Researchers look to advanced metabolic imaging to improve cancer immunotherapy
Researchers at the Morgridge Institute and UW–Madison are using advanced metabolic imaging to identify ways to improve CAR T cell therapy against solid tumors. Learn more
Morgridge Institute for Research
Wisconsin Science Festival makes curiosity to go with “Science in a Bag”
via Madison 365
As part of the 2025 Wisconsin Science Festival, the Morgridge Institute’s “Science in a Bag” program provided Wisconsin libraries with more than 3,000 drawstring backpacks, each filled with ten to twelve hands-on experiments and activities designed to spark curiosity.
Morgridge and UW researchers develop novel gene editing approach for stem cell therapy
via University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health – Department of Surgery
Morgridge Affiliate Matt Brown and the Ron Stewart Computational Biology Group recently published a new approach to “hypoimmune” gene editing of pluripotent stem cell (PSC) therapies.
Researchers look to advanced metabolic imaging to improve cancer immunotherapy
Researchers at the Morgridge Institute and UW–Madison are using advanced metabolic imaging to identify ways to improve CAR T cell therapy against solid tumors.
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Rising Sparks: Peter Favreau, biomedical imaging alum
Along with curiosity and collaboration, Peter Favreau focused on developing his interpersonal skills to find success in building a career in microscopy.
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Rock out at the 15th annual Wisconsin Science Festival
Get ready to rock and roll at the Wisconsin Science Festival, held October 16-26, featuring over 650 events throughout the state.
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Advanced imaging highlights quick-changing act of innate immune cells
New research from the Melissa Skala Lab uses advanced metabolic imaging to study neutrophil metabolism in cell culture and a live zebrafish model.
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Students envision their own futures in STEM at Summer Science Camp
The 19th annual Morgridge Summer Science Camp welcomed students from Wisconsin high schools for a week-long immersion into the world of science.
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Morgridge loses a science visionary and friend, David Mangelsdorf
David Mangelsdorf, a visionary scientist at UT Southwestern in Dallas and one of our most recent additions to the Morgridge Scientific Advisory Board, died unexpectedly on Aug. 3 at the age of 67.
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Rising Sparks: Amritava Das, bioethics alum
Amritava Das, whose interdisciplinary work at Morgridge straddled biomedical engineering and bioethics, is taking his career beyond the theoretical realms of science, into the worlds of government policy and national defense.
BDHS Summer Camp Scholars
via YouTube
Beaver Dam High School teacher and students share their camp experience in this video recoding of the Daily Dodge podcast, Hometown Today.
Lifesaving science at UW-Madison depends on patent rights
via Wisconsin State Journal
Morgridge Board member and former director Jim Dahlberg wrote a column for The Wisconsin State Journal illustrating how a research finding that stemmed from curiosity led to a discovery with huge value, not only in financial terms, but for the lives of the individuals who benefitted.
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Rising Sparks: Alex Walsh, biomedical imaging
Growing up in Austin, Texas, Alexandra Walsh was surrounded by scientific rigor and enthusiasm — and she used that early inspiration to forge a research career in biomedical engineering.
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HTCondor celebrates 40 years powered by community
HTCondor celebrates 40 years of advancing science through a network of distributed computing power and a deeply engaged community.
Photos: Rural students get hands-on learning at Morgridge summer science camp
via Wisconsin State Journal
About two dozen high school juniors from rural school districts, as well as a handful from Milwaukee as a part of the Upward Bound program, participate in a Morgridge summer science camp.
High school students experiment at UW-Madison Summer Science Camp
via WMTV 15 News
Channel 15 News reported on the 2025 Morgridge Summer Science Camp, now in its 19th year on campus.
How UW–Madison’s Startup Ecosystem is Shaping the Next Generation of Innovators: Faculty and Graduate Student Q&A
via UW Technology Entrepreneurship Office
Morgridge biomedical imaging scientists Melissa Skala and Amani Gillette discuss their journey to launch a new imaging startup — called SeLight — that improves the effectiveness of CAR T cancer therapies.
The UW-Madison origin of cancer screening; then, the history and judging at county fairs
via WPR
Morgridge leaders Brad Schwartz and Jim Dahlberg explore the importance of basic research on WPR’s Larry Meiller talk show.
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For effective science communication, ‘just the facts’ isn’t good enough
Scientists who show humility and recognize that science “doesn’t have all the answers” will be more effective communicators with society, argues Morgridge PI Dietram Scheufele.
Madison has an ‘extraordinary asset’ to rebuild public trust in science
via Madison Magazine
In a June editorial, Madison Magazine highlighted the Morgridge Institute as a “positively exhilarating” place that embodies the highest standards of scientific thought.
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Rising Sparks: Pierre Gillotay, regenerative biology
Pierre Gillotay, who researches spinal cord regeneration, joined Morgridge in fall 2024 and quickly sensed a scientific culture that encourages curiosity and collaboration. “It is stimulating. It’s very chill and welcoming,” he says.
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Morgridge, UW partner to supercharge field trip experiences for kids
A treasure trove of hands-on science experiences await K-12 students who visit UW-Madison. A Morgridge-UW partnership is helping schools get the biggest ‘wow factor’ from those visits.
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Jackson family’s investment helps rural students broaden horizons
Personal experience has motivated Sondra and Ed Jackson to inspire scientific discovery in students from Wisconsin’s rural schools and introduce them to university life — which often seems intimidating to students from rural backgrounds.
American Science’s Culture Has Contributed to the Grave Threat It Now Faces
via Real Clear Science
Morgridge CEO Brad Schwartz, writing in Real Clear Science, warns against America’s “strategic retreat” from basic research, and argues scientists must reconnect with the public they serve.
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Throughput computing enables astronomers to use AI to decode iconic black holes
Scientists with the global Event Horizon Telescope project have learned new secrets about the black hole at the center of our Milky Way, with the help of high-throughput computing advances pioneered here in Wisconsin.
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Neutrophils powered by dynamic shifts in mitochondrial metabolism
New research uncovers the role of mitochondrial metabolism in neutrophils and the mechanisms that allow them to adapt under different conditions.
I told AI to make me a protein. Here’s what it came up with
via Nature
Morgridge Investigator Anthony Gitter comments on a new AI technology that can help design original proteins based on simple, common-language prompts.
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Study shows environmental conditions alter dependence on a key metabolic enzyme
At the intersection of genetic rules and environmental conditions, scientists at Morgridge are gathering new insights about how diseases function in the human body.
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Rising Sparks: Sam Gelman, virology alum
Sam Gelman uses his computer science skills to apply machine learning — a branch of artificial intelligence that enables computers to imitate how humans learn and perform tasks — to help uncover important biomedical secrets.
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Congratulations to our 2025 graduates
Congratulations to our 2025 graduating students and research staff moving on into their next chapters. A few of them shared about their experiences at Morgridge and their plans for the future.
Morgridge trustee and UW–Madison professor emeritus honored for groundbreaking gene variation research
via Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
James Dahlberg, Morgridge trustee and former interim chief executive officer, is named one of the Bayh-Dole Coalition’s 2025 Faces of American Innovation for his achievements.
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Want to answer a big question in science? Ask a bigger one
Meet David Mangelsdorf, professor and chair of pharmacology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, who joined the Morgridge Scientific Advisory Board in 2025. Mangelsdorf discusses his lifelong fascination with big, high-risk challenges in science.
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Morgridge supporters discover the impacts of community engagement during a ‘Night in the Lab’
During a special event, the Community Engagement Team welcomed a group of enthusiastic, science-curious donors and supporters to learn how the team sparks curiosity in communities across Wisconsin and beyond.
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Founder of Morgridge spinoff company awarded for entrepreneurial impact
Greg Piefer, founder of Morgridge spinoff company SHINE Technologies, is among three outstanding recipients of the 2025 Chancellor’s Entrepreneurial Achievement Award.
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Rising Sparks: Sabina Farhadova, biomedical imaging
Working with investigators Melissa Skala and Darcie Moore, Farhadova will use cutting-edge imaging technologies to answer fundamental questions about neurogenesis – the process by which new neurons are generated in the brain – and stem cell biology.
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Shaping the Future of Women’s Health: Insights and Innovations
Despite the many advances in human health, research focused on women’s health has a more complex history. Experts discussed this topic through the lens of discovery, prevention, and access to care during a Fearless Science Speaker Series lecture on March 17, 2025.
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Researchers ‘seq’ and find a way to make pig retinal cells to advance eye treatments
For the first time, researchers developed stem cell-derived pig retinal cells in comparison with human retinal cells, envisioning a path to advance treatments for eye disease and injury.
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Rising Sparks: Kayla Huemer, biomedical engineering alum
Morgridge alum Kayla Heumer helps accelerate healthcare access for underserved communities in Africa, powered by technology and the ‘spirit of frugal innovation.’
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Bioengineered arteries show promise for cardiovascular surgery
Scientists bioengineered stem cell-derived artery grafts that could advance the field of vascular bypass surgery to combat cardiovascular disease.
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Curiosity-driven research: The ultimate return on investment
Most of the great medical advances of our time have arisen from answering a fundamental question: How does the biology work? At Morgridge, we are after those fundamental questions.
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Little fish, big splash
Kenneth Poss, Morgridge’s newest investigator, studies how zebrafish can restore what is irreparable in humans — including damaged heart tissue.
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New cancer imaging startup harnesses Wisconsin expertise
Morgridge scientists are working with a Madison biomedical company to improve the success rates of cancer immunotherapy treatments, which harness patients’ own immune response to fight cancer.
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Rising Sparks: Jose Ayuso, biomedical imaging alum
Morgridge alum Jose Ayuso is an assistant professor in UW–Madison’s Department of Dermatology, where his lab uses advanced biomedical engineering technologies to tap the promise of precision medicine.
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The American investment in research is about people
Early-career scientists are essential to the Morgridge mission, and the majority have some level of competitive support from the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Here, early-career researchers share thoughts on how federal funding supports their mission to conduct high-impact research.
Viewpoints: NIH-funded research produces cures, treatments and jobs, even if it takes time
via BizTimes
In a statewide column, Morgridge CEO Brad Schwartz commented on how the federal investment in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) benefits the health and well-being of every Wisconsinite.
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New mass spec method gets the ‘nMOST’ out of multiomics data
The Coon Lab developed a new method to acquire multiomic data as quickly and as comprehensibly as possible, while keeping the system simple and accessible for anyone to use.
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Mining millions of genomes for the next powerful antibiotic
High-throughput computing innovations at Morgridge and UW-Madison is enabling a massive research effort to discover new natural compounds that can counter antibiotic resistance.
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The infinite worm
Scooped from a fountain in Spain, a colony of planarians help scientists unravel the rules of regeneration.
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Rising Sparks: Danielle Lohman, metabolism alum
Morgridge alum lands at the U.S. Department of State, shaping the intersection of science policy and foreign affairs.
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Morgridge supporters get a closer look at metabolism research with the Coon Lab
During a special event, the Joshua Coon Lab welcomed a group of enthusiastic, science-curious donors and supporters for a hands-on exploration of the technologies used in metabolism research.
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Morgridge postdoc breaks down barriers of cancer therapy at Falling Walls Lab Competition
Morgridge postdoc Amani Gillette took center stage at the international Falling Walls Lab Competition, presenting a pitch for SeLight, LLC, her startup focused on CAR T cell therapy research.
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‘Listen to what the flies tell us’
The Drummond-Barbosa Lab looks to the tiny fruit fly to understand big complex questions about the relationship between stem cell development and changes in diet, metabolism, and the environment.
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Rising Sparks: Nick Arp, metabolism
Nick Arp is building a toolbox of knowledge in the research lab and in the medical clinic, searching for answers to scientific questions that can improve patient care.
AI protein-prediction tool AlphaFold3 is now open source
via Nature
Morgridge Investigator Anthony Gitter provides comments to Nature News on the importance of open-source code as for-profit companies wade into the academic field of AI research.
Live Imaging Intracellular Parasites Reveals Changes to Host Metabolism
via The Scientist
Researchers at the Morgridge Institute and UW–Madison use advanced imaging to study how Toxoplasma gondii changes host cell metabolism, offering insights into potential treatment strategies.
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Best of the Fest 2024: Wisconsin Science Festival in photos
We’ve collected some of our favorite moments from during the 14th annual Wisconsin Science Festival, held Oct. 14-20. Which is your favorite?
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Earning Trust: How Can We Navigate Public Skepticism and Science Misinformation
Morgridge Investigators Pilar Ossorio and Dietram Scheufele joined CEO Brad Schwartz for a hybrid webinar to discuss why trust in science is breaking down and what can be done to earn public confidence.
An ancient animal is helping scientists improve modern technology
via UW–Madison
Researchers at UW–Madison and the Morgridge Institute are looking to improve advanced microscopy techniques by studying proteins from tardigrades — an ancient group of microscopic animals with the uncanny ability to survive under extreme conditions.
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Rising Sparks: Raison Dsouza, structural biology
Raison Dsouza is developing new computational methods to analyze cryo-electron microscopy images, trying to find specific particles in “noisy,” corrupted data.
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Mixed media messaging: Different cell culture conditions influence drug activity in cancer cells
Morgridge Investigator Jason Cantor and colleagues published new work exploring how changes in the cell culture environment impact the effectiveness of drugs.
Collagen highway signs could show how to stop pancreatic cancer spread
via College of Engineering
University of Wisconsin-Madison biomedical engineers, including Morgridge Investigator Melissa Skala, showed how the alignment of collagen fibers accelerates the movement of clusters of pancreatic cancer cells.
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Rising Sparks: Lexi Menendez, regenerative biology
Lexi Menendez credits Morgridge and the PREP program for jump-starting her research career and graduate school future.
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Cultivate Curiosity at the 14th Annual Wisconsin Science Festival
Unleash your curiosity, celebrate discovery and build community at the Wisconsin Science Festival, held October 14-20, with more than 200 events throughout the state.
