Jennifer Michalowski, Author at ��ϳԹ��Դ

Uplands Farm: Grounds for discovery

Jennifer Michalowski — Wed, 12 Nov 2025 12:30:53 +0000

At first glance, Uplands Farm—12 carefully tended acres about a mile east of the ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) campus—resembles farms you might have seen before. Orderly rows of corn dominate the fields, sharing space with sorghum, eggplants, and other crops. Three greenhouses shelter young plants, extending the growing season so they can flourish in...

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A doorstop for the brain’s electrical gates

Jennifer Michalowski — Wed, 29 Oct 2025 16:00:04 +0000

Nature, reveals the molecular mechanisms that keep the brain’s NMDA receptors fully or partially open." data-description="Image of NMDA receptors in different positions" />As information zings from cell to cell inside the brain, bursts of electricity spur its transmission. At ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL), scientists have turned their attention to the tiny pores that let charged ions enter a cell—and the molecular gatekeepers that help control them. CSHL structural biologist Hiro Furukawa studies NMDA receptors (NMDARs). These...

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Licensed to live

Jennifer Michalowski — Tue, 29 Jul 2025 11:30:21 +0000

The DNA packed inside every human cell contains instructions for life, written in billions of letters of genetic code. Every time a cell divides, the complete code, divided among 46 chromosomes, must be faithfully copied. This staggering task happens over and over with extraordinary precision. Decades of research have revealed how dozens of proteins work...

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It’s not you—it’s cancer

Jennifer Michalowski — Thu, 10 Apr 2025 18:00:51 +0000

AI generated voice with Tobias Janowitz’s actual voice Cancer ravages both body and mind. If you’ve ever lost loved ones to the disease, you might recognize the physical and emotional changes cancer patients often endure during their final months. They seem drained of strength and spirit. Even people who’ve maintained a positive outlook throughout their...

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The Microprocessor inside you

Jennifer Michalowski — Mon, 02 Dec 2024 12:30:49 +0000

It’s a big year for microRNAs. The 2024 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine went to Victor Ambros and Gary Ruvkun, who discovered the first microRNA in 1993. Today, we know that humans make more than 1,000 different microRNAS. These molecules are critical for building and maintaining healthy bodies, so it’s crucial that they’re made...

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The nervous system’s matchmaker

Jennifer Michalowski — Mon, 02 Sep 2024 19:00:42 +0000

When you ask a rideshare app to find you a car, the company’s computers get to work. They know you want to reach your destination quickly. They know you’re not the only user who needs a ride. And they know drivers want to minimize idle time by picking up someone nearby. The computer’s job, says...

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How breast cancer goes hungry

Jennifer Michalowski — Wed, 28 Aug 2024 11:30:11 +0000

Cancer cells have voracious appetites. And there are certain nutrients they can’t live without. Scientists have long hoped they might stop tumors in their tracks by cutting off an essential part of cancer cells’ diet. But these cells are crafty and often find a new way to get what they need. How? By reprogramming their...

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RNA splicing’s spotters

Jennifer Michalowski — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 11:30:16 +0000

Bodybuilders and cellular mechanisms agree generating protein is a heavy lift. To complete the task, cells rely on complexes called spliceosomes. These molecular machines snip extra bits out of our genes’ RNA copies and piece together precise instructions for protein-building. When the splicing process goes awry, it can result in diseases like cancer or spinal...

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A link between breast changes and . . . UTIs?

Jennifer Michalowski — Thu, 02 May 2024 11:30:55 +0000

Women’s health is often talked about in terms of major, life-altering events like pregnancy and menopause. A new study from ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) underscores the importance of considering everyday occurrences’ impact on women’s well-being. CSHL researchers have made a surprising discovery involving urinary tract infections (UTIs). The scientists found that UTIs in mice...

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Click, click, boom—150 new molecules

Jennifer Michalowski — Thu, 04 Apr 2024 11:30:05 +0000

Chemical Science, the Royal Society of Chemistry’s flagship journal, calls accelerated SuFEx click chemistry “a robust platform for drug discovery.” Image: © alex_aldo - stock.adobe.com" data-description="" />��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) chemists have created a new collection of molecular compounds and begun testing them as potential leads in the search for new drugs. Among these molecules, they found several that show promise for development as antibiotics and cancer therapies. Sounds like a eureka moment? Well, sort of. But it’s more a...

