Teaching Biology in the Twenty-First Century

As researchers have learned to manipulate the genetic code with ever-greater facility, the trickle of data from biology experiments has turned into a flood. UC Berkeley Professor of Genetics and Development Jasper Rine has had a front row seat to this revolution during his thirty-year career as a professional scientist. He now aims to train scientists of the twenty-first century how to channel in the information overflow in more productive ways.

The Protein Machine

Jamie Cate, associate professor in the Department of Molecular & Cell Biology, is among the leaders in the effort to map one of the cell's most critical structures: the protein factory of the ribosome. Since its discovery in the 1950s, the ribosome has largely rebuffed scientists' attempts to study its structure in detail. What it looked like, and therefore how its parts operated, remained in frustratingly soft focus. Cate's work has provided some of the clearest images of the ribosome to date, and could lead to designs for new generations of antibiotics.

Self-Tuning Genes

Rachel Brem, UC Berkeley professor of genetics and development, studies genes that are able to modulate their own production. Her discoveries could be useful in tracking down mutations responsible for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, schizophrenia, and other disorders controlled by multiple genes.

James Rine seeks to help scientists of the 21st century sort through the avalanche of genetic research data throughout their career trajectories ... starting with the University's venerable biology course, Bio1A.