Morgridge Institute researchers speak on biomedical imaging, virology at Sept. 24 Tech Council luncheon
via Wisconsin Technology Council
Two Morgridge Institute researchers will share how they use a multi-disciplinary approach to fight human disease and viruses at the Sept. 24 Tech Council Innovation Network luncheon in Madison.
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Cryo-EM Explained: Visualizing Life’s Machinery
The world of the super-small — of proteins, ribosomes, bacteria, viruses, and other biomolecules — is perpetually abuzz inside of us. A powerful structural biology technique called cryogenic electron microscopy (cryo-EM) gives scientists a new window into the machinery of life. Here’s a look at how the technology works.
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Optical imaging technique gives a closer look at new ways to grow heart cells
Danielle Desa adapted optical imaging techniques she learned with the Melissa Skala Lab to assess the ideal conditions to successfully grow cardiac cells in unique biosynthetic hydrogels.
Distinguished Service Award: John ’55 and Tashia Morgridge ’55
via Wisconsin Alumni Association
Morgridge Institute co-founders John and Tashia Morgridge received a distinguished service award from the Wisconsin Alumni Association for their visionary and unprecedented giving to UW-Madison and affiliates.
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Students immersed in a world of discovery at Summer Science Camp
The 18th annual Morgridge Science Summer Camp took place in July 2024, welcoming 75 students from rural Wisconsin high schools for a week-long immersion into the world of science and a glimpse of college life.
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Rising Sparks: Kasia Wiech, biomedical imaging
Kasia Wiech, a graduate student in biomedical engineering, is on a mission to bring science out of the lab and into public spaces to highlight the impact of science in our everyday lives.
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BioImaging North America Community Congress held in Wisconsin this fall
The BINA 2024 Community Congress will meet on September 23-27, 2024 on the University of Wisconsin–Madison campus.
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Advanced imaging reveals how a parasitic ‘kiss’ alters cell metabolism
Morgridge researchers harness the power of optical metabolic imaging to study how the parasite Toxoplasma changes host cell metabolism over the course of infection.
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UW, Morgridge welcome new Rita Allen Civic Science Fellows
The Morgridge Science Communication Incubator Lab and the UW–Madison Life Sciences Communication Department welcome two new Civic Science Fellows supported by the Rita Allen Foundation.
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New Morgridge investigator explores complex link between viruses, cancer
Viruses are responsible for nearly one in every five cases of human cancer. New Morgridge Investigator Megan Spurgeon is on the front lines of understanding the inner workings of this public health threat.
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Grad student contemplates open-source conflicts with new AI software
Bryce Johnson, a graduate student in the Gitter Lab at Morgridge, published an opinion piece in Undark commenting on open-source conflicts with Google DeepMind’s AI software AlphaFold 3.
Faculty and staff explore state’s rivers, culture and more in Wisconsin Idea Seminar
via UW-Madison
he seminar is an annual five-day journey through Wisconsin that offers faculty and staff the opportunity to learn firsthand about the social and cultural contexts that shape the lives of many of our Wisconsin students, and to see what the Wisconsin Idea looks like when it is rooted in local communities and shaped by local priorities.
The engineering challenges of preterm birth
via The Conversation
In the public affairs news site The Conversation, a trio of engineers (including the Morgridge Institute’s Melissa Skala) describe their research alliance to better understand the biomechanics of pregnancy — and create a better warning system for preterm birth risk.
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Following the ‘BATT Signal’: A new signaling pathway controlling planarian germ cells
Morgridge scientists have discovered a surprising new way that the model organism planaria initiates sexual development.
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Unique optical imaging approach sheds light on hidden information within cells
The Randy Bartels Lab demonstrates for the first time the use of third harmonic generation holographic microscopy to collect measurements of light intensity and phase information within biological samples.
New biomarkers of response in melanoma immunotherapy
via SPIE
The Skala Lab used quantitative imaging to observe collagen changes in melanoma tumors in mice, offering potential to improve immunotherapy treatments.
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Morgridge supporters take a closer look at biomedical imaging with the Skala Lab
During a special event, the Skala Lab welcomed a group of enthusiastic, science-curious donors and supporters to to take a closer look at the beautiful world of microscopy and biomedical imaging.
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Congratulations to our 2024 graduates
Congratulations to our 2024 graduating students and research staff moving on into their next chapters.
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Rising Sparks: Roma Broadberry, biomedical imaging
Roma Broadberry, a biophysics graduate researcher in the Tim Grant Lab, is helping to illuminate the intricacy of viral replication using cryo-EM.
Civic Science Fellows Program Launches 2024-25 Cohort
via Rita Allen Foundation
The Morgridge Institute is a partner with the pioneering Civic Science Fellows program — designed to catalyze progress toward a future where all people can shape science to expand its benefits and horizons.
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Morgridge Trustee James Dahlberg honored for entrepreneurial achievement
James Dahlberg, Morgridge trustee and former interim chief executive officer, is among three outstanding innovators to receive 2024 Chancellor’s Entrepreneurial Achievement Awards.
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AAAS members make eight UW researchers new fellows
via UW–Madison
Morgridge Institute CEO Brad Schwartz and Morgridge Visiting Scientist James Keck are among eight University of Wisconsin–Madison scholars who have been elected fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society.
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Discovery Expo featured hands-on science for UW Science Expeditions
From cow eye dissections to shipwrecks on the Great Lakes, families experienced hands-on activities at the Science Expeditions Discovery Expo.
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Dietram Scheufele receives 2024 American Academy of Political and Social Science Fellowship and UW–Madison Hilldale Award
Dietram Scheufele recently received awards from UW–Madison and the AAPSS in recognition of his work on public engagement with science and technology.
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Heart regeneration pioneer to join UW–Madison, Morgridge Institute
Kenneth Poss explores the mysteries of how some species can regenerate virtually any damaged tissue in their body — and what that could mean for repairing damaged human hearts.
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Rising Sparks: Andrés Tibabuzo, regenerative biology
From ‘Jurassic Park’ to snake venom to parasitic flatworms, Andrés Tibabuzo is motivated by the science that fascinates him.
New tool provides researchers with improved understanding of stem cell aging in the brain
via UW-Madison
By identifying and decoding these autofluorescence signatures, the researchers have developed a tool that can aid in studying adult neurological diseases and aging, but potentially also expand beyond neuroscience.
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AI in Biomedicine: Promises and Pitfalls
Does AI have a future in biomedical research? What challenges might we face? Experts from the Morgridge Institute addressed these questions during a Fearless Science Speaker Series lecture on March 21, 2024.
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Students explore how tiny tools can answer big questions
Students explored the basics of fluid mechanics at a recent field trip to the Discovery Building.
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Rising Sparks: Marcela Tabima, regenerative biology
Marcela Tabima has focused her fascination with human biology on two major research efforts in the Discovery Building — engineering synthetic arteries for surgery and finding new ways to treat inherited retinal diseases.
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All creatures great and small: Sequencing the blue whale and Etruscan shrew genomes
Researchers illustrated that size doesn’t matter when they assembled sequences for two new reference genomes — one from the world’s largest mammal and one of the smallest.
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Scientists more likely to engage with the public when supported by their research institutions
The Morgridge Science Communication Incubator Lab questions why scientists may or may not be willing to pursue public engagement opportunities.
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Morgridge scientist aims to shatter the ‘ballistic barrier’ in imaging
With support from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), Morgridge investigator Randy Bartels will be on a quest to break the “ballistic barrier” in biomedical imaging to peer more deeply into living tissue.
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Rising Sparks: Katherine Overmyer, metabolism
Katie Overmyer collaborates with metabolism researchers to push the boundaries of mass spectrometry technology and uncover answers to important biological questions.
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SKiM search tool goes beyond the surface to discover hidden links in biomedical data
A tool called Serial KinderMiner (SKiM) can quickly search through more than 35 million papers in the PubMed database to make connections and uncover potentially hidden associations between a set of terms.
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Postdoc alum joins the fight against Hepatitis B infection
Nuruddin Unchwaniwala, a postdoctoral alumnus of the Ahlquist Lab, joined the biotech industry to help fight Hepatitis B infection, a leading cause of liver cancer.
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Rising Sparks: Joe Li, biomedical imaging
“You can always learn more”: An unquenchable thirst for discovery guides Joe Li’s pursuit of cutting-edge light-sheet microscopy.
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Development in fertility research questions obesity as the leading cause of infertility
A project spearheaded by scientist Rodrigo Dutra Nunes in the Drummond-Barbosa Lab found that a high-sugar diet, and not obesity, causes decreased fertility in fruit flies.
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The future of cancer care: a path toward personalized treatment
Morgridge biomedical imaging investigator Dr. Melissa Skala and University of Wisconsin–Madison medical oncologist Dr. Mark Burkard discuss the future of cancer care in the latest Fearless Science Speaker Series webinar.
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A foundation model for bioimaging? A Morgridge scientist explores the possibilities
Morgridge investigator Juan Caicedo is developing an AI-driven image processing platform called “universal morphology,” which has the potential to turbocharge research into cell biology and drug discovery.
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Rising Sparks: Odette Herrand, regenerative biology
Odette Herrand is drawn to the inherent creativity involved in answering complex scientific questions, which they use to study fertility in the fruit fly.
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Pounding out the dents: Westphall’s career solved problems, advanced discovery
Mike Westphall, a distinguished scientist in the Josh Coon Lab, will retire this month after a legacy of developing cool tools in the name of scientific discovery.
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Gitter honored with inaugural Jeanne M. Rowe Chair in Virology
Tony Gitter, a Morgridge investigator in virology and research computing and an associate professor of biostatistics and medical informatics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, has been named the Jeanne M. Rowe Chair in Virology.
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Morgridge supporters experience a “Night in the Lab”
During a special event, the Morgridge Institute welcomed a group of enthusiastic, science-curious donors and supporters into the lab to explore “fearless science” first-hand.
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The Pelican Project: Building a universal plug for scientific data-sharing
Morgridge is home to a National Science Foundation initiative to make big data generated by federal research findable, accessible and reusable for all.
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Rising Sparks: Peter Ducos, structural biology
Peter Ducos leans on his military training to solve complex problems and collaborate with other scientists by exploring molecular structures in exquisite detail.
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Morgridge helping build a multinational bio-imaging community
BioImaging North America, a project housed at the Morgridge Institute, is helping a community of more than 1,200 scientists take their imaging research and technology to new heights.
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Best of the Fest: 2023 Wisconsin Science Festival in photos
We’ve collected some of our favorite moments from the 2023 Wisconsin Science Festival, which boasted a full week of over 300 events statewide.
Soft-landing methods to simplify structural biology
via Nature
The journal Nature profiled a novel technology developed in the Josh Coon Lab to link two technologies — mass spectrometry and cryo-EM — to better image complex protein structures.
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Rising Sparks: Kim Huggler, metabolism
Kim Huggler believes science is fundamentally about creativity, and leverages an innovative cell culture media to reveal biological processes that conventional techniques cannot.
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Unleash your curiosity at the 13th annual Wisconsin Science Festival
Take the time to unleash your curiosity and celebrate discovery at the Wisconsin Science Festival, held October 16-22, with more than 300 events throughout the state.
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Rising Sparks: Ed Evans, biomedical imaging
Ed Evans sees every challenge as an opportunity to grow, and uses his passion for problem-solving to develop new imaging tools that will help other scientists.
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Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow receives Simons Foundation award to support her future research
Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Liz Haynes received a Simons Foundation Transition to Independence Award to support her career studying the aging brain using a zebrafish model.
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Fruit fly research is heating up at Morgridge
The increasing impacts of climate change include the effect on fertility as a factor that could decide an organism’s survival or extinction. New research reveals how chronic exposure to warm temperatures affects sperm development in the model organism, Drosophila.
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Amani Gillette: An entrepreneur’s journey to improve cancer care
Morgridge Postdoc Amani Gillette discusses her fascinating transition from bench science to entrepreneurship as she steers a new company devoted to improving personalized cancer therapies.
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Visual art on social media provides unique way to bridge gaps in science communication
A Morgridge-funded research project on the impact of visual art as a science communication tool on social media received an award at the 2023 AEJMC conference.
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Broad representation of students and science at Summer Science Camp
Students and educators from rural high schools across Wisconsin spent a week on campus to experience science firsthand at the 17th annual Summer Science Camp.
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Creating partnerships: Afterschool Expeditions brings science exploration to community centers
Afterschool Expeditions is an outreach program brings the wonders of science to community centers across the city — it’s about fun and exploration.
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Felipe Rosas Gomez is connecting to communities through science
New Assistant Outreach Coordinator Felipe Rosas Gomez brings his diverse perspective and passion for education and community engagement to Morgridge.
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Researchers illuminate HIV in cell-to-cell attack mode
When cells infected with HIV make contact with uninfected cells, a new study reveals how that connection unleashes a hornet’s nest of activity that helps drive transmission.
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Middle schoolers explore the wide world of STEM at summer camp
A group of 7th grade students from the Madison Metropolitan School District explored a variety of STEM activities and developed their own science identities at summer camp.
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Searching for the biomechanical risk factors of preterm birth
Morgridge scientists have developed new imaging and engineering tools to better understand the mechanical triggers of preterm birth — a health challenge that affects more than one in 10 pregnancies nationally.
Viral Copy Machine Revealed
via College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
GROW Magazine, a research publication for the UW–Madison College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, highlighted the research of Morgridge Investigator Paul Ahlquist on how viruses replicate their genomes within cells.
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Back in session: Summer Science Camps kick off in July
The Summer Science Camps kick off July 10 on campus, inviting more than 50 Wisconsin high school students and 10 teachers for an immersive week of hands-on science, exploration, laughter, and learning.
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Cryo-EM studies reveal the ‘high-wire act’ of bacterial replication
Genome replication in bacteria frequently breaks down. Scientists at UW–Madison and Morgridge used Cryo-EM to precisely detail how bacterial proteins act like emergency first responders, repairing broken DNA on the fly.
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Eliceiri receives 2023-24 Romnes Award from WARF
Morgridge Investigator Kevin Eliceiri is one of 18 UW–Madison professors to be honored this summer with an H.I. Romnes Fellowship from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF).
