School of Natural Sciences

Researchers Rebuild Microscopic Circadian Clock That Can Control Genes

February 10, 2026

Blue-green algae in flasks are used by researchers at UC Merced and UC San Diego to further the understanding of circadian clocks. Image courtesy of UC San Diego.

Our circadian clocks play a crucial role in our health and well-being, keeping our 24-hour biological cycles in sync with light and dark exposure. Disruptions in the rhythms of these clocks, as with jet lag and daylight saving time, can throw our daily rhythms out of whack. But a group of...

Leafhopper Insects Enlighten Researchers About Complex Bacterial Relationships

All complex life evolves in alliance with, in defense of or in reaction to bacteria. A new paper by UC Merced Professor Gordon Bennett demonstrates one of the novel ways the relationship can...

Researcher Takes First Step Toward Improved Diagnosis for Valley Fever

Clinicians searching for a new way to identify Valley fever patients who will develop the disease’s worst symptoms will find hope in a new paper by UC Merced Professor Katrina Hoyer . A...

Six graduate students landed spots at Idaho National Laboratory through the National GEM Consortium (From left: Jordan Galloway, Denise Owusu, Stephanie Jones, Diana Perales, Terrence Buck (program manager), Malik Hayes, Jorge Ramirez.) Photo courtesy of Idaho National Laboratory.

Graduate Student Spends Summer as GEM Fellow at Idaho National Lab

As a graduate student at UC Merced, Jordan Galloway looks for ways to push himself forward and lead by example. The third-year Chemistry and Chemical Biology student forged a new path...

New Consortium Seeks to Expose Students to a Galaxy of Opportunities

Imagine exploring the cores of stars to understand — and ultimately control — the type of fusion that’s taking place. High-energy density (HED) science is the study of properties...

CAREER Award Will Help Professor Advance Organic Chemistry Education

Chemistry and chemical biology Professor Ryan Baxter recently became the campus’s 22nd recipient of the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) prestigious early CAREER awards for untenured...

The Poetry of Science Sparks International Collaboration

Writing poetry can lead to increased innovation in science, according to a new article in BioScience that came about because of a Twitter connection between UC Merced and Swansea University in...

Emergence, Extinction of Massive Ancient Shark to be Explored with NSF Grant

Forty million years after dinosaurs went extinct, one of the largest predators that ever prowled Earth’s oceans emerged, feeding the imaginations of modern scientists and the nightmares of...

UC Merced Professors Honored for Work with First-Generation Students

UC Merced psychology Professor Anna Song and biology Professor Jennifer Manilay had a special dinner with UC President Janet Napolitano at her Oakland home recently to honor the faculty...

NSF Grant Helps Professor Connect Evolutionary Dots along the Open Tree of Life

UC Merced life and environmental sciences Professor Emily Jane McTavish and a collaborator at the University of Kansas recently received a $1.4 million grant from the National Science Foundation (...