News and Announcements
Read the latest news from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine’s basic science academic departments. The links below take you to articles where you can learn more about our faculty’s latest achievements.
To share news, take a moment to complete this form.
Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics
- 01.02.2025
Investigators from the laboratory of Ali Shilatifard, PhD, have developed a novel technique to precisely and efficiently study gene regulation, which may accelerate the development of new therapeutic strategies, according to a recent study published in Molecular Cell.
- 12.18.2024
A new study has provided direct evidence in mice that the drug reversibly cuts the cell’s energy supply by interfering with mitochondria to lower glucose levels.
- 12.12.2024
Northwestern University scientists have designed a new implantable device that can monitor fluctuating levels of proteins within the body in real time.
Cell and Developmental Biology
- 01.07.2025
An international team of scientists has uncovered new insights into how previously unstudied X chromosomes in women may contribute to Alzheimer’s Disease risk, according to a multicenter study published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry.
- 12.02.2024
Northwestern Medicine scientists have uncovered new details about how the spinal column forms in developing vertebrates, according to a study published in Developmental Cell.
- 11.18.2024
The COVID-19 virus spreads via mucus once inside an infected airway, according to a Northwestern Medicine study published in Nature Communications.
Microbiology-Immunology
- 01.07.2025
Bayar Thimmapaya, PhD, professor emeritus of Microbiology-Immunology, passed away peacefully at home on December 26, 2024. He was 81.
Born and raised in India, Dr. Thimmapaya obtained his PhD from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. He pursued his lifelong devotion to science when he immigrated to the United States in 1975 to conduct his postdoctoral research at Yale University School of Medicine and the University of Connecticut Health Center.
Dr. Thimmapaya then joined Northwestern University’s Department of Microbiology-Immunology as a faculty member where he earned tenure and retired as professor emeritus after 43 years of service in 2023. Over the course of his career, Dr. Thimmapaya was responsible for training many graduate students who would go on to lead research programs around the world. Dr. Thimmapaya studied oncogenic viruses and made important contributions to our understanding of the pathogenesis of human adenoviruses.
Intellectually curious by nature, Dr. Thimmapaya was an avid reader and took a keen interest in politics and current events.
He is survived by his wife Rama of 47 years, two daughters Asha (Amit) Mehrotra and Deepa (Pavan) Tripathi, and five grandchildren Devin, Anya, Dilan, Ria, and Rohan.
- 10.28.2024
Investigators led by Pablo Penaloza-MacMaster, PhD, associate professor of Microbiology-Immunology, have discovered that administering an antibody treatment four days after mRNA vaccination significantly improved vaccine efficacy in mice, according to findings published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.
- 10.03.2024
Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered a new underlying mechanisms that controls a specialized group of T-cells, findings that may serve as potential targets for treating inflammatory diseases and cancer, according to a recent study.
Pharmacology
- 12.20.2024
Scientists have uncovered new insights into the molecular players behind calcium channel regulation, a biological process that coordinates a wide array of physiological responses, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
- 11.07.2024
In research published in Science Advances, scientists at Northwestern and Case Western Reserve universities have developed the first polymer-based therapeutic for Huntington’s disease, an incurable, debilitating illness that causes nerve cells to break down in the brain.
- 10.24.2024
Scientists have discovered an RNA that controls how much or how little protein is produced by a gene, with implications for neurodevelopmental disorders like epilepsy and autism.
Neuroscience
- 12.20.2024
From probing the human brain to elucidating mechanisms behind cellular responses, Feinberg investigators have provided stunning new snapshots of biological processes invisible to the naked eye.
- 11.05.2024
Within a few days of injury, scientists can predict which patients will develop chronic pain based on the extent of cross “talk” between two regions of the brain, and the person’s anxiety level after the injury, according to a new Northwestern study.
- 10.08.2024
Northwestern has established the Denning Ataxia Center, a multidisciplinary hub dedicated to improving the understanding of ataxia through integrating leading-edge research with patient-centered clinical care, with the goal of unraveling the complexities of the condition and developing improved treatments.