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Students explore supercomputers, space plants, and sustainable energy
Middle schoolers explored material science and plant science at a recent field trip to the Discovery Building.
Skala Lab’s photonics-based imaging featured in UW Health News
via UW Health
Melissa Skala’s technology harnesses the natural light produced by cells in order to track response to cancer drug treatment.
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From Brad: New hires invigorate our research teams
Two new Morgridge investigators — Juan Caicedo and Randy Bartels — are bringing exciting approaches to push the frontiers of biomedical imaging.
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Super-resolution and ultra-deep: New Morgridge scientist pushes limits of imaging
New Morgridge Investigator Randy Bartels develops light microscopy and laser technology to illuminate biology we can’t currently see — such as ultra-deep imaging of tissues and large regions of cells.
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Juan Caicedo joins Morgridge, UW biomedical imaging community
Meet new Morgridge biomedical imaging Investigator Juan Caicedo, who specializes in machine learning to decode complex patterns in human biology.
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Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow builds connections with disciplines, peers, and the community
While preparing to launch her career as an independent investigator, Gina Gallego-Lopez explores the relationships between single-celled parasites and their hosts by linking multiple areas of research.
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Morgridge Bioethics: Navigating the challenges in cutting-edge biomedical research
The Research Ethics Consultations Service (RECS), launched in 2014 by Morgridge Ethics Investigator Pilar Ossorio, has taken on more than 60 inquiries from UW–Madison researchers on bioethical concerns large and small.
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Science serves society best when everyone is welcome
The Morgridge Institute echoes campus and community leaders in condemning recent hate speech on campus.
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Morgridge Trustee Winslow Sargeant honored for entrepreneurial achievement
Morgridge Institute Trustee Winslow Sargeant, an international leader in venture investment and small business development, received UW–Madison’s highest honor for alumni achievement in entrepreneurship.
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Visualizing metabolic activity of tumor and immune cells with melanoma-bearing mice
A study on metabolic reprogramming in cancer and immune cells is helping scientists better understand the cell interactions surrounding cancer progression — a key to developing more effective and personalized treatments.
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Winning bioethics cartoon targets publicly restricted research
Five prizes were awarded in the sixth annual Morgridge Institute for Research Ethics Cartooning Competition, which invites participants to make a cartoon on any ethical issue related to biomedical research.
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Fire up the GPUs: UW–Madison, Morgridge project sparks next-level computing
A UW 2020 project led by Anthony Gitter has led to a powerful new campus resource for GPU-based computing — the new go-to strategy for complex machine learning research.
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Student field trip gets hands-on: from the nanoscale to big energy solutions
Fifth graders from Shorewood Hill Elementary, a school in the Madison Metropolitan School District, attended a field trip to the Discovery Building this month.
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‘Deep proteome’ project provides atlas for human complexity
The Josh Coon Lab developed a meta-scale approach to quantifying the human proteome and the massive number of protein variants produced by the human body. Proteomics is a cornerstone of biology and a precursor to understanding how protein dysfunction contributes to disease.
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2022-2023 Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition – Public Voting
Eighteen cartoons have been selected as finalists in the 2023 Ethics Cartooning Competition, an annual contest sponsored by the Morgridge Institute.
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CAR macrophages show promise for cancer immunotherapy treatments
Scientists use stem cells to develop CAR macrophages that can infiltrate and kill tumor cells, showing promise for cancer immunotherapy treatments.
Photos: How Sea Spiders and Other Creatures Could Unlock the Secrets of Tissue Regeneration
via Wall Street Journal
Many animals have the ability to regrow limbs and other body parts after injury. A Wall Street Journal photo essay explores scientific inquiries into these amazing creatures — including the work of Melanie Issigonis in the Phil Newmark Lab at Morgridge.
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Stunningly detailed blueprint revealed of viral genome replication machinery
Morgridge virologists have outlined in atomic detail the intricate RNA replication machines that coronaviruses create inside infected cells, giving rise to potential new strategies to fight disease.
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Mass spec fueling new explorations at the Carbone Cancer Center
Every cell has about 20,000 proteins, several hundred metabolites, and couple of thousand lipids. When those things get perturbed, bad things can happen. But measuring those changes may offer essential clues for fighting cancer.
New faculty profile: Daniela Drummond-Barbosa explores physiological regulation of stem cell lineages
via College of Agricultural and Life Sciences
Daniela Drummond-Barbosa joined the UW–Madison faculty in September 2022 as a professor in the Department of Genetics.
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From ‘blobology’ to atomic precision: Wisconsin’s leadership on cryo-EM imaging
Wisconsin is now an established national leader in cryo-electron microscopy, or cryo-EM, thanks to a decade-long strategic push from the UW–Madison biochemistry department and the Morgridge Institute.
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High-throughput computing: Fostering data science without limits
HTCondor is gaining adherents across UW because scientists are learning that it is more than someone asking, “What technology do you need?” Research computing is a collaboration, and the people HTC brings to the equation are more important than the technology.
Genome Spotlight: Nile Rat (Avicanthis niloticus)
via The Scientist
Common rodent models aren’t ideal for studying certain diseases, but the Nile rat might offer a solution. A high-quality reference genome for the species will aid studies on type 2 diabetes and circadian rhythm disruption.
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Metabolism research has morphed from mundane to essential
At a meeting of the Wisconsin Tech Council, Morgridge scientists described the renaissance taking place in metabolism research, which is revealing newfound connections to disease and entirely new roads to treatment and prevention.
UW–Madison Faculty Make Strong Showing on Global Highly Cited Researchers List
via UW–Madison
Morgridge investigator Kevin Eliceiri is one of 16 UW–Madison researchers to make the 2022 list of “Highly Cited Researchers,” compiled annually by the Office of Scientific Information.
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Skala named inaugural Carol Skornicka Chair
Melissa Skala, an investigator in biomedical imaging and professor of biomedical engineering, has been named the inaugural Carol Skornicka Chair at the institute.
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The Morgridge Metabolism Initiative: A blueprint for collaboration
The Morgridge Metabolism Initiative helps hundreds of campus scientists learn from each other and push the boundaries of research that is central to human health questions such as aging, diabetes and cancer.
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Genome sequencing supports Nile rat animal model for diabetes research
For the first time, researchers have assembled a high-quality reference genome for the Nile rat, a promising model organism for diabetes research.
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Meet The Lab inspires students with Morgridge Institute research
Classrooms from Wisconsin and beyond explore Morgridge science through new Meet the Lab resources from PBS Wisconsin.
CZI Science Diversity Leadership Award Grantees
via Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
CZI partnered with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to launch the Science Diversity Leadership program, a funding opportunity that aims to recognize and further the leadership of excellent biomedical researchers who — through their outreach, mentoring, teaching, and leadership — have a record of promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in their scientific fields.
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Best of the Fest: 2022 Wisconsin Science Festival in photos
We’ve collected some of our favorite moments from the 2022 Wisconsin Science Festival, which boasted a full week of over 300 events statewide.
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Honoring Carl Gulbrandsen: a visionary champion for Wisconsin innovation
Carl Gulbrandsen was a visionary leader whose service to Wisconsin innovation left a lasting impact at Morgridge, WARF, and UW–Madison.
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Developing the science of science communication
The Morgridge Institute and UW–Madison Life Sciences Communication will join forces to investigate new ways to best communicate complex scientific topics to society.
Solving for the future: Investment, new coalition levels up research computing infrastructure at UW–Madison
via UW–Madison Information Technology
Bolstered by a $4.3 million investment from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation, UW–Madison’s research computing hardware is getting a significant upgrade—giving researchers the sustained shared infrastructure they need to help them push the bounds of science with support from the Morgridge Institute.
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Empowering early career professionals on the importance of diversity
At the 2022 Emerging Leaders Symposium, a group of professionals and panelists shared ideas about shaping the future of academia and the medical sciences through diverse perspectives and nurturing young talent.
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Desa named inaugural Melita F. Grunow Postdoctoral Fellow
Danielle Desa seeks to break ground in imaging design and stem cell research with support from the new Melita F. Grunow Postdoctoral Fellowship. She is mentored by Morgridge Investigator Melissa Skala and Biomedical Engineering Professor William Murphy.
The 2022 winners: Cool Science Image Contest
via UW–Madison
A team of scientists including graduate student Julia Gambardella, Morgridge scientist
John Maufort, and UW–Madison Professor Marina Emborg, were winners in the UW–
Madison 2022 Cool Science Image Contest.-
How COVID-19 shaped the evolution of a collaborative manuscript writing tool
The COVID-19 pandemic and our tech-driven world have highlighted the need for accessibility of research and efficiency of science publishing. Manubot is one tool that could change the game.
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Unleash your curiosity at the 12th annual Wisconsin Science Festival!
From glass blowing to space exploration, the Wisconsin Science Festival, held October 10-16, will feature over 300 in-person and virtual events throughout the state.
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Training the next generation of science leaders at Morgridge
Scientific training is much more than learning experimental methods or interpreting data. Trainees must practice management, leadership, collaboration, and communication skills to be successful and the Morgridge Institute is committed to fostering growth of “whole scientists” who are prepared to lead.
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Stem cell research uncovers clues to unique evolution in planarian reproduction
A new stem cell study describes genetic factors that support the development of germ cells and yolk cells in the reproductive organs of planarian flatworms.
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A research partnership brings gene editing promise to eye disease
One of the first frontiers of CRISPR gene editing is targeting diseases related to the eye. A diverse Morgridge and UW–Madison team is working to make future applications precise, safe and reproducible.
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NIAID/ACE students attend this year’s OSG User School 2022
This past July, the OSG User School 2022 welcomed students from across the globe to learn how to use high-throughput computing in their scientific research.
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High schoolers get hands-on with science at Summer Science Camp
After two years of virtual-only events at the Discovery Building, students and teachers from rural Wisconsin high schools returned in-person for the 16th annual Summer Science Camp.
Eliceiri named Open Hardware Trailblazer Fellow
via UW Research
Morgridge investigator Kevin Eliceiri was recently named an Open Hardware Trailblazer Fellow by the Open Source Hardware Association (OSHWA) for his work in imaging innovation.
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Summer Science programming returns, both in-person and online
After two years of virtual-only programming, the Morgridge Institute and the UW–Madison campus will once again open their doors to high school students and teachers in-person for the Summer Science Camp, along with continued online workshop sessions throughout the summer.
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Morgridge alum awarded for “FANTM” limb virtual technology
Former Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Finn Kuusisto was awarded for his work developing information technology to improve virtual reality applications that could one day be applied to biomedical devices.
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New Morgridge investigator explores role of diet and metabolism in stem cell function
Daniela Drummond-Barbosa, the Morgridge Institute’s newest investigator, uses the model organism Drosophila to better understand the genetic drivers of stem cell disorders, obesity, infertility and a variety of diseases associated with metabolism.
COVID lawsuits push doctors to provide substandard care
via Wisconsin Examiner
In this Wisconsin Examiner report, Morgridge Bioethicist in Residence Pilar Ossorio addresses the dangerous notion of “whatever the patient wants, the patient gets” when it comes to the rash of unproven and disproven treatments related to COVID.
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The role of HTC in advancing population genetics research
Postdoctoral researcher Parul Johri uses OSG services, the HTCondor Software Suite, and the population genetics simulation program SLiM to investigate historical patterns of genetic variation.
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Technical tour de force: Orphan proteins in mitochondrial disease
In new findings in Nature, a team at the Morgridge Institute for Research and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis analyzed dozens of ‘orphan’ mitochondrial proteins and suggested functions for many of them — an important step to finding better ways to diagnose and treat poorly understood human conditions.
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Neutrophils perform metabolic changing act in role as first responder immune cells
Morgridge Investigator Jing Fan and her lab recently published a study in the journal Nature Metabolism that takes a closer look at the unique metabolic activity that powers neutrophils as the first responders in innate immunity.
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Congratulations to May 2022 graduates
Congratulations to our 2022 graduating students and research staff moving on into their next chapters. A few of them shared their experiences at Morgridge and their plans for the future.
Big achievement in black hole imaging gets assist from UW scientists
via Wisconsin Public Radio
Miron Livny, Morgridge investigator and UW–Madison computer scientist, describes his Center for High Throughput Computing as a service provider for scientists with big to-do lists. That includes people searching for super-massive black holes.
UW–Madison computer scientist helps create model of supermassive black hole
via WKOW
The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) was able to create a black hole model thanks to the contribution of Morgridge investigator and UW–Madison computer scientist Miron Livny.
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High-throughput computing as an enabler of black hole science
The stunning new image of a supermassive black hole in the center of the Milky Way was created by eight telescopes, 300 international astronomers and more than 5 million computational tasks. The Wisconsin-based Open Science Pool helped make sense of it all.
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Game-changer: New tech could transform biotechnology
In new research in Nature Communications, the Joshua Coon Lab describes a game-changing advance that unites the power of mass spectrometry with the potential of electron microscopy (EM) — a finding that could transform biotechnology.
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In-person science returns to the Discovery Building
Families returned to Saturday Science at the Discovery Building for the first time since the start of the pandemic.
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Bernstein wraps postdoc, joins cancer research startup
After years of building tools for bioinformatics research, Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Matt Bernstein takes his skills to industrial cancer research.
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Bioethics researcher Yao Zhou awarded Thomas Edison Innovation Fellowship
Morgridge ethics researcher Yao Zhou received the Thomas Edison Innovation Fellowship to study the role of IP rights in advancing biomedical technologies.
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Skala highlights value of basic research at UW Day in D.C.
Morgridge Institute Investigator Melissa Skala heralded the importance of the federal investment in scientific research during the annual “UW Day” on April 6 in Washington, D.C.
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Top prize in Bioethics Cartooning Contest considers substance and style in publishing
Five prizes were awarded in the fifth annual Morgridge Institute for Research Ethics Cartooning Competition, which invites participants to make a cartoon on any ethical issue related to biomedical research.
