News
Brendan Kosztyo Receives 2026 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Honorable Mention
Brendan Kosztyo of the Wunderlich Lab received an honorable mention from the 2026 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP).
Brendan recently joined the Wunderlich Lab, which studies how shadow enhancers in Drosophila confer robustness to gene expression in developmental and immune processes. Shadow enhancers are cis-regulatory elements that control expression of the same gene and are required to drive normal development,buffering against the effects of mutations and environmental stress. Currently, Brendan is using computational analysis to study how perturbations to transcription factors and their corresponding binding sites in shadow enhancers affect gene expression in development. One particularly sensitive process is craniofacial development. Brendan aims to investigate how epigenetic factors contribute to the patterning and migration of neural crest cells during craniofacial development.
Congratulations, Brendan!
So Young Bae Receives 2026 Marion R. Kramer Scholarship
So Young Bae of the Tolan Lab recently received the Department of Biology's 2026 Dr. Marion R. Kramer Scholarship. This award provides support for high-achieving women and female students in Biology. The award was established in 2001 in honor of Dr. Marion Kramer who earned her Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Boston University in 1963 and went on to a long and satisfying career in biology and medicine.
So Young investigates the molecular mechanisms that govern enzyme function and protein–ligand interactions. She is part of a new generation of structural biologists reshaping how we understand the molecular machinery of life. She focuses on the hidden choreography of enzymes—how they shift, flex, and adapt as they interact with small molecules. Her work blends X-ray crystallography, enzyme kinetics, and emerging time-resolved techniques to capture proteins in motion, revealing details that are essential for drug discovery and metabolic research.
So Young has contributed nearly one hundred solved enzyme–small-molecule structures through an industry-collaborative drug discovery project, advancing structure-guided design and deepening understanding of structure–activity relationships. Her research this summer, funded by the Kramer Award, will focus on resolving some key aspects of the catalytic mechanism of ketohexokinase, a key enzyme in fructose metabolism and a drug target with implications for helping solve some of the world’s most prevalent chronic diseases of obesity, liver disease, and type-2 diabetes.
She continues to push structural biology forward, driven by curiosity, precision, and a belief that understanding proteins at their most fundamental level can unlock solutions to some of the most pervasive diseases.
Congratulations, So Young!
Tommy Taslim Recieves 2026 Charles Terner Award
Tommy Henry Taslim, a fifth-year PhD student in the Fuxman Bass Lab, recently received the Department of Biology's 2026 Charles Terner Award.
The Fuxman Bass Lab studies the regulatory crosstalk between viruses and human host cells. Tommy’s project is focused on investigating how retroviruses and double-stranded DNA viruses encode cis-regulatory elements that control transcription and mediate interactions with host transcription factors. Specifically, he has been using massively parallel reporter assays (MPRAs) across multiple human cell lines combined with saturation mutagenesis to systematically map and quantify viral cis-regulatory element activity at nucleotide resolution.
This award provides support for a CM or MCBB PhD candidate who has completed the qualifying exam and who has made significant contributions to their field. Charles Terner was a Professor of Biology at Boston University for over 20 years before he retired in 1985. Dr. Terner specialized in biochemistry and focused his research on the metabolic properties of male reproductive cells. The award was established in his memory after he passed away in 1998.
Congratulations, Tommy!
Jeff Marlow Featured in the Brink
Jefferey Marlow was featured in The Brink for having been selected for the 2026-2028 cohort of the New Voices of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The leadership program, established by the National Academies' of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, intends to promote interdisciplinary collaboration among exceptional STEM scholars.
The aim for this program is the development of "a network of U.S. leaders to address national and global challenges." Marlow and 19 other mid-career STEM professionals were selected to, over the course of a two-year term, participate in "consensus and convening activities, develop their own interdisciplinary projects, and continue building a robust network of emerging STEM leaders across the U.S. and around the world."
Marlow and his lab study microbial communities in inhospitable environments, including their influence on these extreme ecosystems through methods such as climate regulation and nutrient recycling. His research is relevant in regards to extraterrestrial life, as well as addressing the ever-present threat of climate change.
