Bioengineer Emma Berman is one of four finalists for the 2026 University Medal, Berkeley's highest honor for a graduating senior who has achieved academic excellence while making a positive impact on others.

The MCB Department is pleased to welcome ​​​​​​​Michael Ward, Professor of Molecular Therapeutics, as our newest faculty member effective July 1, 2026. Dr. Ward is an internationally recognized scientist and physician with expertise in age-related neurodegenerative disorders. Read more about Dr. Ward's research and appointment to UC Berkeley here.   

 

Congratulations to our faculty who received the departmental 2026 MCB Outstanding Faculty Awards!

Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology Nicholas Ingolia – Outstanding Contribution to Teaching

Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology Kunxin Luo – Outstanding Contribution to Service

Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology, Rebecca Heald, has been elected to serve as the American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) President in 2028. In her new role, Heald's priorities include "advancing dynamic, interdisciplinary scientific programming; expanding career development and mentoring opportunities; and reinforcing ASCB’s commitment to broadening participation in the life sciences." Read the ASCB press release to learn more here. 

Professor Rasmus Nielsen is a winner of the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship this year. His laboratory works on the development and application of statistical and computational methods for analyzing genomic data in the context of evolutionary genetics, population genetics and medical genetics. Read the announcement in the Berkeley News.

Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology, Gary Karpen and Professor of Immunology and Molecular Medicine, Russell Vance are among six UC Berkeley faculty newly elected to the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). NAS members are selected in recognition of their distinguished and continuing achievements in original research.

the Ontogen Medtech Biomedical Innovation Scholarship is intended to support promising biomedical engineering students who are passionate about building real-world medical devices and contributing to patient impact—especially students pursuing hands-on product development, manufacturing, and commercialization pathways. Applications due August 31

We are very proud to announce that fifteen Berkeley Bioengineers are receiving NSF Graduate Research Fellowships this year – one of the most competitive and prestigious awards for early-career PhD students. Congratulations to graduating seniors Esha Ananth, Emilie Petit and Christopher Zavala; recent BS alumni Sina Ghandian ’21, Pamela Herrera ’25, Cassandra Reyes ’24, Hanen…

PhD student James Pai, a member of Iain Clark's lab, is one of only 30 outstanding graduate students in the US who received a 2026 Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans. The Soros Fellowship is a highly competitive award for immigrants and children of immigrants who are poised to make significant contributions to American society.

Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology, Andreas Martin, has received the 2026 Dorothy Crowfoot Hodgkin Award from The Protein Society. This award, sponsored by the Rigaku Corporation, honors outstanding achievements in protein science that significantly advance our understanding of biological systems. Read more about the 2026 Protein Society Award recipients here. 
 

Professor Michael Yartsev has been named to the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation’s 101st Class of Fellows for his trailblazing work in neuroscience and neuroengineering. One of the country's most prestigious awards, fellowships are given to innovators in a wide range of disciplines with a monetary stipend allowing them to pursue independent work at the highest level under “the freest possible conditions.”

The photograph on the April 2 cover of Science magazine features an image of an octopus mating captured by the late Roy Caldwell, professor emeritus of integrative biology at the University of California (UC), Berkeley. Read the tribute to Professor Caldwell in Science, contributed by Robert Full, Eileen A. Lacey, Tony Morelli, and Michael Caldwell. 

UC Berkeley News: One-of-a-kind experiment tracked plant evolution in response to climate change at 30 sites worldwide: Moisés Expósito-Alonso with the two lead authors of the new study, Tatiana Bellagio and Xing Wu (holding a tray of Arabidopsis seedlings).

UC Berkeley News: Sunbirds suck, scientists find. Hummingbirds don't: “It’s just a really amazing example of the power and beauty of convergent evolution, where in nature we have two organisms filling the same ecological role, but when you look in detail, they’re achieving that outcome in two completely different ways,” said Rauri Bowie, UC Berkeley professor of integrative biology and a study author.

Congratulations to all of our 2026 Grad Slam finalists! Nadja Michelle Maldonada Luna took 3rd place at UCSF on April 7, and Kavita Parekh and Grace Hu competed at Berkeley on April 8, with Kavita winning the People’s Choice prize. Amazing work showcasing a passion for their research!

Congratulations to Bioengineering Department Manager Janna Conway-Hamilton, recipient of a 2026 UC Berkeley Excellence in Management Award. This year’s theme, “Leading Through Uncertainty: Vision, Resilience, and Mission-Driven Leadership,” highlights managers who foster environments of steadiness and courage. Congratulations Janna!

Maro, Corl and Dudley published a paper in the journal Royal Society Open Science, coauthored with their Berkeley colleagues, Rauri Bowie and Jimmy McGuire, both professors of integrative biology and curators in the campus’s Museum of Vertebrate Zoology. Check it out on UC Berkeley News.

We sadly announce that MCB Professor Emeritus Fred Wilt died on January 30, 2026, at the age of 91, after 62 years on the faculty at UC Berkeley. Fred was born December 12, 1934, in Nappanee, Indiana. Some of Fred’s ancestors had come to this continent well before the American Revolution, while others came from Germany in the 19th century. Fred was a third generation (or so) Hoosier. His father and maternal grandmother ran the Huffman Bakery in Nappanee, where Fred also worked as a youth. Notwithstanding this artisanal background, academics also ran strong in the Wilt family. Fred’s younger brother Alan F. Wilt was a distinguished World War II historian at the University of Iowa, and after moving to Arizona, their father Lisle taught at Arizona State University.

Professor of Cell Biology, Development and Physiology Abby Dernburg, Professor Emeritus of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology Edward Penhoet and Professor of Genetics, Genomics, Evolution, and Development Noah Whiteman have been elected as 2025 Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). 
 

Sarahi Arriaga Ramirez is an associate specialist at the Ornithopterus Organismal Dynamics Lab in IB. In collaboration with the Morphing Matter Lab, Arriaga Ramirez led a study on phantom crane flies and robotics that was recently featured in Science News. She presented her findings at the Global Physics Summit in Denver on March 17.