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Study sheds light on how planarians regenerate germ cells
Unlike virtually all animals, the flatworm planaria has the ability to regenerate its germ cells from anywhere in the body. The Morgridge Newmark Lab is finding the molecular footprint of this process for the first time.
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New search app gleans ‘collective consciousness’ from a massive research database
For researchers looking to extract useful and relevant data from PubMed — a public database of more than 30 million biomedical research papers — Morgridge scientists have developed a simple and enticing shortcut, called KinderMiner.
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Scientists find clues to better understand parasitic Cryptosporidium infection
Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Gina Gallego-Lopez leads research to better understand the relationship between the Cryptosporidium parasite and host, and ultimately identifying new therapeutic treatments.
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Multiple Morgridge Investigators received prestigious awards in early 2022
Morgridge Investigators Jason Cantor, Kevin Eliceiri, and Melissa Skala received award funding to advance projects in metabolism and biomedical imaging.
James Thomson, renowned UW scientist who brought the world human embryonic stem cells, to retire in July
via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
James Thomson, the Morgridge Institute and UW–Madison scientist who first isolated and grew human embryonic stem cells, inspiring a generation of researchers, and igniting a furious ethical debate that he would later help resolve, plans to retire after more than three decades of work in Wisconsin.
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A science trailblazer retires: Stem cell researcher James Thomson’s legacy changed the future of biology
James Thomson helped the scientific world turn its attention to the remarkable stem cells that give rise to all of the building blocks of life. After more than 30 years with UW–Madison and 15 years with the Morgridge Institute, Thomson has announced plans to retire in July 2022.
Murphy featured in Beloit College Health & Healing Channel
via Beloit College
Dan Murphy, outreach and lab manager at Morgridge, shares advice about working in science education and programming with his alma mater, Beloit College.
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Machine Learning and Image Analyses for Livestock Data
The vision of the Digital Livestock Lab is to create state-of-the-art computer vision systems and the largest public database for livestock.
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COVID-19: Next steps to normalcy
What is the future outlook of the COVID-19 pandemic? Experts discussed where we are and the path forward on February 17, 2022 in a Fearless Science Speaker Series webinar.
New collaborative research center to provide clearer image of tumor microenvironment
via College of Engineering
Morgridge Investigator Kevin Eliceiri and collaborators at the University of Minnesota will develop and test an integrated toolkit of imaging and data analysis technologies for immunotherapies, funded by the National Cancer Institute.
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2021-2022 Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition – Public Voting
Sixteen cartoons have been selected as finalists in the 2022 Ethics Cartooning Competition, an annual contest sponsored by the Morgridge Institute.
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Time to SHINE: UW, Morgridge spinoff has great hopes for fusion’s future
SHINE, a spinoff company that spent its formative years at Morgridge, is helping usher in the fusion energy age with several technologies, including a safe way to create life-saving medical isotopes.
Skala to develop new imaging approach for retinal diseases
via College of Engineering
Morgridge investigator Melissa Skala has landed a grant from the National Eye Institute to develop a new imaging method that could allow for earlier disease detection, monitoring and treatment evaluation for retinal diseases.
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Morgridge, UW alum ‘diving into the deep end’ of vaccine development
After years of sharpening her knowledge of mass spectrometry in the Josh Coon Lab, chemistry PhD alumna Anji Trujillo landed her dream job of working on the front lines of drug development at Pfizer in St. Louis.
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Building better proteins with machine learning
Morgridge Investigator Anthony Gitter and his team are tackling big problems (and big datasets) with machine learning. A new study demonstrates how these tools can be used to predict new protein sequences that could improve protein function.
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Open wide: Detecting links between what’s in your mouth and illness
Using tiny specks of dental plaque, scientists at the Morgridge Institute for the first time compiled a sophisticated analysis that opens the door to using the trove of micro-organisms in your mouth as an indicator of other health issues.
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Optical imaging highlights metabolic interactions that make pancreatic tumor cells grow
An advanced biomedical imaging technique reveals how cancer cells can hijack the metabolic activity of certain non-cancer cells in the pancreas to fuel tumor growth.
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Where are they now? Catching up with recent alumni in their new careers
A few of our recent Morgridge alumni reflect on how their research experience at the institute prepared them for their scientific careers.
By citations, UW–Madison faculty demonstrate strong impact
via UW–Madison
Morgridge biomedical imaging investigator Kevin Eliceiri is one of 17 UW–Madison researchers who made the 2021 Highly Cited Researchers List. Eliceiri has been cited more than 68,000 times in 228 publications and is recognized for his cross-disciplinary influence.
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Thomson Lab alumna gives back in new outreach project
Thomson Lab alumna Shannon Strader returned to her roots at Morgridge to participate in an upcoming outreach feature with PBS Wisconsin Meet the Lab.
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Giving middle school students a glimpse into the ‘invisible world’ of viruses
A new digital learning resource developed by PBS Wisconsin called “Meet the Lab,” which gives middle school-aged students a glimpse into high-powered research labs and the scientists who run them, highlights the Morgridge Institute virology research team.
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Exploring COVID-19 vaccines for kids
Over 18 months into the COVID-19 pandemic, and vaccines are now available for children 5-11. Experts on the front lines of pediatric vaccine development and public health addressed questions during a Fearless Science Speaker Series webinar on November 9, 2021.
Machine learning guiding early drug discovery process
via WisBusiness
Morgridge Investigator Anthony Gitter presented at the annual BioForward Biohealth Summit about ways machine learning is having a major impact on the early phases of drug discovery.
Researchers, UW educators see bright future for AI in healthcare
via The Cap Times
Anthony Gitter, a Morgridge investigator, discussed his lab’s promising new efforts to use AI to create custom-fit chemicals — or as he described it, “a brand new recipe” for treating illnesses.
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Best of the Fest: 2021 Wisconsin Science Festival in photos
We’ve collected some of our favorite moments from “Science on the Square” during the 2021 Wisconsin Science Festival.
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Illuminating Alzheimer’s disease through microscopy
Elizabeth Haynes recently joined the institute as a Morgridge Postdoctoral Research Fellow who is harnessing microscopy to model the early progression of Alzheimer’s disease in zebrafish. Haynes’s fellowship is a collaboration between the Kevin Eliceiri Lab and Tyler Ulland in the Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at UW–Madison.
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Chemical Legos: A machine learning approach to faster drug discovery
Virtual chemical libraries are capable of producing billions of never-before-synthesized chemical combinations, advancing the quest for beneficial new drugs. Machine learning models are helping find the best candidates.
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Explore over 170 virtual and in-person events at the 11th annual Wisconsin Science Festival
From “magic” mushrooms to a celebration of the stars, the 11th annual Wisconsin Science Festival, held October 21-24, will feature over 170 virtual and in-person events.
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Finding Clarity: Fellowship supports Sajdak’s career path
Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Ben Sajdak bridges advanced microscopy and neuroscience, while bringing his own scientific path into focus.
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Resilience: How COVID-19 challenged the scientific world
In late 2019, a novel coronavirus began spreading across the globe. The pandemic still isn’t over, but it hasn’t stopped scientific progress. We spoke with scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research and the University of Wisconsin–Madison who shared stories of promise, resilience, and lessons learned to come together, overcome challenges and work for the public good.
For the sake of rural science students in Wisconsin, we have to get broadband right
via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
A editorial by Kim Kaukl, executive director of the Wisconsin Rural Schools Alliance, referenced the Morgridge Institute’s Rural Summer Science Camp as an ideal example of the benefits of online and hybrid learning opportunities in science education.
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Imaging method predicts how well stem cells can differentiate into cardiac muscle cells
Morgridge researchers developed an imaging technique that can predict the efficiency of cardiac muscle cell differentiation from stem cells as a method of quality control for potential regenerative therapies.
UGA’s Rozario receives NIH Director’s New Innovator Award
via University of Georgia
Tania Rozario, a 2020 alumna of the Phil Newmark Regenerative Biology Lab at Morgridge, has received a National Institutes of Health Director’s New Innovator Award for high-risk, high-reward research she is pursuing as a University of Georgia professor.
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Navigating the unCHARTed: web tool explores public sequencing data for cancer research
Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Matthew Bernstein developed a web tool to explore public RNAseq datasets to facilitate analysis for cancer researchers.
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Hunting viral variants across Wisconsin, powered by high-throughput computing
When dangerous COVID viral variants were sweeping the globe, David O’Connor was busy tracking their spread in Wisconsin. His secret weapon? High-throughput computing.
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The Wisconsin Idea at a million feet up
Students across the state connect with astronauts aboard the International Space Station.
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Morgridge postdoc awarded first AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowship in the U.S. Department of the Treasury
Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Amritava Das earned prestigious AAAS Science & Technology Policy Fellowship and landed first-ever placement at the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
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Wisconsin bioethics project chronicles pregnancy, substance use disorder and the law
A 50-state analysis of laws related to substance use and pregnancy will be a critical first step in helping medical leaders assess the impact of the widespread opioid epidemic.
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Raja awarded the “Women Scientist Award” for achievements in bioinformatics
Postdoctoral researcher Kalpana Raja received the “Women Scientist Award” from the Society for Bioinformatics and Biological Sciences for her scientific merits.
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CZI project to enable high-resolution mapping of molecules within cells
Tim Grant is part of a new project supported by the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) that hopes to create a three-dimensional map that aligns molecules in their proper neighborhoods within a cell.
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Serving up summer science
The Summer Science Workshop Series kicks off June 23 with 106 students and 29 educators from 21 schools in the Wisconsin Rural Schools Alliance and seven sites in the Upward Bound program that focuses on underrepresented and first-generation pre-college students.
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Honoring Ernie Micek: ‘always doing the right thing’
Ernest ‘Ernie’ Micek was a global trade leader and entrepreneur who brought decades of experience to help the Morgridge Institute by ‘always doing the right thing.’
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COVID-19 Update: Vaccines, viral variants and the path to successful re-opening
The impacts of COVID-19 are improving worldwide. But virology experts argue we must stay vigilant to protect public health for a safer, more productive future.
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Stopping the next pandemic: We need a ‘space race’ against viruses
The COVID-19 pandemic is not an isolated event, but one step in an accelerating progression of viral threats. Preventing the next pandemic will take a massive scientific commitment.
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Making microscopy portable and affordable
Portable Flamingo microscopes have the potential to democratize science by opening up new opportunities to wide ranges of researchers and institutions.
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Congratulations to May 2021 Graduates
Congratulations to our 2021 graduating students and research staff moving on into their next chapters. A few of them shared their experiences at Morgridge and their plans for the future.
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Top prizes in ethics cartooning contest address COVID-19 and more
Five prizes were awarded in the fourth annual Ethics Cartooning Competition, addressing the social impacts of scientific research, like issues on public health and communication during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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The (cell) medium is the message: A new tool for studying cell biology in a dish
Morgridge investigator Jason Cantor is partnering with Thermo Fisher Scientific to give biologists a new medium to study human cells in their most natural state.
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Imaging technique sheds light on a notoriously slow-growing cancer
Neuroendocrine cancers grow so slowly they often evade detection before it’s too late. By mimicking that slow growth in the lab, the Melissa Skala Lab hopes to speed up the creation of more effective treatments.
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Biden offers American science a fresh chance to prove its value to society
President Biden has laid out a vision for elevating the importance of science in this country. But it’s up to all scientists to help educate Americans about the benefits of science and the discoveries that have changed our world.
Biden offers American science a fresh chance to prove its value to society
via The Hill
President Biden has laid out a vision for elevating the importance of science in this country. But it’s up to all scientists to help educate Americans about the benefits of science and the discoveries that have changed our world.
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COVID 19: How to talk about vaccines (and find common ground)
Multiple COVID-19 vaccines are available, but some people are on the fence about getting their shot. Approaching a conversation with vaccine-hesitant friends and family may be challenging. Three scientists and public health experts spoke to more than 250 members during a Fearless Science Seminar Series.
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2021 Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition – Public Voting
The Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition invited entrants to make a cartoon on any ethical issue arising in or from biomedical research.
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Redox imaging allows measurement of drug responses in lab-grown cancer samples
Scientists have developed a nondestructive way of measuring drug treatment responses in lab-grown cancer samples.
Schools taking more virtual field trips during COVID-19 pandemic
via NBC 15
Districts are finding creative ways to safely give students unique experiences while staying in the classroom.
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Ashley Cortes Hernandez hopes to spread STEM enthusiasm among Latinx youth
Ashley Cortes Hernandez is excited to bring Latinx representation to the team in hopes of making STEM more accessible to underrepresented communities in her new role as assistant outreach coordinator for Discovery Outreach.
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Morgridge scientists collaborate with Genentech to soup up Cryo-EM imaging
A partnership with Genentech is helping Morgridge Investigator Tim Grant improve software that helps scientists harness the incredible power of cryo-EM microscopes for drug discovery.
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Researchers publish findings on use of a more human-like cell culture medium to explore gene essentiality
The Jason Cantor Lab at Morgridge is utilizing a new cell culture medium to ask how critical genes are to the survival and reproduction of human cells under different growth conditions. The technique could have important ramifications for the treatment of human diseases.
Third booster dose of COVID-19 vaccine to fight new variants in the works
via CBS58
Citing presentations from the Feb. 24 Morgridge Institute Fearless Science Seminar, CBS 58 in Milwaukee reported that new booster vaccines are in development that will specifically target COVID 19 variants that have recently emerged around the world.
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COVID-19: The science of vaccines
Johan den Boon, anesthesiologist Dr. Bill Hartman, and pediatric infectious disease specialist Dr. James Conway presented for a webinar about the science of vaccines.
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Online Field Trips bring science to the state
For more than ten years, the Field Trip Program has brought students and teachers to Madison for a day of activity and exploration. But when the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered on-campus activity, the Discovery Outreach Team had to get creative.
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Beckman Foundation awards Morgridge Investigators to develop smart light sheet technology
Jan Huisken and Kevin Eliceiri will lead an initiative to develop and advance light sheet microscopy technology through a grant funded by the Beckman Foundation.
