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Bioengineering

New class of encrypted peptides offer hope in fight against antibiotic resistance
Microscopic view of a string of amino acids.

Image: iStock/Christoph Burgstedt

New class of encrypted peptides offer hope in fight against antibiotic resistance

New research by César de la Fuente finds that nearly 90% of peptides discovered exhibit significant antimicrobial properties, particularly through the disruption of bacterial membranes.

From Penn Medicine News

Penn’s Gilliam Fellows bridge inclusion and innovation
Brianna Hill-Payne and Sam Preza.

Penn’s Gilliam Fellows Brianna Hill-Payne (left) and Sam Preza.

(Image: Courtesy of Penn Medicine News)

Penn’s Gilliam Fellows bridge inclusion and innovation

Two Ph.D. students are among 50 graduate students selected to receive this year’s Howard Hughes Medical Institute Gilliam Fellowship, which advances equity and inclusion in science through a mentorship skills development course.

From Penn Medicine News

Liquid crystals in motion mimic biological systems
Various undulating shapes of crystals.

Under the right conditions, liquid crystals form structures reminiscent of biological systems, shown in actual (left) and false color (right), with the filaments in light blue and the flattened discs in yellow.

(Image: Christopher Browne)

Liquid crystals in motion mimic biological systems

Researchers in the lab of Chinedum Osuji have discovered that under the right conditions, liquid crystals form structures reminiscent of biological systems that can transport material from one place to another, much like complex biological systems.

Ian Scheffler

Uncovering new antibiotics inside the human gut
Microscopic rendering of bacterial in the small intestines.

Image: iStock/ChrisChrisW

Uncovering new antibiotics inside the human gut

Researchers from Penn Engineering, led by César de la Fuente, have leveraged AI to discover dozens of potential new antibiotics in the human gut microbiome.

Ian Scheffler

Building solutions for brain disorders
Flavia Vitale holding a vial with a gloved hand.

Flavia Vitale is an associate professor in bioengineering in Penn Engineering and in neurology in Penn Medicine.

(Image: Melissa Pappas)

Building solutions for brain disorders

Penn Engineering’s Flavia Vitale’s work developing devices that help people living with brain disorders has earned her a CAREER award, which will support her lab’s research in materials and devices that interface with different chemical and electrical signals inside the brain.

Melissa Pappas

Shedding light on cellular metabolism to fight disease
Yihui Shen.

Yihui Shen is the J. Peter and Geri Skirkanich Assistant Professor of Innovation in Bioengineering in the School of Engineering and Applied Science.

(Image: Courtesy of Penn Engineering Today)

Shedding light on cellular metabolism to fight disease

In Yihui Shen’s lab, the assistant professor of innovation in bioengineering, aims to advance the understanding of metabolism and open doors to new cancer treatments and therapies.

From Penn Engineering Today