Biological, physical and mathematical sciences at Michigan State University
The huge changes in the Earth’s crust that influenced human evolution are being redefined, according to research published today in Nature Geoscience. The Great Rift Valley of East Africa — the birthplace of the human species — may have taken much longer to develop than previously believed. “We now believe that the western portion of [...]
Robert Root-Bernstein, professor of physiology, is studying the origin of life at its building blocks and gaining a unique perspective on evolution. Paleontologists study ancient life and reason that each species is a modification of the previous generation. Geneticists embrace this theory and trace the lineage of genes. Root-Bernstein wondered if there could be another [...]
In the current issue of Science, MSU evolutionary biologists demonstrate how a new virus evolves, which sheds light on how easy it can be for diseases to gain dangerous mutations. The research showed for the first time how the virus called “Lambda” evolved to find a new way to attack host cells, an innovation that [...]
Research led by assistant zoology professor Alexander Shingleton has shed new light on why some body parts are more sensitive to environmental change than others, work that could someday lead to better ways of treating a variety of diseases, including Type 2 diabetes. Shingleton is studying the genetics of fruit flies and zeroing in on why [...]
Alumni, former post-docs, faculty and research collaborators will be participating in the Tiedje Symposium on Microbial Genomics and Ecology on Saturday, October 29, 2011, in recognition of the 70th birthday of Jim Tiedje, University Distinguished Professor of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics. The symposium features a dozen scientific presentations and poster sessions, and will reunite many [...]
Christoph Adami has a PhD in theoretical physics, yet he is the newest member of the faculty in the Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics. While this non-traditional partnership may seem odd at first glance, it has potential to take evolutionary biology research into many new areas. Adami first came to MSU last year while [...]
The ink is still fresh on Zack Blount’s diploma, but he already has big plans for the next stage of his career. Blount received his PhD from MSU this spring after finishing his dissertation on aspects of E. coli evolution under the guidance of Rich Lenski. Now Blount is beginning a research project to determine [...]
Researchers studied adaptations in sexual determination of 50 generations of female/hermaphrodite nematodes (right) and male nematodes (left), and their findings show the worms evolved rapidly to compensate for the effects of harmful mutations. Photos by Chris Chandler. There are many old wives’ tales about what determines a baby’s sex, yet it is the tight controls [...]
To most people, fruit flies are often bothersome and annoying. For Michael DeNieu, a zoology PhD candidate, these tiny insects are important research subjects as they are working, or more specifically surviving, to provide unique information on behavioral evolution and species adaptation. “I was interested in the intersection between evolution and behavior, and understanding how [...]
Most new faculty arrive at universities with textbooks and enthusiasm. Janette Boughman recently arrived at MSU with truckloads of large aquariums and hundreds of stickleback fish. Boughman, associate professor of zoology, has spent years breeding the fish and the moving operation from Wisconsin required extensive planning, careful maneuvering and numerous trips. For Boughman, her career [...]
© Copyright 2012 Michigan State University. East Lansing, MI 48824
MSU is an affirmative-action, equal-opportunity employer.
College of Natural Science | Privacy Policy | Email NatSci