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Beyond Fun: Discovery Outreach strengthening bond between science, society
The Discovery Outreach team is growing an iceberg. The visible part above the water is made up of the tens of thousands of people of all ages who participate in programs each year. And the mass below the surface contains hundreds of Wisconsin scientists, researchers and experts who are adding their voice to science engagement.
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Thomson Lab looks to make major health impact with artery engineering project
Stem cell pioneer James Thomson is leading a potentially transformational project to develop a safe and functional cell-based artificial artery that could be pulled from medical inventories and used by vascular surgeons.
Building a better bioimaging community: Chan Zuckerberg Initiative supports international partnership
via The Daily Cardinal
The Morgridge Institute’s Kevin Eliceri describes how a new grant will help foster learning and community for UW–Madison students interested in bioimaging.
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Bringing fluorescence imaging out of the dark
Morgridge Institute spinoff company OnLume had a banner year in 2020, receiving Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval, meeting its venture funding goals and launching its first clinical trial with a California company. And they are getting expert feedback from UW Health physicians on their groundbreaking fluorescence imaging device.
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Building a better bioimaging community: Chan Zuckerberg Initiative supports international partnership
Investigator Kevin Eliceiri leads a grant with BioImaging North America, which was recently awarded $1.2 million in funding from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.
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Where are they now? Morgridge alumni look back (and ahead) at their careers
A few of our Morgridge alumni shared thoughts on their research experience at the Morgridge Institute, their plans moving forward and their warm shoutouts to some of the people who helped them along the way.
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Amani Gillette: Passing on a fascination with the unknown
Medical Engineering graduate student Amani Gillette has become one of the Morgridge Institute’s top ambassadors for science outreach.
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Fab Lab alumna tackles machine learning at Stanford
Kayla Huemer, a graduate of the Morgridge Fab Lab and alumna of UW–Madison, is tackling machine learning at Stanford. Huemer brings a depth of experience in engineering and design which she honed during her time in the BerbeeWalsh Prototype Pathway.
Cell atlas of schistosome may hold key for new treatments
via Sanger Institute
Morgridge postdoctoral fellow Jayhun Lee is a lead author in a new study that outlines the first-ever cell atlas of the tropical parasite schistosome, an advance that could provide new alternatives for fighting a disease that impacts more than 200 million people globally.
Minority students share their stories in science so others feel power of representation
via Wisconsin State Journal
Wisconsin students and teachers took part in an online session called “My Story in Science So Far: From Voices Underrepresented in Science,” as part of a field trip to the Wisconsin Science Festival in October.
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Breaking down barriers to pancreatic cancer care in Wisconsin
Researchers at the Morgridge Institute and UW–Madison want to ensure that pancreatic cancer treatment options are accessible to all — regardless of race, ethnicity, or insurance status — so that patients can make the most informed decisions regarding their care.
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Machine learning our way through a billion-chemical library
Inspired by the need for smarter and cheaper ways to screen chemicals for potential therapeutic targets, Morgridge investigator Anthony Gitter is finding answers with machine learning tools.
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Measuring blood flow with a beating “heart-on-a-chip”
With every heartbeat comes a rhythmic pulse that helps blood flow through the body. Understanding this pulsatile flow can offer insights on the impacts of blood vessel development and cardiovascular disease. New research uses an “organ-on-a-chip” model to study pulsatile flow in a more biologically relevant way.
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Engineering through and after COVID-19: A Global Perspective
Engineers are well-equipped to address the world’s development challenges, but good engineering alone is not enough. We need the emerging field of ‘global engineering,’ argues Kevin Eliceiri, a Morgridge medical engineering investigator, and Rebecca Alcock, a recent alumna of the UW–Madison graduate program in biomedical engineering.
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The Contested Ethics of a COVID-19 Vaccine
Morgridge bioethicist in residence Pilar Ossorio, Jonathan Kimmelman, and Seema Shah joined Gabriella Gerhardt on October 27 to discuss the complex ethical questions surrounding a coronavirus vaccine.
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Jose Ayuso wins “Best Paper Award” at the 2020 Micro Total Analysis Systems conference
Morgridge Postdoctoral Fellow Jose Ayuso won the “Best Paper Award” at the 2020 Micro Total Analysis Systems conference for his work on cancer microenvironments in tumor evolution and progression.
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National Science Foundation establishes a partnership to advance throughput computing
Morgridge and UW–Madison are partners on a $22.5 million project from the National Science Foundation to advance high-throughput computing technology and promote usage nationwide.
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New technology tracks role of macrophages in cancer spread
A Morgridge imaging study of macrophages — immune cells that are important to human health, but paradoxically can help some cancers grow and spread — is offering better ways to understand these cells and target them with immunotherapies.
‘Molecular Signature’ In Blood May Indicate Coronavirus Disease Severity
via Forbes
Researchers at the Morgridge Institute for Research, Albany Medical Center, and UW–Madison assembled a profile of biological molecules that correlated not only with COVID-19 infection, but with disease severity. More target molecules will likely be found as others analyze the data, which is freely available online.
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The 10th annual Wisconsin Science Festival goes virtual in extraordinary ways
The 10th annual Wisconsin Science Festival was held virtually for the first time this past weekend, highlighted by a virtual road trip. Children of all ages could view tours, panels, lessons and so much more virtually, allowing them to travel all over the state without ever leaving their homes.
Wisconsin Innovation Awards Announce 2020 Winners at Virtual Ceremony
via Wisconsin Innovation Awards
OnLume Surgical, a spinoff company originating from Morgridge Institute research, has received a 2020 Wisconsin Innovation Award. The company, which develops precise fluorescence for image-guided surgery, was chosen for the award from more than 400 nominees.
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Unraveling the network of molecules that influence COVID-19 severity
Researchers have identified more than 200 molecular features that strongly correlate with COVID-19 severity.
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NSF leader Fleming Crim to speak at the Wisconsin Science Festival
National Science Foundation leader Fleming Crim will give a talk on Friday, October 16 at 2 p.m. titled NSF Broader Impacts: Fostering Connections to Expand the Societal Benefits of Basic Research, as a part of the Wisconsin Science Festival’s speaker series.
OnLume Surgical is a Finalist for the 2020 Wisconsin Innovation Awards
via Business Wire
Morgridge Institute spinoff company OnLume Surgical, a medical device company developing novel imaging systems for use during surgery, was recognized as one of the ten (10) finalists for the 2020 Wisconsin Innovation Awards.
Optical Society elects Eliceiri as fellow
via UW College of Engineering
Morgridge Institute investigator and UW–Madison biomedical engineering professor Kevin Eliceiri has been elected a fellow by The Optical Society, an honor given to only one in 10 members.
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Explore over 100 virtual events at the 10th annual Wisconsin Science Festival
From the novel coronavirus to food sciences, the 10th annual Wisconsin Science Festival, held October 15-18, will feature over 100 virtual events.
UW–Madison gets $23 million grant for frozen imaging at atomic scale
via Wisconsin State Journal
UW–Madison and the Morgridge Institute for Research will get $22.7 million over six years from the National Institutes of Health to create a national center for imaging techniques that flash-freeze biological molecules to let scientists see a better picture of their function.
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Keys to a successful COVID-19 vaccine
As health officials move closer to developing safe vaccines against COVID-19, Morgridge virology expert Paul Ahlquist argues for the need for patience and trust during what will be the largest vaccination effort in more than 70 years.
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New national imaging center has potential to transform medicine
A national research initiative announced today will place the University of Wisconsin–Madison at the forefront of a revolution in imaging fostered by cryo-electron microscopy and cryo-electron tomography.
Endless Frontier Act to revitalize, transform Midwest industries
via WisPolitics
“A mill won’t last long if there is no mine, but a mill is required to get the products to the market,” Morgridge investigator Melissa Skala said during a Wisconsin Technology Council webinar. “What I find so powerful about the Endless Frontier Act is that it supports both the mine and the mill to benefit innovation across the spectrum.”
InsideWis: Even in fractious times, the need for a vital, secure economy can unite lawmakers
via Wisconsin Technology Council
Morgridge investigator Melissa Skala participated in a Wisconsin Technology Council webinar promoting bipartisan support for the Endless Frontier Act, which would bolster national research funding.
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Jan Huisken awarded 2020 Lennart Nilsson Award for developments in light-sheet microscopy
Jan Huisken, medical engineering investigator at the Morgridge Institute for Research, has been awarded the 2020 Lennart Nilsson Award for outstanding achievements in biological imaging.
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Challenging and fun: Prototype Pathway propels forward-thinking medical engineer
After ten years as a student, mentor, and engineer in the Morgridge Institute, Ben Cox is finishing his postdoctoral fellowship in the BerbeeWalsh Prototype Pathway and heading to the University of Chicago Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
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Summer Science Workshop helps students form their science identity
The workshop series, which wrapped up in late July, brought more than 100 students and 15 teachers “face-to-face” to learn online from scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research.
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Multi-omic data and interactive web tool made publicly available to aid COVID-19 research
Why is it that some COVID-19 patients become extremely ill and die, while others experience only mild symptoms? A new study uses mass spectrometry, RNA sequencing, and machine learning to explore the molecular traits that might influence the severity of the disease.
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MMI Fellow seeks to understand sugar production in yeasts
Kaitlin Fisher, the 2020 Morgridge Metabolism Interdisciplinary Fellow, aims to understand the genes that influence carbon metabolism and the process of gluconeogenesis in yeasts.
How schistosome worms defy host immune systems
via SciDev.Net
Morgridge researchers uncovered in a new study how schistosomes, parasitic flatworms that infect more than 200 million people in the tropics, trick the host’s immune system and continue producing eggs for decades.
Label-Free Autofluorescence Imaging Method Differentiates Between Active, and Off-Duty T Cells
via Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News
Researchers at the Morgridge Institute and UW–Madison have developed a novel label-free imaging technique that exploits autofluorescence in cells to differentiate between active and off-duty T cells.
Miron Livny awarded 2020 IEEE Award for Outstanding Technical Achievement and 2020 High Impact Paper Award
via UW Comp Sci
Computer Sciences Professor Miron Livny has been selected for two prestigious IEEE awards: the 2020 IEEE Technical Committee on Distributed Processing (TCDP) Award for Outstanding Technical Achievement and a 2020 IEEE TDCP ICDCS High Impact Paper Award.
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The big gulp: Inside-out protection of parasitic worms against host defenses
A team of developmental biologists at the Morgridge Institute for Research has discovered a means by which schistosomes, parasitic worms that infect more than 200 million people in tropical climates, are able to outfox the host’s immune system.
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Seize the Moment: Adapting old tools for a novel coronavirus
Morgridge scientists John Brubacher, Anthony Gitter, Brian Bockelman, Ben Cox and Katie Overmyer, joined Gabriella Gerhardt on July 22 for a Fearless Science webinar about rapidly applying technology and methods to answer COVID-19 questions.
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Novel label-free imaging technique brings out the inner light within T cells
A new imaging method developed by the Skala lab uses the natural autofluorescence within cells to assess T cell activity. The technique could help assess T cell involvement in immunotherapies.
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From the CEO: Trial, error and pandemics
The scientific community’s shift on wearing masks to fight the pandemic tells us something important about the scientific process. Science can get things wrong, but the constant push for new knowledge — combined with an ability to admit and correct mistakes — should always prevail.
Local research findings to aid in development of treatment for COVID-19
via WMTV
UW–Madison announced Tuesday that scientists from the university and the Morgridge Institute for Research have been able to capture “strikingly improved images” of virus group, which could help aid in the creation of antiviral drugs and treatment for COVID-19.
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Advanced Cryo-EM reveals viral RNA replication complex structure in stunning detail
For the first time, scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research have generated near atomic resolution images of a major viral protein complex responsible for replicating the RNA genome of a member of the positive-strand RNA viruses.
An invisible hand: Patients aren’t being told about the AI systems advising their care
via STAT
Morgridge bioethicist in residence Pilar Ossorio commented in STAT about the growing problem of hospitals not disclosing to patients how many clinical decisions are now being made with artificial intelligence.
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Miron Livny receives 2020 IEEE Outstanding Technical Achievement Award
Miron Livny is the recipient of the 2020 IEEE Outstanding Technical Achievement Award due to his influential contribution of the HTCondor system for distributed and high-throughput computing.
Coronavirus is revolutionizing scientific practices and communication. Here’s how
via Argus Leader
Morgridge bioethicist in residence Pilar Ossorio warns that “conditions are ripe for cutting corners” in the research push to combat COVID-19.
In our post-COVID world, science must be our new frontier
via The Hill
Writing in The Hill, Morgridge CEO Dr. Brad Schwartz provides insight and context for scientific discovery as a foundation for economic prosperity. As the United States looks to science to help us get past the COVID-19 pandemic, we would be well advised to also look back.
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Statement from CEO Brad Schwartz on the appointment of Tommy Thompson as UW System interim president
Morgridge CEO Brad Schwartz offers a statement of support for the appointment of Tommy Thompson as interim president of the University of Wisconsin System.
Science camp for rural high schoolers goes virtual
via NBC 15
For over ten years, rural high school students have come to Madison to take part in the Rural Summer Science Camp at the Morgridge Institute. This year, the camp will still take place virtually.
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Rural Summer Science Camp goes digital
The novel coronavirus presented a significant hurdle for Discovery Outreach team—how do you bring science to rural students during a pandemic? Now in its 14th year, the Rural Summer Science Camp is celebrating a new milestone: an entirely digital experience.
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Could pre-existing conditions hold the clue to new COVID-19 drugs?
The deadliest cases of COVID-19 often arise in patients with a variety of pre-existing conditions, known to medicine as “comorbidity.” A Morgridge Institute for Research project will investigate those disease relationships in the search for new drug treatments.
Morgridge Institute board names new chair, welcomes three new trustees
via Wisconsin Technology Council
The Morgridge Institute for Research Board of Trustees voted on Wednesday to elect Carl Gulbrandsen, emeritus managing director of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Association (WARF), as the new chairman of the 20-member Morgridge Institute board.
