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Recognizing Excellence

MIT News

July 11, 2024

Highlighting the exceptional expertise and essential research role played by our Robert A. Swanson (1969) Biotechnology Center, members of the Peterson (1957) Nanotechnology Materials Core Facility staff were recognized with the 2024 MIT Excellence Award in the Innovative Solutions category. Congratulations to Margaret (Peggy) Bisher, Giovanni de Nola, David Mankus, and Dong Soo Yun!

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Showing 1–10 of 563 stories

Dr. Jeremiah Jonson Wins Yosemite-ACS Award

American Cancer Society

September 12, 2024

Congratulations to Dr. Jeremiah Johnson for winning the prestigious Yosemite-ACS Award! Johnson received the award for his pioneering research on overcoming therapeutic resistance through cell-specific targeting of the tumor microenvironment with antibody-bottlebrush prodrug conjugates. This award, part of a $6 million grant initiative by the American Cancer Society and Yosemite, recognizes his dedication and innovative approach to cancer treatment.


 

Welcome, Professor Henry!

MIT Koch Institute

September 8, 2024

Over the summer, Whitney Henry officially joined the Koch Institute faculty. Henry works to uncover the molecular factors that induce a cell to undergo ferroptosis, an iron-dependent form of cell death. Her aim is to develop adjuvant cancer therapies that target subpopulations of cancer cells that are highly metastatic and therapy resistant.

Cancer moonshot boosts CisionVision

PR Newswire

September 6, 2024

CisionVision, co-founded by KI’s Angela Belcher and former trainee and Convergence Scholar Jeremy Li, has secured up to $22 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) Precision Surgical Interventions (PSI) program. This grant, part of President Biden’s Cancer Moonshot, supports developing advanced imaging technology to help surgeons visualize critical anatomy without dyes.    

How sweet it is

Boston Globe

September 6, 2024

Bob Langer now has a chocolate named after him. Ben and Bill’s Chocolate Emporium in Falmouth has introduced Dr. Bob's Dark Chocolate Maple Syrup Cream, inspired by his love of maple. Bob is a longtime regular of the shop — its old-timey feel and candy-filled shelves remind Bob of his favorite childhood candy store in Albany.  

Meet the 2024 Amon Award Winners

MIT Koch Institute

September 3, 2024

The Koch Institute at MIT is pleased to announce the winners of the 2024 Angelika Amon Young Scientist Award, Anna Uzonyi and Lukas Teoman Henneberg. The prize was established in 2021 to recognize graduate students in the life sciences or biomedical research from institutions outside the United States who embody Dr. Amon’s infectious enthusiasm for discovery science. 



 

Fast track to healing could spell tumor trouble

MIT News

August 21, 2024

A new study from the Yilmaz Lab demonstrates the benefits and downside of fasting.

While low-calorie diets and intermittent fasting are known to boost intestinal regeneration and aid recovery from injuries or inflammation, this study, published in Nature, reveals something new: it also leads to a higher risk of cancer in mice. Further studies are needed before forming any conclusion as to whether fasting has a similar effect in humans.

This research was funded in part by the MIT Stem Cell Initiative, the Koch Institute Frontier Research Program via the Kathy and Curt Marble Cancer Research Fund, and the Bridge Project.
 

There's no place like home

MIT Koch Institute

August 19, 2024

Vander Heiden Lab researchers showed that metastasized cancer cells prefer the nutrient landscape of their home tissue and retain more of their metabolic programming than previously thought. Their results, published in Nature Metabolism, suggest that the metabolic programs developed in a cancer cell’s tissue of origin may limit where it can metastasize.

This study was funded in part by the Lustgarten Foundation, the MIT Center for Precision Cancer Medicine, the Ludwig Center at MIT, and the Emerald Foundation.

Progress for PanTher

PR NewsWire

August 13, 2024

Following positive initial results, PanTher has received IND clearance to advance their absorbable drug-delivery film for treating pancreatic cancer to the next phase of clinical trials. PanTher’s approaches—based on their signature platform, developed in the Edelman lab with support from the Bridge Project—provide continuous, high-dose treatment of potent therapeutics exclusively at the tumor site.

Keeping it local with immunotherapy

Nature Immunology

August 7, 2024

A new study from the Irvine and Wittrup labs, published in Nature Immunology, describes a novel immunotherapy approach that delivers and retains cytokines directly in tumors and nearby lymph nodes via a combination of locally administered IL-12 and IL-15, both engineered to target the CD45 receptor.

Unlike other efforts, this approach localizes the effects of cytokines, ensuring that the drugs stay inside the tumor and neighboring lymph nodes to prevent leakage and the severe systemic side effects that accompany it.

Alex Shalek to direct IMES

MIT News

August 6, 2024

Alex Shalek has been appointed Director of the Institute for Medical Engineering and Sciences (IMES). IMES integrates engineering, science, and medicine to advance and accelerate innovation in human health. Shalek, who is also the J. W. Kieckhefer Professor in the Department of Chemistry, as well as a member of the Koch Institute and the MIT Stem Cell Initiative, began his appointment on August 1.