News

Last updated: July 2021

Now that the National Science Foundation has a new user-friendly web design, we will no longer be updating the “News” page on the BIO Buzz blog.

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For the latest Research Highlights from the NSF’s Public Affairs team, click here.
For the latest Press Releases from the NSF’s Public Affairs team, click here.
For the latest Media Advisories from the NSF’s Public Affairs team, click here.
For the latest BIO “Active Funding Opportunities” information, click here.
For the latest BIO Documents, including Dear Colleague Letters, click here.
For older research highlights that are also on Research.gov, visit this blog page.

May 31, 2016

Research Highlights from NSF:
Research “News from the Field”:
- Bacteria beneficial to plants have spread across California (University of California, Riverside)
- Shape of tumor may affect whether cells can metastasize (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
- Fermentation festival leads to rapid response system at Center for Microbiome Innovation (University of California, San Diego)
- Algae disrupt coral reefs’ recycling (San Diego State University)
- Missing links brewed in primordial puddles? (Georgia Institute of Technology)
- Scientists discover new reef system at mouth of Amazon River (University of Georgia)
- Protecting diversity on coral reefs: DNA may hold the key (University of Hawaii at Manoa)
- Scientists predict cell changes that affect breast cancer growth (Scripps Research Institute)
- A cell senses its own curves: New research from the MBL Whitman Center (Marine Biological Laboratory)
- How DNA can take on the properties of sand or toothpaste (University of California, San Diego)
- New study found ocean acidification may be impacting coral reefs in the Florida keys (University of Miami Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science)
- Sea star juveniles abundant, but recovery is anything but guaranteed (Oregon State University)
- Pond scum and the gene pool: A critical gene in green algae responsible for multicellularity (Kansas State University)
- Why vultures matter — and what we lose if they’re gone (University of Utah)
- Genetic potential of oil-eating bacteria from the BP oil spill decoded (University of Texas at Austin)
- IU-led study reveals new insights into light color sensing and transfer of genetic traits (Indiana University)
- Scientists watch bacterial sensor respond to light in real time (DOE/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory)
- T cells use ‘handshakes’ to sort friends from foes (Emory Health Sciences)
- Shellfish response to ocean acidification depends on other stressors (University of California, Santa Cruz)
- First single-enzyme method to produce quantum dots revealed (Lehigh University)
- UGA study finds Saharan dust affects marine bacteria, potential pathogen Vibrio (University of Georgia)
- Hijacked cell division helped fuel rise of fungi (Duke University)
- Chicken coops, sewage treatment plants are hot spots of antibiotic resistance (Washington University School of Medicine)
- New stem cell pathway indicates route to much higher yields in maize, staple crops (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory)
- You are what you eat: IU biologists map genetic pathways of nutrition-based species traits (Indiana University)
- Brain imaging links Alzheimer’s decline to tau protein (Washington University School of Medicine)
- FSU-Cornell team defines meaningful part of maize genome (Florida State University)
- Proton-conducting material found in electrosensory organs of sharks (University of California, Santa Cruz)
- Polluted dust can impact ocean life thousands of miles away, study says (Georgia Institute of Technology)
- Long-term memory has back-up plan, researchers find (New York University)
- How is rattlesnake venom like fine wine? Both have regional varieties (Ohio State University)
- Liquid order: Fluid self-organizes into structure that controls cell growth and health (Princeton University, Engineering School)
- Rice University scientists identify ‘smoking gun’ in metastasis of hybrid cells (Rice University)
- Dynamic DNA polymers can be reversed using biocompatible techniques (Penn State University)
Program (Funding) Announcements:
- Dear Colleague Letter: Call for Submission of Conference Proposals to Inform the Design and Success of the Alliances and National Network for NSF INCLUDES (NSF 16-081)
- Dear Colleague Letter: Supporting Research Advances in Microbiomes (NSF 16-084)
- Developing a National Research Infrastructure for Neuroscience (NeuroNex) (NSF 16-569)
Resources:
- The National Science Foundation Strategic Framework for Investments in Graduate Education FY2016-FY2020 (NSF 16-074)
- Office of Inspector General Semiannual Report to Congress – March 2016 (OIG 16-002)