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Morgridge Institute Board names new chair, welcomes three new trustees
The Morgridge Institute for Research Board of Trustees voted on Wednesday to elect Carl Gulbrandsen, emeritus managing director of the Wisconsin Alumni Research Association (WARF), as the new chairman of the 20-member Morgridge Institute board.
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Overcoming COVID-19 and future pandemics: new tools to control viral threats
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, Paul Ahlquist and Tony Gitter joined CEO Brad Schwartz in a webinar where they discussed COVID-19 and the broader context of viral pandemics and how we respond to them.
Detecting cellular diversity to sharpen personalized cancer treatments
via UW College of Engineering
Melissa Skala, a University of Wisconsin–Madison associate professor of biomedical engineering, and collaborators have used an approach called optical metabolic imaging (OMI) to effectively assess that heterogeneity and related treatment responses in organoids created with tissues from patients with breast cancer and pancreatic cancer.
UW–Madison researchers plan return to lab
via NBC15
Morgridge CEO Brad Schwartz is featured in a report discussing the return of in-person research following nearly three months of social distancing due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Using nanobodies to fish for coronavirus clues
A Morgridge Institute for Research project intended to shed light on planarians — remarkable flatworms capable of almost limitless regeneration — is being repurposed to focus on the novel coronavirus causing COVID-19.
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Saturday Science transitions to a digital outreach experience
The Discovery Outreach team demonstrates their commitment to provide valuable programming by translating Saturday Science into a digital experience during an unprecedented time.
The Power List 2020
via The Medicine Maker
Stem cell pioneer and Morgridge investigator James Thomson was named to the Power List 2020 for his contributions to advancing the field of medicine to save lives and improve the world.
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Chronicling pandemic science in real time
Morgridge virology investigator Anthony Gitter, an assistant professor of biostatistics and medical informatics at UW–Madison, has co-developed a software tool called Manubot to help orchestrate a rapid expert assessment of COVID-19 diagnostics and therapeutics.
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Congratulations to May 2020 Graduates
Congratulations to the graduating students and research staff as they move onward and upward. A few of these students and staff shared about their time at the Morgridge Institute, their accomplishments and their plans for what’s next.
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Albany, Wisconsin teams search for molecular clues to defeat COVID-19
In the center of the COVID-19 pandemic, many hospitals are racing to maintain quality care for patients with severe disease while facing a shortage of resources and limited understanding of the novel coronavirus.
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COVID-19: A wake-up call for the need for new antiviral weapons
Given the death toll and multi-trillion dollar costs of COVID-19, it’s not hyperbole to suggest that an effort on the scale of the Space Race is needed to break the cycle of viral pandemics.
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In COVID-19 response, don’t let urgency trump sound science
Bioethicist Pilar Ossorio says the world could be at risk of sacrificing essential knowledge for fighting COVID-19 and future deadly viruses if the COVID-19 response is not accompanied by sound research.
Making a difference: Madison makers build safety equipment for frontlines of COVID-19 fight
via The Capital Times
From designers and engineers to sewists and 3D printing hobbyists, they’re joining a global movement to combat the shortage of personal protective equipment.
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Third Annual Bioethics Cartooning Contest Winners
Charlotte Kanzler, a first-year graduate student in the UW–Madison Cellular and Molecular Biology program and a member of the Phil Newmark lab at Morgridge, took the top prize in the third annual Ethics Cartooning Contest.
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Tim Grant: Making sense of cellular machinery
Tim Grant, a cryo-electron microscopy pioneer, joins the Morgridge Institute this month as the newest investigator. Grant joins a growing collaboration at UW–Madison where he will use cryo-EM to help biologists see the structure of molecules within cells.
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Morgridge part of national effort to improve healing of complex wounds
The Morgridge Institute for Research is part of a multi-institution research project to develop a device that improves muscle tissue healing for serious injuries, using a combination of artificial intelligence, bioelectronics, and regenerative medicine.
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We’re in this together
Morgridge CEO Brad Schwartz provides an update on how we’re keeping scientists and teams safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Discovery Building closes to public; stay informed on COVID-19 pandemic
As of March 18, the Discovery Building, home of the Morgridge Institute for Research, will be closed to the public. All public events in the building are canceled. Visit here for important COVID-19 updates.
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High-throughput computing in action: Demystifying our unconscious brain
High-throughput computing facilitated at the Morgridge Institute is helping scientists explore one of the mysteries of human consciousness: How the brain processes information while we are under anesthesia or asleep.
Skala Lab: New tools for cancer immunotherapy
via WARF
Emerging cell therapies are giving hope to cancer patients, but new analytical tools are desperately needed. Melissa Skala and her team are going all in on the challenge.
Madison company’s surgery imaging device approved by FDA
via Wisconsin State Journal
A device to help surgeons better see tissue during operations has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The technology is based on research at the Morgridge Institute for Research.
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2019-2020 Ethics Cartooning Contest – Public Voting
The Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition invited entrants to make a cartoon on any ethical issue arising in or from biomedical research. Now, you can help choose the competition winners.
To stop pancreatic cancer from spreading, cut out the chatter
via Massive Science
Morgridge investigator Melissa Skala shares her perspective on a promising new approach to treating pancreatic cancer in this feature from Massive Science.
China Is Using DNA from Uighurs to Predict Physical Features
via The Scientist
Morgridge bioethicist in residence Pilar Ossorio comments on the ethical perils of China’s efforts to use DNA-based technology to recognize faces — a potential weapon for racial profiling.
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Pagliarini lab members attend mitochondrial disease walk, interact with patients
via UW–Madison Biochemistry
Events hosted by UMDF have enabled the Pagliarini Lab to connect with those who may directly benefit from the findings of their research: patients with mitochondrial disease.
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Professor will make ‘workhorse’ microscope more powerful
via UW–Madison
Kevin Eliceiri says he has always believed that science is best done by building on the work of others and openly sharing what you have done.
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Can ‘smart toilets’ be the next health data wellspring?
Wearable, smart technologies are transforming the ability to monitor and improve health, but a decidedly low-tech commodity — the humble toilet — may have potential to outperform them all.
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Protecting against a devastating tropical disease
Schistosomiasis is one of the most devastating tropical diseases in the world. The Newmark Lab wants to develop something that prevents this parasitic infection.
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Peering into a more ‘human’ petri dish
The recent development of physiologic media holds immense potential to improve understanding of human biology.
Tiny aquatic animals may combat schistosomiasis
via ScienceNews
Tiny aquatic invertebrates, once a nuisance to scientists studying snail fever, may actually hold the key to fighting the spread of the tropical disease.
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Best of the Fest: 2019 Wisconsin Science Festival in photos
The Wisconsin Science Festival—now in its ninth year—offered more than 330 events across the state for people of all ages to dive into science topics.
Tiny Creature Could Help Prevent Devastating Parasitic Disease
via Howard Hughes Medical Institute
HHMI reports on the Newmark Lab’s discovery and purification of a substance made by rotifers that can paralyze the worms that cause schistosomiasis, a dangerous infection that affects 200 million people worldwide.
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Parasite paralysis: A new way to fight schistosomiasis?
The Phillip Newmark Lab has isolated a natural chemical capable of paralyzing the parasitic worm schistosome, opening the door to new ways to combat a neglected tropical disease that sickens more than 240 million people.
U.S. Sen. Baldwin and the scientists carrying on her grandfather’s work
via Madison Magazine
At the Morgridge Institute for Research in the Discovery Building on the UW–Madison campus, David Green’s granddaughter — U/S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin — met the scientists who are continuing his early study of metabolism science, in hopes of breakthroughs that will help treat or reverse numerous diseases.
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Protecting the most vulnerable patients during anesthesia
Pediatric anesthesia is a stressful and critical procedure. A project with the Morgridge Fab Lab aims to create a new medical device that alerts clinicians to compromised airways.
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Sen. Tammy Baldwin takes in ‘locally sourced science’ at Morgridge Institute
Forward-thinking science and childhood memories came full circle on Wednesday for U.S. Sen. Tammy Baldwin, who visited a lab at the Morgridge Institute for Research that is carrying on the inspired legacy of her grandfather, David E. Green.
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A Note to the Nobel Prize Selection Committee
via Scientific American
As 2019 Nobel Prize announcements unfold, Morgridge CEO Brad Schwartz reflected on his all-time favorite winner. “Howard Temin represented what society expects from us and had the characteristics that make society willing to fund our work,” Schwartz wrote in Scientific American. “People want scientists who get up every morning committed to finding the truth.”
Science Festival Panels Examine Science and Society
via Wisconsin Institute for Discovery
Panels on Oct. 17 and 18 during the Wisconsin Science Festival will examine representation and inclusion in science and science in entertainment and the arts. Both afternoon panels will take place in the Discovery Building.
Illuminating Better Cancer Treatments with Light
via Wisconsin Public Television
Peter Favreau, a postdoctoral researcher at the Morgridge Institute for Research, discusses how the use of Optical Microscopy is helping to create individualized effective cancer treatments based on each patient’s tumor cells.
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Tapeworms need to keep their head to regenerate
Scientists have identified the stem cells that allow tapeworms to regenerate and found that their location in proximity to the head is essential, according to a new study in eLife.
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Wisconsin Science Festival encourages science exploration for all with 200+ events statewide
The 2019 Wisconsin Science Festival, held Oct. 17-20, will feature more than 220 events statewide and include everything from fossil exploration and robotic engineering to animal encounters and the science of Star Wars.
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Scientists explore the role of metabolism in immune response
In a new study published in Nature Metabolism, the Jing Fan Lab highlights how changing metabolism can regulate the course of an immune response.
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Broad-spectrum approaches could tip the balance against virus threats
In the game against an essentially unlimited pool of virus threats, humanity is seriously outmatched. The Ahlquist Lab is working to develop broad-spectrum antivirals, solutions that will target many viruses at once.
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Test Pilot Geese, Planetary Wrecking Balls and Super AI Vision: The Week’s Best Science GIFs
via Scientific American
The Morgridge Institute’s project to capture early developmental timing of humans “in a dish” was included in The Scientific American’s “Best Science GIFs” feature. This weekly feature highlights the most amazing short video clips produced in the world of science.
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Human developmental clock mimicked in a dish
A Morgridge regenerative biology team has created a first-ever human model for developmental timing: A “clock in a dish” that will help explore mysteries of early human development.
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Pagliarini wins ASBMB Young Scholar Award 2020
Dave Pagliarini won the Earl and Thressa Stadtman Young Scholar Award given by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB).
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Major microscopy project coming to life with new talent, technology additions
Tim Grant, a research specialist at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s (HHMI) Janelia Farm Research Campus, is the latest addition to the core team.
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MMI Fellow develops new model for parasite study
Bruno Martorelli Di Genova wants to eliminate the use of cats in the study of the parasite Toxoplasma gondii, and the results of his groundbreaking research suggest he could do just that.
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Developing tools to better understand, predict preterm birth
Preterm birth is a global health problem without a solution. New research aims to develop non-invasive, safe imaging tools to better identify the risk of preterm birth.
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Morgridge Rural Summer Science Camp extended for additional week
via The Badger Herald
The Morgridge Summer Science Camp seeks to immerse rural high school students into research and allow them to experience a larger, urban research campus.
Morgridge-Milwaukee collaboration gets statewide recognition
via Wisconsin State Journal
Tom Still, president of the Wisconsin Technology Council, focused his statewide business column on July 21 on a novel eye research partnership between the Morgridge Institute and Medical College of Wisconsin.
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High school students add science to their summer
For the last three weeks of July, the Discovery Building hosted
70-plus high school students and teachers for the Rural Summer Science Camp. -
BioForward supports Rural Summer Science Camps
The Rural Summer Science Camp received a boost this year
from BioForward, an association representing more than 200 biohealth companies in Wisconsin. -
2019 Frontiers in Metabolism meeting explores advances in metabolic research
This fall, the Morgridge Institute for Research will convene international leaders in metabolic research at the third Frontiers in Metabolism—Mechanisms of Metabolic Diseases meeting.
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Rural Summer Science Camp expands opportunities, curriculum in its 13th year
The Morgridge Rural Summer Science Camp, where rural high school students and teachers take a deep dive into science research over the course of a week, is expanding and offering a third week of camp thanks to new support from a National Science Foundation (NSF) project.
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Jacquelyn Fredrick joins Morgridge Board of Trustees
Jacquelyn Fredrick, a longtime executive with one of the nation’s leading providers of blood health solutions, has joined the Morgridge Institute for Research Board of Trustees.
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When Small Worlds Collide: Collaboration Behind the Microscope with Liz Haynes and Henry He
via Masters of Microscopy
Welcome to Masters of Microscopy: The People Behind the Lens, where we showcase and celebrate the individuals who are the heart of the Nikon Small World competitions. They are scientists, artists, researchers, educators and everyday curious individuals who uncover the fascinating microscopic world around us.
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Novel imaging tech brings together Madison, Milwaukee vision researchers
A Madison-Milwaukee scientific partnership is powering an effort to better understand the complicated mechanics of human vision.
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An order of microscopy, to go
Our portable, shareable microscope, called Flamingo, offers a chance for biologists who have a crazy idea to reach out to us do some great research — and for us to build a custom instrument to solve unique questions in biology.
Growing transplantable arteries from stem cells
via FierceBiotech
Blood banks have been vital in medical care since the early 1900s, and now a team of scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research in Madison, Wisconsin, wants to take the concept a step further.
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Congrats to our 2019 graduating students
Congratulations to the graduating students and research staff who will be moving onward and upward. A few of these students and staff shared about their time at the Morgridge Institute, their accomplishments and their plans for what’s next.
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Stem cell scientists clear another hurdle in creating transplant arteries
Scientists at the Morgridge Institute are working toward a dream of creating artery banks with readily-available material to replace diseased arteries during surgery. Recent work highlights highlights a better way to grow smooth muscle cells, putting the science one step closer to that goal.
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‘Protein Pinball’ machine illuminates intricacies of bioinformatics research
Anthony Gitter faced a challenge: How could he translate his work into something children could understand and maybe even enjoy? The answer to that question: ‘protein pinball.’