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Women in science on women’s health

Jennifer Michalowski — Fri, 08 Mar 2024 12:30:18 +0000

You’ve heard the phrase, “Men are from Mars, women are from Venus.” If only it were so simple. The fact is that all of us are from Earth. Yet, there are clear physical and neurological differences between the sexes. Women comprise half the world’s population. However, when it comes to health conditions that primarily affect...

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Why some RNA drugs work better than others

Jennifer Michalowski — Wed, 06 Mar 2024 12:30:20 +0000

Spinal muscular atrophy, or SMA, is the leading genetic cause of infant death. Less than a decade ago, ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) Professor Adrian Krainer showed this brutal disease can be treated by tweaking a process called RNA splicing. This breakthrough resulted in Spinraza, the first effective treatment for SMA. It also opened a...

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Dream big: A powerful vision for CSHL research

Jennifer Michalowski — Tue, 02 Jan 2024 12:30:26 +0000

Leemor Joshua-Tor describes her new role as director of research at ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) in no uncertain terms. “I am going to enable our faculty to carry out their dreams,” she says. CSHL scientists tend to dream big. Joshua-Tor knows that to map the brain’s circuits, transform our understanding of cancer biology, and...

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New antibody could target breast cancers

Jennifer Michalowski — Mon, 30 Oct 2023 11:30:29 +0000

An enzyme that may help some breast cancers spread can be stopped with an antibody created in the lab of ��ϳԹ��Դ Professor Nicholas Tonks. With further development, the antibody might offer an effective drug treatment for those same breast cancers. The new antibody targets an enzyme called PTPRD that is overabundant in...

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Reactivate, repurpose, and rewire the brain

Jennifer Michalowski — Wed, 04 Oct 2023 11:30:29 +0000

Developing brains become shaped by the sights, sounds, and experiences of early life. The brain’s circuits grow more stable as we age. However, some experiences later in life open up opportunities for these circuits to be rapidly rewired. New research from ��ϳԹ��Դ Associate Professor Stephen Shea helps explain how the brain adapts...

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How plants pass down genetic memories

Jennifer Michalowski — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 15:00:16 +0000

Arabidopsis thaliana is a plant species widely used to make fundamental biological discoveries. With the help of this versatile test subject, CSHL scientists have now dug up the secrets of a process that helps control inheritance." data-description="" />When organisms pass their genes on to future generations, they include more than the code spelled out in DNA. Some also pass along chemical markers that instruct cells how to use that code. The passage of these markers to future generations is known as epigenetic inheritance. It’s particularly common in plants. So, significant findings here...

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This eight-armed octopus-like pore perceives taste

Jennifer Michalowski — Fri, 14 Jul 2023 11:30:33 +0000

The neurons in our bodies are dotted with tiny pores that let essential molecules pass in and out of our cells. Neurons need these channels to send the signals that allow us to move, think, and perceive the world around us. Now, structural biologists at ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) have captured never-before-seen images of...

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CSHL harnesses biology’s favorite chemical

Jennifer Michalowski — Wed, 07 Jun 2023 15:00:04 +0000

For chemists like ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) Professor John Moses, diversity is a gateway to discovery. The more molecules scientists have to explore, the more likely it is they will find something useful. With the latest advancement from Moses’ lab, they can now quickly assemble a vast array of complex molecules. Among those molecules,...

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AI training: A backward cat pic is still a cat pic

Jennifer Michalowski — Fri, 05 May 2023 00:00:38 +0000

Genes make up only a small fraction of the human genome. Between them are wide sequences of DNA that direct cells when, where, and how much each gene should be used. These biological instruction manuals are known as regulatory motifs. If that sounds complex, well, it is. The instructions for gene regulation are written in...

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Stopping a rare childhood cancer in its tracks

Jennifer Michalowski — Thu, 19 Jan 2023 16:00:35 +0000

Scientists at ��ϳԹ��Դ (CSHL) have discovered a new drug target for Ewing sarcoma, a rare kind of cancer usually diagnosed in children and young adults. Their experiments show that the cells causing this cancer can essentially be reprogrammed with the flick of a genetic switch. Shutting down a single protein forces the...

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Jennifer Michalowski, Author at ���ϳԹ���Դ