BMB Weekly #14: April 3, 2026

 

 

 

 

 

Eunhee Yi from Michigan State University will be presenting the lecture titled "The role of focal oncogene amplifications in the tumor microenvironment".

To join us on Zoom, click this link. Password: bmbseminar

The Spring BMB Seminar Series will run through April 23, 2026. The complete schedule is available on the BMB Spring Seminar Series website. If you are interested in meeting with any of these speakers please email Leslie Williams, glady@msu.edu. Many speakers are planning to visit in-person. A Zoom option will continue to be offered for all seminars.

 

 

Please join us the week of April 6 - 10 to celebrate graduate and professional students throughout Michigan State University. Throughout the week, the Graduate School and the Council of Graduate Students will be hosting events, including a block party, arts and crafts, professional development opportunities, and meet and greets with MSU leadership. Learn more here.

The MSU Science Festival is a free annual celebration of science, fueled by some of the basic elements essential to scientific inquiry: curiosity, wonder, and discovery. With events for the whole family to enjoy, the MSU Science Festival explores topics ranging from the ordinary to the extraordinary. From astronomy to music, and chemistry to microbiology; scientists and educators across the state are eager to share the wonder of science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics. Learn more here.

Learn the exciting and latest science from the 2026 Biochemistry Poster Presentations. Join us for presentations, food, and drink. Presentations will be held in the Molecular Plant Sciences Atrium (across the street from the Biochemistry building). Come support our Undergraduates!

NIH and other funding agencies are requiring comprehensive strategies for proper research methods and procedures, and the presentation of research data. These include applying rigor, minimizing bias, and maximizing reproducibility in all efforts. This workshop will discuss means by which to address these within quantitative and qualitative research. The primary principles covered within this session are rigor and reproducibility. Learn more and register here.

MSU Plant Resilience Institute Associate Director Dr. David Lowry is leading a four-week workshop series on demystifying the academic job application process. Dr. Lowry has hosted these workshops annually since 2020 with the goal of helping trainees gain a better understanding of how to approach writing each component of an academic job package. Participants will read through successful applications, then break down what works well and does not work well piece by piece.

• April 9: Cover letters
• April 16: Research statements
• April 23: Teaching statements
• April 30: CVs and other statements

Learn more and register here.

In this PRI Networking Hour, University Communications and Marketing Director of Public Relations Sydney Hawkins and College of Natural Science Chief Marketing Officer Ryan Kilcoyne will teach attendees how to amplify their research through the media and public relations. Participants will learn tips and techniques for giving successful media interviews as an academic, including what journalists are looking for during an interview. Learn more and register here.

MSU students and recent graduates are invited to this Fulbright US Student Program information session, which will be presented by MSU's Fulbright Program Advisor, Joy Campbell. Session attendees will learn about the three types of Fulbright awards open to MSU students and recent graduates: English Teaching Assistant, Study, and Research grants. MSU's Fulbright Program Advisor will give an overview of the programs, discuss eligibility and benefits, then cover the various application requirements. Learn more here.

The MSU Genetics and Genome Sciences Program is pleased to announce GGS Day 2026! This event is open to all MSU faculty, staff, and students, as well as members of neighboring institutions and the greater community. This year’s GGS Day will feature various talks, panels, workshops, poster sessions, and lunch. The full agenda can be viewed here.

Poster presenters will also have the opportunity to win exciting prizes! Please submit your abstract by April 20th to participate. To register to attend or to submit an abstract, fill out this form. Learn more here.

 

Ph.D. students selected for this 12-month fellowship will collaborate with a Lyman Briggs College faculty member on a research project focused on undergraduate teaching and learning. Research topics may include developing and assessing curricular innovations such as inquiry-based labs, interdisciplinary teaching, science ethics, teaching with case studies, and strategies to improve retention and success of diverse STEM students. Each Fellow will work closely with their faculty mentor and receive support to share project outcomes through peer-reviewed journals, conferences, and pedagogy-focused venues. Learn more and register here.

 

The Gender and Sexuality Campus Center (GSCC) is the hub of LGBTQIA2S+ life at Michigan State University. GSCC celebrates Pride Month each April to ensure that all our students, faculty, staff, and community Spartans can join us in the events. Be sure to check out all the Pride Month programming here.

Apply now to be a member of a student hearing board at MSU. Graduate & Professional students needed! Hearing board members play a critical and valuable role in ensuring that those involved in allegations that a student violated experience a fair process, while also being both supported and held accountable (if found responsible). For more information & application, please visit: https://ossa.msu.edu/hearing-boards. Application will remain open until all positions are filled.

SPARTANfit is celebrating March Madness with a limited-time offer for MSU students. From now through May 1, students can receive a Comprehensive Fitness Assessment for only $10 (50% off). This assessments gives students a snapshot of their physical health through resting and exercising tests, personalized fitness profiles, and support with goal setting. Book your fitness assessment no later than May 1 to score this limited-time deal. Learn more here.

You can find the latest department news over on LinkedIn and BlueSky. Give us a follow and be sure to tag us with research updates, publications, and lab updates to help spread the word!

