grant to study marine symbiosis in a warming world

November 23, 2023

The Herr Lab has been awarded a 3-year ‘Symbiosis’ grant from the Gordon & Betty Moore Foundation, geared towards designing and disseminating microfluidic tools to power new understanding of marine symbiotic systems – like coral reefs – adversely impacted by rising sea temperatures and other climate-associated stresses. Herr’s lab welcomes two new postdoctoral scholars, Drs. Fangchen Liu and Cyril Deroy, and is collaborating with experts in coral systems from the Carnegie Institution for Science (Prof. Phillip Cleves) and the University of Miami (Prof. Nikki Traylor-Knowles).

cover of Time Magazine Best Inventions of 2023 issue

Two alumni innovations named to Time 2023 Best Inventions

November 2, 2023

Two PhD alumni have innovations named to the Time Magazine 200 Best Inventions of 2023 list. The Cala kIQ, developed by Cala Health, founded by alumna Kate Rosenbluth, is a wearable device that assists patients with Essential Tremor and Parkinson’s. Proven 40 OS is a fertilizer using naturally occurring microbes to reduce emissions and pollution while producing higher crop yields – developed by Pivot Bio, founded by alumnus Karsten Temme.

Photo of Bolt Threads cofounders Dan Widmaier (left) and David Breslauer in their manufacturing facility

Bolt Threads going public

October 5, 2023

Bolt Threads, a company co-founded by BioE PhD alumnus David Breslauer, plans to go public in a SPAC deal that values the one-time unicorn at $250 million. Bolt Threads uses synthetic biology and other techniques to sustainably produce engineered biomaterials, including synthetic spider silk and mushroom-based faux leather.

Schematic showing the electric potential generated from virus film upon heating. Heat denatures, or melts, the protein coating on the engineered phage, causing a difference in electrical potential. (Image courtesy of Seung-Wuk Lee)

Researchers demonstrate heat-induced pyroelectricity in viruses

September 29, 2023

Researchers in Professor Seung-Wuk Lee’s lab discovered for the first time “heat-induced electrical potential generation on a virus,” a phenomenon known as pyroelectricity. This work may shed light on how biomaterials — cells, tissues and proteins — generate electricity at a molecular level as well as lead to the development of biomaterials with novel medical, pharmaceutical, environmental and energy applications.

photo of Hsu in the lab

BioE alumna creating a greener future for bluejeans

September 29, 2023

PhD alumna Tammy Hsu is using synthetic biology to produce environmentally friendly dyes for industry through her company, Huue.

photograph of coral in the ocean, from the Smithsonian Institute

New Technique Could Facilitate Rapid Cryopreservation of All Coral Species

August 25, 2023

Research by Professor Emeritus Boris Rubinsky, in collaboration with Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute (NZCBI) and Texas A&M, has achieved a breakthrough in the fight to save the world’s coral reefs from climate change annihilation. The researchers successfully cryopreserved and revived entire coral fragments, opening the door to collecting and preserving coral fragments easily and rapidly at an urgent moment for coral worldwide.

photo of the Uncracked team and Collider Cup guests

Bioengineer Andy Yau takes first place in Collider Cup!

May 12, 2023

BioE MEng student Andy Yau and his teammates in the AltMeat: Product Design of Plant-Based Foods course took first place at Sutardja Center for Entrepreneurship & Technology’s (SCET) Collider Cup XII, its competitive venture showcase for promising student venture projects. The Uncracked team designed a plant-based crab alternative that is more tasty and nutritious than current alternatives, low in sodium and high in protein and omega-3 fatty acids.

photo of Arkin Lab team

Finding solutions for living on Mars — and a rapidly changing Earth

November 18, 2022

Prof Adam Arkin and the Center for the Utilization of Biological Engineering in Space are leading efforts to create zero-waste biomanufacturing systems in “Mars-like conditions”, for human futures on other worlds and our own.

photo of cloth being dyed

Huue Closes a $14.6 Million Series A to Disrupt Denim Dyeing

August 2, 2022

Synthetic biology startup Huue, founded by BioE PhD alumni Tammy Hsu, has raised $14.6 million in a Series A funding round for what it says is the world’s first clean and scalable indigo dye for denim.