April 30, 2016

Research Highlights from NSF:
Research “News from the Field”:
- ASU researcher improves crop performance with new biotechnology (Arizona State University)
- Starvation as babies makes bees stronger as adults (Arizona State University)
- New tumbleweed species rapidly expanding range (University of California, Riverside)
- UGA researchers use single molecule of DNA to create world’s smallest diode (University of Georgia)
- NYU Tandon researcher synthesizes hybrid molecule that delivers a blow to malignant cells (NYU Tandon School of Engineering)
- Seeing cell to cell differences for first time explains symptoms of rare genetic disorders (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine)
- New tools allow rapid ID of CRISPR-Cas system PAMs (North Carolina State University)
- Dynamic model helps understand healthy lakes to heal sick ones (Georgia Institute of Technology)
- Pinpointing the effects of fertilizer (University of Illinois College of Liberal Arts and Sciences)
- Duke study uncovers genetic elements that drive regeneration (Duke University)
- How deep does life go? MBL study describes microbial neighborhood beneath ocean floor (Marine Biological Laboratory)
- Crab shell signaling helps control the many faces of cholera, study shows (Georgia Institute of Technology)
- Smithsonian and collaborators find that trap-jaw spiders strike prey with lightning speed (Smithsonian Institution)
- Scientists crack secrets of the monarch butterfly’s internal compass (University of Washington)
- UW team stores digital images in DNA — and retrieves them perfectly (University of Washington)
- Visualizing and predicting evolution by mapping the elusive ‘fitness landscape’ (University of Michigan)
- Surface mutation lets canine parvovirus jump to other species (Cornell University)
- Plant signals travel different routes to turn on defense (University of Kentucky)
- Researcher pioneers bacterial infection treatment using novel target: Vesicles (Lehigh University)
- Mechanics of a heartbeat are controlled by molecular strut in heart muscle cells (University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine)
- Temporal cues help keep humans looking human (Duke University)
- Old-growth forests may provide buffer against rising temperatures (Oregon State News)
- Researcher studies how animals puncture things (University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
- Dopamine neurons have a role in movement, new study finds (Princeton University)
- Ties to Alaska’s wild plants (University of Alaska Fairbanks)
Program (Funding) Announcements:
- Dear Colleague Letter: Improving Graduate Student Preparedness for Entering the Workforce, Opportunities for Supplemental Support (NSF 16-067)
- EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Program Track-1: (RII Track-1) (NSF 16-557)
- Dear Colleague Letter: Strengthening Research Capacity at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (NSF 16-080)
Resources:
- Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program (NSF 16-559)

