Postdoctoral fellow Jeffrey Groh led a study on the genetic explanation of avocado pollination. All avocado trees are hermaphrodites, but until now, it was unclear how avocado flowers function as female in the morning and male in the afternoon (A-type plants), while B-type plants follow the opposite pattern. Read the full story in UC Davis News.

The American Society for Cell Biology (ASCB) has announced that five MCB faculty are among the ASCB 2026 award winners and fellows. Recipients will receive their awards during the Cell Bio meeting in San Diego, California, in December 2026. 
 

Priya Moorjani, Associate Professor of Genetics, Genomics, Evolution, and Development, and her lab have developed a novel genomic analysis method that identified DNA inherited from two previously unknown ancient human relatives and established a timeline for these interbreeding events, providing new insights into the complexity of human evolution.
 

IB professor Jack Tseng, former IB undergrad Leah Kahn, former visiting postdoctoral scholar Adolfo Pacheco-Castro, and collaborators at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles and the National Autonomous University of Mexico documented fossil evidence indicating that animals from different latitudes of North and South America intermingled before the formation of the Panamanian land bridge, which linked the two continents. Read the full story in Berkeley News.

Led by FAVE Lab NSF/Marie Curie postdoctoral fellow Narimane Chatar, alongside Huelsenbeck Lab PhD student Levi Raskin, former IB visiting scholars Alex Ramos and Melvin Vankelst, and IB professor Jack Tseng, the team published a paper on mammalian dental evolution. Read the full story, featured as the cover article in Science.

Congratulations to PhD student Maya Overton of Herr Lab, winner of Best Poster at the Single Cell Proteomics Conference (SCP2026)!

Phillip Cleves, Assistant Professor of Genetics, Genomics, Evolution, and Development, and his lab used their new state-of-the-art laboratory to uncover clues about how the symbiotic relationship between algae and corals evolved. 

Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Structural Biology, Eva Nogales, was awarded the 2026 Vanderbilt Prize in Biomedical Science. The prize recognizes scientists of national reputation who have a stellar record of research accomplishments and are known for mentoring others in science. Read the full press release from Vanderbilt Health News here. 
 

IB professor Cindy Looy, grad student Jaemin Lee, former doctoral student Dori Contreras, and former undergrad student James Saulsbury reported that Dori's Tuff flora contained large fruits from flowering trees, suggesting that animals were eating larger seeds produced by angiosperms 75 million years ago. Read the full story in Berkeley News.

Congratulations to two postdoctoral scholars in BioE lab who have been named 2026 Jane Coffin Childs Fellows! The charitable fund supports brilliant postdoctoral fellows conducting fundamental research on cancer and human disease. Kevin Aris, PhD, works in Aaron Streets' lab on tools to measure DNA supercoiling in living cells, to build a genome-wide map of DNA shape. Adam Lowet, PhD. works with Michael Yartsev to explore the computational and biological mechanisms underlying social decision-making in the Egyptian fruit bat.

Postdoctoral fellow Narimane Chatar is researching carnivore molars in the lab of IB professor Jack Tseng. Chatar discovers the cranial and mandibular remains of Adelphailurus kansensis and compares them to Smilodon, the most recognizable saber-toothed cat. Read the full story in Berkeley News.