The MSU Student Food Bank is a resource available to students and scholars who may be experiencing food insecurity. The Food Bank provides free food and other essential items to those in need within our MSU community. Learn more here.

 

A Postdoctoral Scholar position is available in Dr. Polly Hsu’s laboratory at Michigan State University to investigate translational regulation in Arabidopsis and crops. Candidates interested in RNA biology and translational regulation are encouraged to apply. Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

A highly motivated postdoctoral researcher is sought to lead and contribute to cutting-edge metabolomics research at the interface of inflammation, cancer, and translational biology. This position is based at MSU, with opportunities for collaboration with Henry Ford Health. The successful candidate will drive projects focused on colitis and microbiome–metabolite interactions, develop and optimize advanced MS methods in metabolomics (including EAD workflows), data analysis and support collaborative studies with Henry Ford Health.Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

The Topp lab (within the MSU Plant Resilience Institute and Departments of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences and Plant Biology) is seeking a project administrator to support a new multi-institutional research project funded by the U.S. Department of Energy ARPA-E. This role will play a central part in coordinating the SYNCORNET project, which brings together a multidisciplinary team to develop plant genetic and biological solutions that synchronize nitrogen supply and demand in corn agriculture, reduce synthetic nitrogen inputs, and lower greenhouse gas emissions while maintaining yield. The project manager will coordinate the scientific, administrative, and reporting activities of SYNCORNET across partner institutions, ensuring that project milestones, budgets, and compliance requirements are met over the four-year project period. Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

The appointee is to provide skilled, specialized assistance to faculty, staff, and students in fluorescence microscopy as well as areas of the applicant’s scientific expertise. Establish, promote, and participate in collaborative research projects with department faculty, staff, and students. Pursue funding as collaborator and co-investigator with department faculty on extramural and intramural grants. Help develop programs involving essential equipment, animals, cell culture models, microorganisms, and facilities for supporting collaborative projects, in consultation with the Chair. Serve on the instructional support staff and participate in the graduate and medical educational mission of the department. Oversee select department core facilities and equipment, including providing user training, oversight, and maintenance. Coordinate relocation of equipment and research space according to department needs in consultation with Chair. Learn more and apply here.

The post-doctoral scholar will be responsible for assessing the data available for publications. Working with the PI, the fellow will perform or oversee data collection to complete 2-3 manuscripts that center around immune-oncology projects ongoing in the laboratory. Experiments will be primarily focused on in vitro or ex vivo data collections. In particular, molecular biology experience is a requirement and experience with metabolomics is an additional benefit. Learn more about this MSU Careers posting here.

Basyal, B., Li, X., Pargulski, V. J., Fu, X., Nightingale, N. M., Overmyer, K. A., Coon, J. J., Zhang, Y., Benucci, G. M. N., Last, R. L., Sato, T. K., & Walker, B. J. (2026). Developmentally specific physiological and metabolic responses support drought resilience in switchgrass and constrain biofuel yield. Journal of experimental botany, 77(6), 1888–1902. https://doi.org/10.1093/jxb/eraf533

Blanco-Gonzalez, A., Betancourt, W., Snyder, R. M., Zhang, S., Giese, T. J., Piskulich, Z. A., Götz, A. W., Merz, K. M., Jr, York, D. M., Aktulga, H. M., & Manathunga, M. (2026). Automated Force Field Developer and Optimizer Platform: Torsion Reparameterization. Journal of chemical information and modeling, 66(6), 3206–3219. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jcim.6c00528

Dobson, G., & Balbach, M. (2026). Stable isotope labelling mass spectrometry analysis of isolated mouse sperm. Biology of reproduction, 114(3), 755–772. https://doi.org/10.1093/biolre/ioag022

Ghazy, M. A., Chodavarapu, S., Ramcharan, S., Stowell, G. A., Kaguni, J. M., & Sutton, M. D. (2026). The loop domains of the E. coli β sliding clamp are required for Hda-dependent inactivation of DnaA. Genetics, iyag065. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1093/genetics/iyag065

He, Q., Zheng, J., Jin, J., Wang, Z., Zhang, W., Han, L., Xu, X., Feng, S., Zhou, Y., Shi, K., Yu, J., Last, R. L., & Fan, P. (2026). Functional diversification of WRINKLED3 integrates fatty acid metabolism with insecticidal acylsugar production in Solanaceae species. Nature communications, 10.1038/s41467-026-70439-7. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-70439-7

Sharma, N., Sharkey, T. D., & Brandizzi, F. (2026). Mitochondrial β-carbonic anhydrase is a conserved metabolic rheostat for branched-chain amino acid catabolism and metabolic flexibility. The New phytologist, 10.1111/nph.71056. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/nph.71056

Splichal, R. C., Chan, C., & Walton, S. P. (2026). Endoplasmic reticulum stress induced autophagy alters cellular processing of cationic lipid delivered siRNAs. Drug delivery and translational research, 10.1007/s13346-026-02096-8. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13346-026-02096-8

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