Clues to Dwarfism
By studying protein activity in the plasma membrane that surrounds human cells, Kalina Hristova hopes to crack the mystery of how a tiny DNA error leads to dwarfism.

Hristova, an associate professor of biomedical engineering, and her lab have developed tools and techniques that allow them to photograph and measure how proteins behave in cell membranes. The team’s goal: To generate exact numbers that will yield clues as to how a protein causes the cells to take a wrong turn.

Crystal Ball Gazing
Based on interviews with top researchers, medicine is on the verge of redefinition by advances in nano-scale engineering, according to The Wall Street Journal.

And WSE’s David Gracias is among those leading the charge, says NIH director Francis Collins, who praised the work of Gracias, an associate professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering.

“The drug-delivery devices are small enough to fit through a hypodermic needle, thereby facilitating minimally invasive implantation and guidance in hard-to-reach places,” Collins told The Wall Street Journal.