Recent News

U-M researchers have mapped the circuit that controls cough in mice — a model organism that was not previously known to exhibit this behavior.

LSI researchers  have determined how the final machine in a biological assembly line completes the production of an important group of antibiotics, opening the door the door to tinkering with the machinery to produce new antibiotics. 

A structural biologist at the University of Michigan Life Sciences Institute aims to unlock the therapeutic potential of one subtype of ion channels, with support from the Klatskin-Sutker Discovery Fund.

Assistant Professor Herman Fung discusses the development of his scientific career and plans for his new lab at U-M.

LSI researchers have developed a chemical tool to detect how signaling molecules travel within the brain to reach and interact with GPCRs. The tool can detect molecules across brain regions without sacrificing spatial resolution.

A new study from the LSI reveals how macrophages may be driving, rather than combatting, liver disease in mice.

LSI researchers have identified the protein that enables mammals to sense cold, filling a long-standing knowledge gap in the field of sensory biology. 

A team of U-M researchers has successfully modified a naturally occurring chemical compound in the lab, resulting in advanced lead compounds with anti-HIV activity.

"Voices of the LSI" is a regular column on the LSI’s work to cultivate a diverse, equitable and inclusive climate. Savannah Williams describes her own journey as a scientist, her motivation for becoming the LSI's first director of outreach and community engagement, and her plans for this new role.

The recently FDA-approved TAK-755 treatment for a rare but potentially lethal blood disorder arose from a fundamental biological question that piqued the interest of scientist in the Ginsburg lab at U-M.

Thirteen postdoctoral researchers are initiating novel, crossdisciplinary projects at U-M, with support from the Michigan Pioneer Fellows program.

Researchers accurately recapitulated a model of one type of epilepsy in a mammalian model organism, opening the door to understanding and targeting the mechanisms that lead to the disorder and its associated fatalities.

LSI scientists have discovered how millimeter-long roundworms sense sound waves without ears, revealing similarities in sound-sensing mechanisms found in other species, from worms to mammals.

LSI faculty member Shyamal Mosalaganti is developing a novel approach to investigate neurodegeneration from a structural perspective with a new award from the LSI’s Klatskin-Sutker Discovery Fund. 

Researchers have discovered how the pieces of one molecular machine inside bacteria fit together, improving scientists’ abilities to recreate this well-evolved machine in the lab.

Scientists have discovered a new pathway that ferries cellular proteins to the cell-to-cell connections that allow neurons to communicate with one another. 

LSI researchers have demonstrated how an extra copy of a gene that is triplicated in human Down syndrome patients contributes to neuronal dysfunction in mice. 

University of Michigan faculty member Vivian Cheung, M.D., is launching an international project to identify the full range of RNA building blocks inside human cells.

"Voices of the LSI" is a quarterly column on the LSI’s work to cultivate a diverse, equitable and inclusive climate. In this column, graduate student Lauren Hart discusses the need for community connections and expanding our definition of 'community.' 

A team from the LSI has developed a new software tool to help researchers across the life sciences more efficiently analyze animal behaviors. The open-source software capitalizes on artificial intelligence to identify, categorize and count defined behaviors across various animal model systems.

New research from the lab of Peng Li, Ph.D., has uncovered the neural circuit in mice that activates sighing in response to low oxygen levels.

The LSI's newest faculty member, biomedical engineer Connie Wu, Ph.D., will explore new technologies to improve both diagnostic and drug-delivery tools, with clinical and basic research applications. Wu represents the LSI's first joint recruitment with the College of Engineering.

A collaboration between two LSI labs has resulted in a new research tool for manipulating when and where cellular functions are activated, using the power of peptides.

A team of researchers from the University of Michigan and University of Utah has developed a new method for optimizing the tools that nature uses to build chemical compounds.