March 31, 2016

Research Highlights from NSF:
Research “News from the Field”:
- Proven one-step process converts CO2 and water directly into liquid hydrocarbon fuels (University of Texas at Arlington)
- What bats reveal about how humans focus attention (Johns Hopkins University)
- Nearly all US forests threatened by drought, climate change (Duke University)
- New device may speed up DNA insertion into bacteria (MIT)
- One rule to grow them all: Single embryonic rule has regulated hominin tooth size (Arizona State University)
- New climate model better predicts changes to ocean-carbon sink (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
- Study predicts salt marshes will persist despite rising seas (Virginia Institute of Marine Science)
- Synchronized leaf aging in the Amazon responsible for seasonal increases in photosynthesis (DOE/Brookhaven National Laboratory)
- New method reveals high similarity between gorilla and human Y chromosome (Pennsylvania State University)
- Scaling up tissue engineering (WIBIE at Harvard University)
- Study shows whales dine with their own kind (MIT)
- UD prof studies how permafrost thawing affects vegetation, carbon cycle (University of Delaware)
- Even plant-supporting soil fungi affected by global warming, UCI study finds (University of California, Irvine)
- New York harbor’s oyster beds once protected against sever storms and extreme wave damage (University of Massachusetts at Amherst)
- How many types of neurons are there in the brain? (The Zuckerman Institute at Columbia University)
- Study offers clearest picture yet of how HIV defeats a cellular defender (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
- Animal-inspired artificial eyes see through the dark (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
- Bats in Asia found to have resistance to white-nose syndrome fungus (University of California, Santa Cruz)
- How stick insects handle indigestive food (Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology)
- Pigeon foot feather genes identified (University of Utah)
- Pregnant T. rex could aid in dino sex-typing (North Carolina State University)
- Adolescent female pandas not the demure homebodies once thought (Mighigan State University)
- Ancient Denisovan DNA excavated in modern Pacific Islanders (University of Washington Health Sciences/UW Medicine)
- For first time, scientists use CRISPR-Cas9 to target RNA in live cells (University of California, San Diego)
- Wetland enhancement in Midwest US could help reduce catastrophic floods of the future (Oregon State University)
- Viruses ‘piggyback’ on host microbes’ success (San Diego State University)
- Future brain therapies for Parkinson’s possible with stem cell bioengineering (Rutgers University)
- Study sheds light on patterns behind brain, heart systems; circadian rhythms (Washington University in St. Louis)
- Potential Zika virus risk estimated for 50 US cities (NCAR/UCAR)
- Discovery shows parallels between plant and human immune systems (Boyce Thompson Institute)
- Stanford scientists develop new technique for imaging cells and tissues under the skin (Stanford University)
- China’s forest recovery shows hope for mitigating global climate change (Michigan State University)
- DNA molecules directly interact with each other based on sequence, study finds (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
- Stanford scientists resurrect an abandoned drug, find it effective against human viruses (Stanford University)
- New class of molecular “lightbulbs” illuminate MRI (Duke University)
- Ancient bones point to shifting grassland species as climate changes (Oregon State University)
Program (funding) Announcements:
- Dear Colleague Letter: NSF INCLUDES (Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science) (NSF 16-048)
  - NSF INCLUDES Web Page
  - NSF INCLUDES Program Summary Page
  - NSF INCLUDES Program Solicitation (NSF 16-544)
  - NSF INCLUDES FAQ (NSF 16-060)
- Dear Colleague Letter: NSF-USDA Joint Funding Opportunity – Early Concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGERs) to Develop and Enable Breakthrough Technologies for Animal and Plant Phenomics and Microbiomes (NSF 16-058)
- Plant-Biotic Interactions Program
  - PBI Program Summary Page
  - PBI Solicitation (NSF 16-551)
- Dear Colleague Letter: Research Opportunities in Europe for NSF CAREER Awardees (NSF 16-052)
- Dear Colleague Letter: Research Opportunities in Europe for NSF Postdoctoral Research Fellows (NSF 16-046)
Resources:
- NCSES InfoBrief: Federally Funded R&D Centers Report Little Growth in R&D Spending in FY 2014 (NSF 16-307)
- Graduate Research Fellowship Program: FAQs for DCL NSF 16-050, Change in Eligibility to the NSF GRFP
- Innovation-Corps (I-Corps) Nodes Program: FAQs for Submission in Year 2016

