Research Excellence

Thymus Research Could Unlock Immune System Improvements

March 12, 2025

Photo is a graphic depiction of the thymus gland.

A multimillion-dollar grant from the National Institutes of Health will fund research at UC Merced that could help cancer patients and others live longer, healthier lives. The $3.5 million, five-year grant will fund bioengineering Professor Joel Spencer's lab, which is investigating the...

Bioengineering professor Eva de Alba in her lab with her students and postdoctoral scholar. Students in back row: Pedro Diaz-Parga, Arturo Gonzalez, Suzanne Sandin, Kevin Ramirez and Christopher Randolph. Front Row: Meenakshi Sharma and Eva de Alba.

Bioengineering Faculty Member Studies Inflammation with NIH Grant

Everyone has inflammation in their body at some point as it is a vital part of the immune system. It’s what happens when white blood cells flow to a wound, whether that is a bruise or a broken...

Professor Sarah Kurtz's research in comparing the efficiency of different solar-cell technologies when installed on car roofs could advance efforts to use solar panels on electric cars to recharge their batteries.

Potential of Electric Vehicles Tied to Solar Research

Not spending money on gas, oil changes, and tune-ups and not producing harmful greenhouse gas emissions is enough to sell many people on plug-in electric cars. But many consumers won’t bite...

New Study Shows Patchy Resources Drove Evolutionary Changes to Body Size

Resource allocation isn’t just a problem for humans preparing a holiday dinner, or squirrels storing up nuts for the winter. It can actually affect the size of an animal or whether it...

Engineered Protein Assemblies that Respond to Cues Open Path for Smart, Protein-Based Medicines

Proteins are miniscule machines inside the body, about 10,000 times smaller than the thickness of human hair. They control all the processes of life — like how cells communicate to each other,...

A thin layer of compost is applied to grasslands in the Altamont Hills. This practice of carbon farming has been identified by the state as a pillar of its approach to fighting climate change.

Research Partnership Uses Compost to Tackle Climate Change

A thin layer of compost applied to grasslands could help fight climate change by capturing carbon from the atmosphere and storing it in the soil, recent research shows. UC Merced Professor...

Team Project Protect is developing a mobile app that translates and correctly pronounces medical words to assist younger people in helping their elders communicate better with health-care providers.

Team to Demonstrate Healthy New App at Fall Innovate to Grow Event

It’s a situation familiar to many UC Merced students: Having to translate for parents and other, older relatives who speak little or no English. It can be especially challenging when what...

Materials Science Researcher Honored with CAREER Award

Professor Yue ‘Jessica’ Wang, with the Department of Materials Science and Engineering in the School of Engineering, has received a National Science Foundation CAREER award, the 25th...

Researchers Look to Wetlands to Increase Delta Water Quality

UC Merced Professor Peggy O’Day hopes to improve water quality in the California Delta by studying local wetlands. O’Day is leading a new three-year study of Merced County wetlands...

Water Yield from Forest Thinning Depends on How, Where and How Much

Even a little forest management significantly increases water runoff in the Central Sierra Nevada and other semi-arid regions, while drier forests need more extensive treatments, according to a new...

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