Author: Talia Ogliore

New research from Gary Patti’s laboratory in Arts & Sciences shows that when cells divide rapidly, their mitochondria are fused together. In this configuration, the cell is able to more efficiently use oxygen for energy. This work illuminates the inner workings of dividing cells and shows how mitochondria combine to help cells to multiply in unexpected ways.

A team of engineers in the McKelvey School of Engineering has developed a high-powered fuel cell that operates at double the voltage of today’s commercial fuel cells. It could power underwater vehicles, drones and eventually electric aircraft at a significantly lower cost.

A new study led by Petra Levin in Arts & Sciences suggests that triclosan exposure may inadvertently drive bacteria into a state in which they are able to tolerate normally lethal concentrations of antibiotics — including those antibiotics that are commonly used to treat urinary tract infections.

New research from Washington University in St. Louis shows that honey bees (Apis mellifera) develop different scent profiles as they age, and the gatekeeper bees at the hive’s door respond differently to returning foragers than they do when they encounter younger bees who have never ventured out before.

Washington University in St. Louis has been awarded a $20,000 “mini-grant” by the Association of American Universities to further existing efforts to improve undergraduate education in STEM disciplines. The funding will support programming organized by the Center for Integrative Research on Cognition, Learning and Education (CIRCLE).

The American Academy of Microbiology has named three Washington University in St. Louis faculty members as fellows: Gautam Dantas, of the School of Medicine, and Robert Kranz and Petra Levin, professors of biology in Arts & Sciences.

C. David Gutsche, professor emeritus of chemistry in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis, died Aug. 28, 2018, in Seattle. Gutsche was 97.

Joseph Kurz, professor emeritus of chemistry at Washington University in St. Louis, died Jan. 2, 2019, at Missouri Baptist Medical Center in St. Louis County. His health had declined over the past several years. Kurz was 85. 

NASA’s Astrobiology Program has awarded $9 million to a multi-institution team for the Earth First Origins project, led by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. Jeffrey G. Catalano of Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis is a co-investigator.

A recent study in Geophysical Research Letters proposes a new way to leverage signals contained in water molecules to decode the atmospheric processes that accompany changing tropical weather and climate patterns.