February 29, 2016

Research Highlights from NSF:
Research “News from the Field”:
- Crouching protein, hidden enzyme (The Scripps Research Institute)
- Novel 4-D printing method blossoms from botanical inspiration (Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard)
- Study shows large variability in abundance of viruses that infect ocean microorganisms (Georgia Institute of Technology)
- Study shows animals with relatively larger brains are best problem-solvers (University of Wyoming)
- What a moth’s nose knows (University of Utah)
- New finding shows that males can drive creation of new species (Michigan State University)
- Scientists decode brain signals nearly at speed of perception (University of Washington Health Sciences/UW Medicine)
- New insights into PI3K pathway and cancer metabolism (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center)
- Too-few proteins prompt nanoparticles to clump (Rice University)
- Microtubules, assemble! (Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences)
- New therapy halts progression of Lou Gehrig’s disease in mice (Oregon State University)
- Why do scientists chase “unicorns?” (Michigan State University)
- Isolated wetlands have significant impact on water quality (Indiana University Bloomington)
- Lithium battery material found to harm key soil microorganism (University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin-Madison)
- Researchers sequence bedbug genome, find unique features (North Carolina State University)
- How gut inflammation sparks colon cancer (Duke University)
- Individuals’ medical histories predicted by their noncoding genomes (Stanford University Medical Center)
- New science helps put spotlight on unseen global impacts (Michigan State University)
- Search technique helps researchers find DNA sequences in minutes rather than days (Carnegie Mellon University)
- UW-Madison engineers create custom tuning knobs to turn off any gene (University of Wisconsin-Madison)
- By switching ‘bait,’ IU biologists trick plants’ bacterial defense into attacking virus (Indiana University)
- Light used to measure the ‘big stretch’ in spider silk proteins (Johns Hopkins Medicine)
- Stem cell gene therapy could be key to treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy (UCLA Health Sciences)
- Ants were socializing–and sparring–nearly 100 million years ago, Rutgers study finds (Rutgers University)
- Fish fins can sense touch (University of Chicago Medical Center)
- Study finds fish larvae are better off in groups (University of Miami)
- On Darwin’s birthday, IU study sheds new light on plant evolution (Indiana University)
- Rare beluga data show whales dive to maximize meals (University of Washington)
- Penn study reveals how fish control microbes through their gills (University of Pennsylvania)
- TAxI shuttles protein cargo into spinal cord (University of Washington Health Sciences/UW Medicine)
- Marine virus outbreaks linked to coral bleaching (Rice University)
- TSRI and JCVI scientists find popular stem cell techniques safe (Scripps Research Institute)
- Researchers discover new Ebola-fighting antibodies in blood of outbreak survivor (Scripps Research Institute)
- What bats reveal about how humans focus attention (Johns Hopkins University)
- Nearly all US forests threatened by drought, climate change (Duke University)
- New device may speed up DNA insertion into bacteria (MIT)
- Study predicts salt marshes will persist despite rising seas (Virginia Institute of Marine Science)
- Synchronized leaf aging in the Amazon responsible for seasonal increases in photosynthesis (DOE/Brookhaven National Laboratory)
Program (funding) announcements:
- Dear Colleague Letter: Zika Virus (NSF 16-043)
- Dear Colleague Letter: National Brain Observatory: A Phased Approach for Developing a National Research Infrastructure for Neuroscience (NSF 16-047)
- Dear Colleague Letter: NSF INCLUDES (Inclusion across the Nation of Communities of Learners of Underrepresented Discoverers in Engineering and Science) (NSF 16-048)
  - NSF INCLUDES Program Summary Page
  - NSF INCLUDES Program Solicitation (NSF 16-544)
- Dear Colleague Letter: I-Corps L – Stimulating Innovation in STEM Education (NSF 16-049)
- Innovation Corps- National Innovation Network Sites Program (I-Corps Sites) Program Solicitation (NSF 16-547)
- Innovation Corps – National Innovation Network Nodes Program (I-Corps Nodes) Program Solicitation (NSF 16-539)
Resources:
- NSF FY17 Budget Request
- NSF FY 2017 Budget Request Fact Sheet
- Science and Engineering Indicators 2016
- Employment Opportunity (BIO/IOS): Permanent Program Director