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Overmyer named new associate director of mass spec lab
Katherine Overmyer, a former Morgridge postdoctoral fellow, was named the associate director of the Laboratory for Biomolecular Mass Spectrometry (LBMS) at UW–Madison.
Morgridge scientist named a ‘cool science image’ winner
via UW–Madison
Congratulations to Jiaye “Henry” He, a member of the Huisken Lab, for his second straight winning entry in the UW–Madison annual “Cool Science Image” awards.
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Training tomorrow’s engineers
Since 2015, engineering students at the University of Wisconsin–Madison have teamed up with Morgridge Institute for Research engineers and clinicians at UW Hospital.
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Biologist takes top prize in bioethics cartoon contest
Five prizes were awarded in the second annual Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition, a contest that invites participants to make a cartoon on any ethical issue arising in or from biomedical research. The competition drew 65 entrants from more than 32 different departments and programs at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and affiliated research institutions.
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words
via Chan Zuckerberg Science Initiative
Imaging of molecules, cells and tissues is central to biomedical research and clinical practice, allowing scientists to understand and identify disease. Yet progress in the imaging field has been slowed by inadequate software and limited sharing of advanced microscopy methods. The CZI Imaging Scientists program aims to move the field of imaging forward by increasing collaboration between biologists and technology experts and improving the imaging tools that scientists use.
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Have microscope, will travel: New tech project links Madison, Boston scientists
An invention designed to transform how and where high-powered research microscopes are deployed — and who gets to use them — will make its way from Madison this spring to the fertile biology labs of greater Boston.
The Role of the Student Engineer in Medicine and Innovation
via Xconomy
In a March 18 Xconomy opinion piece, Morgridge Fab Lab Director Kevin Eliceiri describes how a trifecta of engineering training, clinical experience and entrepreneurship is putting Wisconsin students in a great position for future success.
How to get young scientists thinking about ethics? Cartooning, say UW researchers
via The Cap Times
A biomedical research institute is prompting young scientists to think about the ethics of their research — not through a rulebook or a lecture, but with a cartooning contest.
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Dietram Scheufele on #scicomm: What scientists can do to promote science and explain their work
In this Q&A, Scheufele shares information about the news environment, what it means for science communication, and what scientists can do to promote science and explain their work.
Seeing things more clearly, thanks to campus-wide microscopy effort
via UWMadScience
Give most kids a basic microscope and a leaf or a drop of pond water, and they are in awe of the, well, microscopic patterns and organisms they can now see. Give a cell biologist a transmission electron microscope (TEM), and they can understand how structures within cells are organized – and how changes in the structures contribute to diseases.
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Taking new approaches to study lipid biology
Any budding scientist knows that oil and water don’t mix. However, for our largely water-filled cells to thrive, nature needs to devise clever ways to make and move around the lipids—fat and oil-like compounds—that comprise membranes and other key cellular parts.
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13 years of stem cell summer camp
Every summer since 2007, students from some of the smallest high schools in Wisconsin have descended on the Morgridge Institute for Research for some big-time scientific immersion.
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Expert panel explores gene-editing controversy at Crossroads of Ideas
In late 2018, a Chinese scientist dropped a bombshell when he announced the birth of the world’s first gene-edited twins, and the scientific community is still grappling with the aftermath and ethical implications.
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2019 Ethics Cartooning Contest – Public Voting
The Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition invited entrants to make a cartoon on any ethical issue arising in or from biomedical research. Now, you can help choose the competition winners.
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GrammaTech adds real world benchmarks to SWAMP
Software development and quality managers that are looking to measure the benefit of static analysis now have a platform to do just that. Real-world benchmarks are now available in the Software Assurance Marketplace (SWAMP).
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Stem cells: Where are we going?
Together with the University of Wisconsin–Madison, we look back on 20 years of stem cell research and see where we’re going next. Catch up on what’s happened since James Thomson’s prescient prediction that stem cells “will change medicine, period.”
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Metabolism scientist wins prestigious AAAS Fellowship
For Danielle Lohman, her passion for science policy began when she heard a PhD chemist speak at a career conference about the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) fellowship at the State Department in Washington, D.C.
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New partnership will help fuel the next generation of scientists and explorers
An ambitious new partnership in Wisconsin will create, connect, and activate world-class content creators in science, instruction and media with teachers and learners across the state and the nation.
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Conferences are Important for High School Students—Youth Apprentices and STEM Professional Development
via Promega Connections
Isabel Jones, Verona Area High School senior and second year YA, who works at the Morgridge Institute for Research, presented a scientific poster at one conference and spoke on a panel at another.
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Scientists, ethicists slam decisions behind gene-edited twins
via Ars Technica
“There’s been very broad consensus that we shouldn’t be doing CRISPR on embryos yet.” Morgridge Institute bioethicist Pilar Ossorio speaks out about recent news of first human gene-edited babies.
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Collaboration leads to ‘dream’ of artery bank
Just as blood banks are essential to medicine, the Thomson Lab hopes to see the advent of artery banks that give surgeons a better, readily available material to replace diseased arteries. The lab is using pluripotent stem cells to grow the cellular building blocks of the artery — endothelial and smooth muscle cells — and coax them into assembling into arteries that can grow and thrive in a majority of patients.
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Out of left field: Thomson looks at discovery and the future of science
James Thomson, the UW–Madison biologist whose stem cell discovery 20 years ago opened fascinating and promising new avenues in science, took time to discuss his thoughts on the breakthrough and what the future holds for the field of regenerative medicine.
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Summer science camp expands opportunities for Wisconsin’s rural schools
The Rural Summer Science Camp has seen more than 500 rural high school students and teachers since its inception in 2007. Campers learn about stem cell science, medical engineering, epigenetics, bioinformatics and more while engaging with and immersing themselves in the work of active researchers at the Morgridge Institute for Research and UW–Madison.
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Improving the odds: Researchers develop novel device to study early stage of breast cancer
Imagine your chances of developing an invasive cancer were the same as a coin toss. Do you opt for aggressive treatments like surgery and chemotherapy, or do you take your chances that the cancer will never manifest?
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Turning T cells into better cancer assassins
Alexandra Walsh, an assistant scientist in the lab of Morgridge medical engineer Melissa Skala, is leading a project to use non-invasive fluorescence imaging to identify and sort T cells for use in cancer immunotherapy treatments. The technology won a 2018 Innovation Award from the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation.
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Best of the Fest: 2018 Wisconsin Science Festival in photos
We’ve collected some of our favorite moments from the 2018 Wisconsin Science Festival. Vote for your favorite photo and be entered to win some Morgridge prizes!
UW researchers, doctors trying to better predict preterm birth
via Wisconsin State Journal
Preterm births — which can lead to infant death or disability — are on the rise, accounting for nearly 400,000 of the country’s 4 million annual births. But doctors have a hard time figuring out which pregnant women are likely to deliver early.
Lunchroom leftovers make for an ‘eye-opening’ science project
via Wisconsin State Journal
This year the Wisconsin Society of Science Teachers and the Wisconsin Science Festival are partnering on a Statewide Science Challenge open to all K-12 schools. The 2018 challenge is called “Lunchroom Leftovers” and student teams are conducting detailed analyses of food waste in their school cafeterias.
Scientists seek to improve quality control for genome editing therapies in the eye
via UW–Madison
As gene editing therapies for macular degeneration and other visual disorders work their way into clinical trials, the University of Wisconsin–Madison is on the forefront of research into making sure they are safe and effective.
How microscopes are opening a door into an invisible universe brimming with life — Genius Moments
via Mashable
Meet Dr. Elizabeth Haynes and Jiaye “Henry” He. Their tiny zebrafish video just won first prize in the annual Nikon Small World in Motion Competition. It basically selects the coolest movies or time-lapse photos taken through a microscope.
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Imaging the zebrafish, one cell at a time
A new imaging project at the Morgridge Institute for Research might be the biology equivalent of a 19th century expressionist painting. Think Van Gogh’s “Starry Night,” a constellation of tiny lines of color combining into a powerful image. Except the canvas of this research project will be a zebrafish, and the paint will be individual cells of a developing embryo.
Partnerships between universities, private sector working across Wisconsin
via Wisconsin Technology Council
At the UW–Madison, the progress of the Morgridge Institute for Research is another example. Partly financed with a $50-million gift from John and Tashia Morgridge of Cisco Systems fame, the private- non-profit biomedical research center is focused on novel strategies to improve human health.
Award Winning Videos Reveal The Weird And Beautiful Microscopic World
via Forbes
This week, Nikon announced the winners of the 2018 Nikon Small World in Motion contest. First prize went to Elizabeth Haynes and Jiaye “Henry” He of the University of Wisconsin–Madison for their mesmerizing time-lapse video of a zebrafish embryo growing its sensory nervous system over the course of 16 hours.
Award-Winning Microscopic Video of Growing Zebrafish Embryos Is Mesmerizing
via Gizmodo
A glowing, branching web slowly grows more and more tiny connections, with thin white tendrils reaching in to a black void. It looks like a fractal art piece. But in fact, it’s someone’s science research—the developing nervous system of a zebrafish embryo.
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Morgridge, UW researchers win top prize in Nikon International Small World imaging contest
Henry He, a doctoral student at the Morgridge Institute for Research, and Liz Haynes, a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Integrative Biology at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, won first place in the 2018 Nikon Small World in Motion Competition for a video depicting neural development in a zebrafish embryo.
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Morgridge, Meriter research project targets the persistent risk of preterm birth
Of the approximately 4 million births in the United States each year, at least 400,000 of them still trigger a state of desperation in maternity wards. Parents, doctors and medical staff feel this way over the challenge of managing high-risk pregnancies.
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Trio of Morgridge Institute medical researchers to speak at Sept. 25 Innovation Network luncheon
via Wisconsin Technology Council
Three scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research will describe what brought them to Madison and how breakthroughs in medical engineering, regenerative biology and medical imaging will help save lives at the Tuesday, Sept. 25 Tech Council Innovation Network luncheon meeting in Madison.
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Explore more than 200 events statewide at the Wisconsin Science Festival
From food science and viruses to data visualization and climate change, there’s something for everyone at the 2018 Wisconsin Science Festival (WSF), held this year from Oct. 11-14.
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Chasing ghost particles with armies of computers
Scientists with the IceCube neutrino detection project, located on the South Pole and run by the University of Wisconsin–Madison, announced in July that they found the origin point of a cosmic neutrino in an energy-spewing black hole 4 billion light years from Earth. Scientists say the discovery will provide a fundamental new tool for seeing the unseeable in the universe.
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Pushing toward personalized pancreatic cancer treatments
Melissa Skala and Paul Campagnola, a professor of biomedical engineering at UW–Madison, hope to make inroads toward improved drug therapies through a two-year National Institutes of Health Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant.
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Metabolism investigator Jason Cantor joins Morgridge Institute, UW–Madison
Jason Cantor could describe himself as an engineer, biologist and biochemist, but don’t try to put his expertise into one box. Cantor, a scientist exploring the environmental influences on cancer cell metabolism, is launching a new lab in the Metabolism Theme at the Morgridge Institute and joining the UW–Madison departments of biochemistry and biomedical engineering.
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Want to fight cyberthreats? Start with clean code
The SWAMP offers more than 30 open-source and commercial static code analysis tools fully integrated into its automated platform. A new classroom experiment represents an important front for the SWAMP as it aims to advance continuous assurance on software security.
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Finding a weak link in the frightful parasite Schistosoma
The parasitic disease schistosomiasis is one of the developing world’s worst public health scourges. Researchers are searching for potential new targets by probing the cellular and developmental biology of the parasitic flatworm Schistosoma.
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Lipid species offer insights into metabolic health
Two new Morgridge Institute for Research studies suggest the current tests, which measure the abundance of lipid classes, are insufficient. Rather, lipids identified and studied at the individual species level—instead of grouped in classes—may be better signatures of metabolic health.
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‘Flamingo:’ High-powered microscopy coming to a scientist near you
Jan Huisken’s Morgridge team has developed a portable, shareable light sheet microscope. The project can be mailed to a lab anywhere in the world, configured remotely by Morgridge engineers, and run one to three months of experiments.
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Stem cell summer camp inspiring early careers in science and technology
Every summer since 2007, students from some of the smallest high schools in Wisconsin descend on the Morgridge Institute for Research for the Morgridge Rural Summer Science Camp. Now, 12 years into the camp, organizers are finding it has been a difference-maker.
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UW Carbone Cancer Center Study to look for ways to personalize therapy in colorectal cancer
via School of Medicine and Public Health
The study will use optical imaging techniques developed by Melissa Skala, a co-investigator at the Morgridge Institute, to monitor the evolution of 3D cancer tumor cultures over time.
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HOSA students tackle tough subject
via Wisconsin State Journal
Dane County high school students visited the Skala Lab to tackle pancreatic cancer, the third-leading cause of cancer deaths in Wisconsin.
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New effort gives teens the opportunity, tools to drive science programming
The newly-launched Discovery Teen Science Café gives Madison high school students the opportunity to research, plan and host events that connect them with scientists working on topics the students are most interested in.
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Discovery Outreach teams up with Family Science Nights
Family Science Nights are hands-on science activities hosted by K-12 schools and community centers—and a growing grassroots effort at the University of Wisconsin–Madison is helping to connect scientists and educators with families and community members.
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Morgridge Institute announces John W. and Jeanne M. Rowe Center for Research in Virology
The Morgridge Institute for Research is launching the John W. and Jeanne M. Rowe Center for Research in Virology, a new transformative research initiative made possible by the philanthropic support of John and Jeanne Rowe.
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Morgridge metabolism fellowship seeks to strengthen the research network
A graduate fellowship launched this year by the Morgridge Institute for Research will help bring “fresh eyes” to the growing pursuit of metabolism research at UW–Madison.
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Congratulations to our graduating students
With the semester winding down, we are thrilled to congratulate graduating students and research staff who are moving on and up. More than 110 undergraduate and graduate students, in addition to post-doctoral fellows, work across six biomedical research themes at the Morgridge Institute.
