UC Irvine mathematicians, Princeton ecologist publish intriguing stem cell findings in PNAS

Just as humans decide how much of their wealth to spend versus passing it on to their children, stem cells may divide and re-create based on whether it’s more important for them to conserve their genetic identity or pass along a portion of other, nongenetic information to the next generation, according to a paper published today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Lead study authors Adam Thomas (right) and Paulus Bauer (left) hold a brake rotor and caliper next to the lathe they and their UCI team used to measure car brake emissions.

UC Irvine study: vehicle brakes produce charged particles that may harm public health

The work could help efforts to contain an important source of air pollution

Butterfly on a branch.

UC Irvine biologists find what colors a butterfly’s world

Study identifies first known gene change in sex-differentiated vision

Photo of research team in cave.

UC Irvine-led study links ice sheet retreat with autumnal monsoons in central Vietnam

Stalagmites used to characterize precipitation over tens of thousands of years

Photograph of a wildfire in the mountains above Orange County, California.

Human-caused climate change to blame for increase in California’s wildfires

Study by UC Irvine, other universities points to growth in burn area through 2050

UCI, NASA JPL researchers discover a cause of rapid ice melting in Greenland

Study suggests extent of future sea level rise could be vastly underestimated

Scientists discover a way Earth’s atmosphere cleans itself

UC Irvine chemist helped shed light on the formation of an air-clearing molecule

UC Irvine researchers create E. coli-based water monitoring technology

Bacterium used as a live sensor to detect heavy metal contamination

Solving algorithm ‘amnesia’ reveals clues to how we learn

Finding by UCI biologists could help combat cognitive impairments

Image of mouse and pie charts.

New UCI-led study finds links between circadian rhythms, metabolism and addiction

Findings reveal possible role for peripheral organs in substance use disorders