January 29, 2016

Research Highlights from NSF:
Research “News from the Field”:
- Video: Seeing viruses in a new light (Harvard University SEAS)
- UCR Research Advances Oil Production in Yeast (University of California, Riverside)
- Cool Science (Very Cool) Examines How Ice Storms May Shape the Future of Northern Forests (Forest Service Northern Research Station)
- Evolutionary Clock Ticks for Snowshoe Hares Facing Climate Change (NCSU)
- Darwin’s finches may face extinction (University of Utah)
- New framework sheds light on how, not if, climate change affects cold blooded animals (University of Missouri)
- How bacterial communication ‘goes with the flow’ in causing infection, blockage (Princeton University)
- Poison warmed over: Climate change may hurt animals’ ability to live on toxic plants (University of Utah)
- Conflict among honey bee genes supports theory of altruism (Penn State)
- West Coast study emphasizes challenges faced by marine organisms exposed to global change (University of Washington)
- High-quality bread wheat reference genome sequence on horizon, would help feed world (Kansas State University)
- Simple shell of plant virus sparks immune response against cancer (Case Western Reserve University)
- Acoustic tweezers move cells in three dimensions, build structures (Penn State)
- Crouching protein, hidden enzyme (Scripps Research Institute)
- Study shows animals with larger brains are best problem solvers (University of Wyoming)
- UI biologists find sexuality, not extra chromosomes, benefits animal (University of Iowa)
- Like air traffic, information flows through neuron ‘hubs’ in the brain, finds IU study (Indiana University)
- Study Shows Large Variability in Abundance of Viruses that Infect Ocean Microorganisms (Georgia Tech)
- Penn-engineered neural networks show hope for axonal repair with minimal disruption to brain tissue (UPenn School of Medicine)
- Improving accuracy in genomic mapping with time-series data (University of Minnesota)
- Tiniest chameleons deliver most powerful tongue-lashings (Brown University)
- New methods help advance infectious disease forecasting (NIMBioS)
- CMU develops new method for analyzing synaptic density (Carnegie Mellon University)
- Study reveals deep ties between diverse tropical rainforests (NIMBioS)
- ASU scientists discover how blue and green clays kill bacteria (Arizona State University)
- In rainforests, battle for sunlight shapes forest structure (Princeton University)
- Researchers uncover ‘predictive neuron orchestra’ behind looking and reaching movements (New York University)
- Penguins, food and robots (University of Delaware)
- “Traveling salesman” uncorks synthetic biology bottleneck (Duke University)
- Map shows hotspots for bat-human virus transmission risk (University College London)
- Humans adding less nitrogen to oceans than models predict (Brown University)
- What snapping shrimp sound patterns may tell us about reef ecosystems (North Carolina State University)
- Researchers uncover core set of genes for plant-fungal symbiosis (Boyce Thompson Institute for Plant Research)
- IU study shows first evidence for independent working memory systems in animals (Indiana University)
- Scientists demonstrate basics of nucleic acid computing inside cells (Georgia Tech)
- Remembering to the future: Researchers shed new light on how our memories guide attention (New York University)
- First study of arthropods in US homes finds huge biodiversity (NCSU)
- Ooh that smell: Plants use emissions for self-defense (University of Albany)
Program (funding) announcements:
- No new program announcements
Resources:
- Meeting NSF’s Technical Reporting Requirements (NSF 16-040)
- Prospective New Awardee Guide (NSF 99-78 (.pdf), effective Jan 25, 2016)
- NSF Grants Conference in Portland, Oregon (Feb. 29-March 1, 2016)
December 31, 2015
November 30, 2015
- Research Highlights from NSF:
- Research “News from the Field”:
- Program (funding) announcements:
  - Dear Colleague Letter: Integrated NSF Support Promoting Interdisciplinary Research and Education (INSPIRE) (NSF 16-023)
  - Revised Critical Techniques, Technologies and Methodologies for Advancing Foundations and Applications of Big Data Sciences and Engineering (BIGDATA) solicitation (NSF 16-512)
  - Revised EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement Program: Track-2 Focused EPSCoR Collaborations (RII Track-2 FEC) solicitation (NSF 16-511)
- Resources:
  - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs; NSF 16-021): NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program solicitation (NSF 16-503)
  - Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs; NSF 16-024): Graduate Research Opportunities Worldwide (GROW) and Graduate Research Internship Program (GRIP)
October 31, 2015
September 29, 2015

BIO BUZZ

Blog of the National Science Foundation's Directorate for Biological Sciences, Office of the Assistant Director

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