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Immortal: An oral history of stem cell discovery
In November 1998, the journal Science published James Thomson’s groundbreaking work on embryonic stem cells. There has been 20 years of progress since the initial discovery spawned a new field of research, and tremendous potential exists for the future. We reached out to the people who lived it, and they shared the experiences in their own words. This is their story.
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HTCondor powers Marshfield Clinic project on disease genetics
Using the equivalent of hundreds of years of computing time on HTCondor, a Marshfield Clinic scientist is compiling a database that will map genetic connections to more than 8,000 human diseases.
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New imager identifies tissue types during surgery
via University of Wisconsin
OnLume, a spinoff from the University of Wisconsin–Madison, is continuing to develop its system for identifying tissue types during surgery. The company’s technology causes chemical labels to glow in the operating room.
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Recap: Celebrating 20 Years of Stem Cell Science
On April 18 more than 170 scientists, researchers and supporters joined scientist o celebrate the 20th anniversary of the isolation of human embryonic stem cells.
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Cryo-EM Expert Elizabeth Wright Joining Biochemistry to Direct New Facility
via UW Biochemistry
The University of Wisconsin–Madison Department of Biochemistry will welcome Elizabeth Wright in July as a faculty member and director of the department’s newly established cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) facility.
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Mentoring at Morgridge
When Ava VanDommelen was seven, she asked for her first microscope for Christmas. Now, at 17-years-old, she’s using microscopy to explore cancer tumors and the immune system at the Morgridge Institute for Research.
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Two Morgridge scientists place in 2018 Cool Science Image Contest
Two scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research—Jayhun Lee and Jiaye “Henry” He—were named winners in the 2018 Cool Science Image Contest, competing against more than 170 submitted images and videos.
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Winner: Blue Sky Bracket Challenge
It’s your turn to pick the winners in the final head-to-head matchup of this March Madness-style bracket. Would you rather explore the mechanics of 3D printing or how viruses relate to cancer? You choose in the Blue Sky Science Bracket Challenge. Come back next week to support your favorite videos in the final championship! A winner will be crowned on April 9.
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Ethics cartooning competition winners announced
Umair Khan, a UW–Madison graduate student working at the Morgridge Institute for Research, took the top prize in the inaugural Ethics Cartooning Competition.
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SWAMP-in-a-Box can help turbo-charge software assurance
In the drive to reduce software security flaws, the Software Assurance Marketplace (SWAMP) at the Morgridge Institute for Research has enhanced its portable platform that brings a comprehensive suite of software assurance tools to the programmer’s desktop.
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Fearless Science
In a new report, we meet the scientists driven to understand the mysteries of biology and alleviate human suffering from disease. Take a look inside as we explore science at the Morgridge Institute for Research.
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The ‘Ice Road Truckers of science’ and why we need them
In an opinion piece published in The Hill, the nation’s leading news website on U.S. politics, Morgridge Institute for Research CEO Brad Schwartz and UW–Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank argue that a renewed investment in basic research is essential to America’s economic progress.
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New Pyle Chair honors Morgridge affiliate Joshua Coon
A new chair at the Morgridge Institute for Research takes aim at osteoarthritis, a debilitating and painful disease that affects more than 27 million Americans. Currently, osteoarthritis is largely treated with palliative care to help patients alleviate their symptoms.
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An Achilles heel discovered in viruses could fuel new antiviral approaches
Scientists at the Morgridge Institute for Research have discovered a promising new target to fight a class of viruses responsible for health threats such as Zika, polio, dengue, SARS and hepatitis C.
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Scholarly snowball: Deep learning paper generates big online collaboration
Bioinformatics professors Anthony Gitter and Casey Greene set out in summer 2016 to write a paper about the “state of the art” in deep learning for biomedicine, a hot new artificial intelligence field striving to mimic the neural networks of the human brain.
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New stem cell method sheds light on a tell-tale sign of heart disease
While refining ways to grow arterial endothelial cells in the lab, a regenerative biology team at the Morgridge Institute for Research unexpectedly unearthed a powerful new model for studying a hallmark of vascular disease.
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2018 Ethics Cartooning Contest – Public Voting
The first Morgridge Ethics Cartooning Competition invited entrants to make a cartoon on any ethical issue arising in or from biomedical research. Now, you can help choose the competition winners. Voting will be open until January 31, 2018.
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Blue Sky Science: Could we use planarians to help us understand human regeneration?
Planarians are flatworms, and they’re masters of regeneration with virtually unlimited capacity to regenerate any missing tissue or body part lost to injury or aging.
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Madison-based SWAMP and Synopsys join forces to educate the future cybersecurity workforce
The Software Assurance Marketplace (SWAMP) has partnered with Synopsys, an industry leader in software security and quality, to expand its suite of assurance tools in support of the academic community.
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Blue Sky Science: Why is the sky blue?
Light from the sun comes in many different colors including colors we can see and some colors we can’t see. And just like sound waves or waves on the water, light travels in waves as well.
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Cracking the code of coenzyme Q biosynthesis
Coenzyme Q (CoQ) is a vital cog in the body’s energy-producing machinery, a kind of chemical gateway in the conversion of food into cellular fuel. But six decades removed from its discovery, scientists still can’t describe exactly how and when it is made.
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Blue Sky Science: How do you identify edible mushrooms?
There’s not one rule that applies to mushrooms. You have to know your biodiversity to know which species are edible and which species are not edible.
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Blue Sky Science: How many molecules are in a cubic inch?
Molecules are formed by atoms bonding together, and there are many different types of molecules that you interact with every day. For example, water and sugar are both molecules.
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Blue Sky Science: Why don’t joints bend both ways?
Structurally joints don’t bend both ways because there are physical components within their design that prevent or resist motion. This could be bone, such as the elbow joint, or it could be ligamentous restraint, such as in the knee.
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Mastodons, brains, and a view of Mars: How the Wisconsin science festival helps bring kids and science together
Last weekend, excited young people darted about with a delirium I haven’t seen since the Pokémon craze. The University of Wisconsin–Madison was the home base for the Wisconsin Science Festival that included 54 communities, leaving every citizen within an hour’s drive of an event.
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Blue Sky Science: How do beetles use camouflage?
Beetles are an extremely diverse group of insects on the planet. There are about a million or more described species of insects, that we know of so far, and of those about 400,000 are beetles.
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Best of the Fest: Wisconsin Science Festival in photos
We’ve collected some of our favorite moments from the 2017 Wisconsin Science Festival, held Nov. 2-5 in Madison and across the state. Vote for your favorite photo and be entered to win some Morgridge prizes!
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Measuring the molecules of life – Q&A with Josh Coon
Proteins are the workhorse molecules that perform all the functions in the cell and the body. Being able to detect and measure proteins is critical to figuring out basic biology, and the signature of diseases such as Alzheimer’s, cancer and diabetes. Josh Coon is creating technologies to do exactly that.
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Regulating iron in the blood for optimal health – Q&A with Rick Eisenstein
Iron is an essential nutrient to human life, the element by which we regenerate red blood cells. Too little iron can cause serious problems such as anemia. But too much can be toxic, potentially causing blood clotting. Rick Eisenstein studies iron metabolism, with the goal of helping humans achieve the optimal balance for health.
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Blue Sky Science: Why do hurricanes form where they do? Why Florida and not Wisconsin?
Hurricanes form near places like Florida and not further north like Wisconsin because they need some critical components to develop.
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Blue Sky Science: Could scientists build a virtual brain and body for research?
To learn from a virtual body, it would need to be able to accurately simulate or predict how the body responds to internal and external changes.
New course brings storytelling techniques to science
via University of Wisconsin
A new course teaches early-career scientists how to communicate their work outside of the lab, and is designed to turn real research into engaging stories, visuals and presentations.
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Blue Sky Science: Why do some animals go extinct while other species regenerate their populations?
Much depends on the circumstances in which the animals have become rare in the first place. It could be a big environmental change in the habitat, something affecting food, water, shelter or cover.
Morgridge ‘titans’ of healthcare
via Madison Magazine
Morgridge’s own James Thomson (founder of Cellular Dynamics) and Rock Mackie (founder of Tomotherapy) are listed among the top nine “healthcare titans” fueling the Madison economy.
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Morgridge, UW scientists explore national security implications of gene editing
A trio of scientists from the University of Wisconsin–Madison and the Morgridge Institute for Research participated in an international think tank this month on the intersection of genome editing technology and national security.
WARF announces annual grant figures and Innovation Award winners
via University of Wisconsin
At a ceremony honoring several of the year’s most outstanding inventions, the Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation (WARF) announced that it has granted the Morgridge Institute for Research $19 million in grants for the 2017-18 academic year.
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Monsters of Morgridge
Not all monsters lurk in the closet, hide under the bed, or go bump in the night; in fact, they are all around us. In basic research, you can find tapeworms who thrive on the blood of their animal hosts – or the limb-generating axolotl, a water amphibian whose very name means “water monster.”
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Blue Sky Science: How are stars (like the sun) formed?
A star is considered a sun if it’s in the center of a system with planets orbiting around it. Stars are formed in very large dark clouds. These dark clouds are made primarily of hydrogen and carbon monoxide.
Study Shows HPV Works Across Cellular Borders to Drive Cervical Cancer
via School of Medicine and Public Health
Human papillomavirus (HPV) and the hormone estrogen are both linked to the development of cervical cancers, but how they work together has remained unclear. A new study by University of Wisconsin–Madison researchers shows how the combination of two factors influences the local cervical environment and drives the progression of cancer development.
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Blue Sky Science: Why do leaves change color in the fall?
September and October are the peak months for admiring fall foliage, the orange, yellow and red leaves. To understand why leaves change color, you have to start with the process of photosynthesis. All plants, including trees, have green leaves because of a compound called chlorophyll.
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Morgridge, UW scientists played role in Nobel-winning gravitational wave discovery
Tuesday’s announcement of the Nobel Prize in Physics, awarded to researchers Rainer Weiss of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Kip Thorne and Barry Barish of the California Institute of Technology, bears Morgridge Institute for Research and University of Wisconsin System connections.
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Discovery Incubator fosters innovation in science outreach
Innovation can come from anywhere, but often it’s when the right people are in the right place at the right time.
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From moon rocks to flash talks, explore 100+ Wisconsin Science Festival events
Radio technology, astrobotany, dairy science and computer coding are just a handful of science topics to be explored at the 2017 Wisconsin Science Festival, held Nov. 2-5.
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Blue Sky Science: Why does the moon have craters?
One reason the moon has craters because it gets hit by objects, small pieces of rocks that come from outer space. These are pieces of asteroids, comets that are flying around in the solar system.
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Morgridge cartoon contest seeks to spark creative thinking on bioethics
Can you find the humor while searching for the ethical high ground? A new cartooning contest sponsored by the Morgridge Institute for Research will reward the most creative bioethical thinkers with up to $3,500 in cash prizes.
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Blue Sky Science: How is a gummy bear made?
Gelatin is the basis of what makes a gummy bear a gummy bear, but we first start with sugar, corn syrup and water. Gelatin is thermoreversible, meaning that heat can turn it back into a liquid.
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A novel data storage project unshackles microscopy from data overload
Jan Huisken teamed this summer with the Morgridge Institute computational technology team and technicians from storage platform company Dell EMC to create an end-run around the bottleneck. The team installed a storage system that creates a new intermediate 100-terabyte storage platform that will collect data straight from its origins at the microscope.
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Blue Sky Science: How can milk make so many different products?
Milk can make many products because of its complex chemistry and history. Early humans used milk and had to experiment with various means to preserve it and its nutrition content over time.
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Blue Sky Science: How does our brain think?
In order for your brain to think, you need nerve cells that can detect information about the outside world and can transmit that information to other nerve cells.
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Blue Sky Science: How do fireflies glow?
When living creatures produce and emit light it’s called bioluminescence. The main reason fireflies glow is to find a mate, though they can also light up under other situations as a warning to others.
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Blue Sky Science: How were the Madison lakes formed?
Before the last glaciation, which started about 30,000 years ago, there was a deep river valley that ran under where Lake Mendota and the other Madison lakes are now. A glacier moved into this area and slowly filled up the valley.
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Blue Sky Science: How did dinosaurs evolve into birds?
Not all dinosaurs were big. In fact, the smallest ones are the ones that are still alive today. The one big question is: How exactly did flight evolve?
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Blue Sky Science: How does science protect great works of art?
Art conservators can use X-rays and infrared technology to learn more about the structure of a painting, the paint layers and what happened to a painting over time.
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Blue Sky Science: What is beyond Pluto?
There are many, many objects beyond Pluto, but where they came from and when they formed is a whole other question.
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Creating the blueprints for new biofuels – Q&A with Tim Donohue
Earlier this month, the Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center (GLBRC) received another major boost from the U.S. Department of Energy, receiving more than $250 million to conduct another five years of groundbreaking work on alternative fuels.
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Stem cells, microfluidics and drug discovery headline high school science camp
For the last 11 years, high school students and teachers from rural communities in Wisconsin have journeyed to Madison to dig into stem cell science, learning from leading researchers in regenerative medicine.
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Science Festival 2017: Revel in a Century of Public Broadcasting
The 2017 Wisconsin Science Festival on November 2-5 will celebrate one of the great scientific “firsts” that Wisconsin bestowed on the world — the birth of public radio — while gazing into the future of radio technology, including the search for extraterrestrial life.
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Jerrod Buckner connects students to the wonders of science
Jerrod Buckner is the newest member of the Morgridge Institute for Research Outreach team. With his background in designing afterschool programs, Buckner is working to connect elementary and middle school students and their families to the wonder of science happening here at Morgridge and the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
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Blue Sky Science: Why can eye color vary between siblings?
We all have genes in our body, and our genes carry DNA. Siblings can inherit various genes from their parents and they don’t always get the same ones.
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Blue Sky Science: How does our immune system recognize bad from good?
Important cells for distinguishing between good and bad are T cells, and it’s estimated that there are approximately a trillion T cells in our body.
