Biological Sciences

Unraveling Cancer’s Neural Connections: NIH-Funded Study Investigates How Stem Cell Regulation Influences Tissue Renewal, Cancer Development

November 3, 2025

The same cellular renewal that keeps our bodies healthy might also fuel the growth of cancer. A UC Merced biologist has found that the brain could hold the key to stopping it. Professor Néstor Oviedo, a molecular and cell biologist and affiliate of the Health Sciences Research Institute,...

Researchers Reverse Bacterial Resistance to Antibiotics

The rise of antibiotic-resistant bacteria is a growing problem in the United States and the world. New findings by researchers in evolutionary biology and mathematics could help doctors better...

Mentoring Program Empowers Student Leaders

For senior Jessica Nguyen, UC Merced has fueled more than academic preparedness — it has sparked her fervent interest in civic leadership. Nguyen has been involved in the Women’s Program’s Lift While...

Mapping Genomes of Pine Bacteria Yields Unexpected Results

UC Merced Professor Carolin Frank is helping figure out how a certain bacteria helps promote healthy tree growth by studying the bacteria’s genome sequence. In the new paper, published in the open-...

Campus Celebrates UC Natural Reserve System on Protected Lands

Research, teaching and public outreach were all on display today at UC Merced’s celebration of the University of California Natural Reserve System’s 50th anniversary. The inaugural celebration of the...

Three Students Chosen to Further Carbon Neutrality Efforts

Three UC Merced undergraduates are the recipients of a new fellowship under University of California President Janet Napolitano’s Carbon Neutrality Initiative. Through the President’s Sustainability...

Research Shows Increased Risk of Toxoplasmosis

A third of all humans carry the parasite that causes toxoplasmosis — a disease commonly associated with cats, HIV-AIDS patients and pregnant women — with scientists long believing healthy immune...

Students' Spanish Skills Aid Valley Crisis Center

In the fall semester, UC Merced Senior Lecturer Virginia Adán-Lifante offered extra credit to students who volunteered to translate a portion of the Valley Crisis Center website into Spanish. The...

Unprecedented Melanoma Study Maps Cancer Drivers

Researchers at the University of California, Merced, have completed a comprehensive map of the genetic makeup of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer. By comparing the genomes of more than 300...

Researchers Delve into Valley Fever from All Angles

Note: This story originally appeared in the Fall 2014 issue of UC Merced Magazine. Before it infects humans who breathe it in, the fungus that causes valley fever changes shapes in the environment....