Building relationships with other scientists is a core aspect of the program. Honorees have the opportunity to exchange expertise and discover possibilities they may have not considered for the application of their own research. Marlow told The Brink, "It’s important for scientists to think beyond our individual labs and consider the broader picture of how research gets done, and how our findings reverberate through society."
Read the article here.
Congratulations, Jeff!
Megan Hopton Wins Best Presenter and Abstract Achievement Award at Gordon Research Seminar and Conference
Megan Hopton of the Hao Lab recently attended the Gordon Research Seminar (GRS) and Gordon Research Conference (GRC) on Plasminogen Activation and Extracellular Proteolysis. She won the Best Presenter Award in the GRS and the Abstract Achievement Award in the GRC.
The GRC is a discussion based event where a global network of scientists present prepublication research surrounding technologies of biology, chemistry, physics, and engineering. The GRS is held just before the GRC, and invites graduate and post-doctoral students to participate within this interactive forum. Hopton's exceptional abstract and presentation earned her the opportunity to present at the GRC as well, a competitive feat for trainees. This year's theme was "Training, Techniques, and Translation in Fibrinolysis and Proteolysis."
Megan's research focuses on engineering disease-responsive biosensors and point-of-care diagnostic technologies. She contributed to the development of a high-throughput screening platform to identify short peptide substrates that are conditionally cleaved by disease-associated proteases. These protease-responsive linkers can be integrated into a wide range of clinical tools, enabling minimally invasive diagnostics and therapeutics that activate selectively in disease contexts. She aims to leverage this platform to create responsive biosensors for both infectious and noncommunicable diseases.
Congratulations, Megan!
Meg Younger and Jeffrey Marlow selected as 2026 Frontiers of Science Fellows
Dr. Meg Younger and Dr. Jeffrey Marlow were selected by the National Academy of Sciences as 2026 Frontiers of Science (FoS) Fellows. The National Academy of Sciences recognized 81 young researchers in variety of professional fields such as industry, academia, and government. Fellows are aged 45 or younger, already making an impact across a number of disciplines, often having already received awards for their contributions to science. Fellows will also participate in a Frontiers of Science symposia.
Dr. Marlow researches microbial communities within their surrounding, often extreme environments. His lab's work is relevant to astrobiology, but also has major potential applications on our planet Earth, such as in utilizing a better understanding the formation and consumption of greenhouse gases. In addition to being a FoS fellow, he has been named a National Geographic Emerging Explorer, Scialog Fellow, and an Explorers Club Rolex Explorer. Marlow also founded the Ad Astra Academy to bring science exploration and materials to under-resourced students.
Dr. Younger researches mosquito olfaction in order to investigate how mosquitoes use their sense of smell to find humans. Her lab develops strategies to uncover how mosquitoes process scent information. Younger's research aims to aid in the prevention of disease transmission via mosquito bites. Younger has also earned previous awards such as the NIH Director's New Innovator Award, the Smith Family Award for Excellence in Biomedical Research, and the Wellcome discovery Award, just to name a few.
Dr. Younger and Dr. Marlow will be participating in the U.S. symposium taking place in Irvine, California from March 5-7.
Congratulations Meg and Jeff!
Miguel Jimenez Featured in The Brink
Dr. Miguel Jimenez was featured in The Brink for developing sensory devices integrating synthetic biology and microelectronics. His aim is to engineer cells to be biological sensors that monitor conditions in environments like soil or the human body.
In his lab, el Microbial Integration Group (elMIG), Jimenez recruits from a variety of specialties, including biomedical, material science, and electrical engineering. Together, his team develops monitoring devices that minimize time and cost in how we track conditions today, which is typically by sending samples to a lab.
These monitoring devices work by using cells that emit light when in the presence of some environmental condition, and wirelessly sending that data to a computer. A current challenge in this endeavor is keeping the electrical and cellular components of these sensors stable outside of laboratory conditions.
Jimenez's work has applications in agriculture and human health. Small and numerously spread sensors can measure soil and help farmer's decide which plants to put more resources towards. In humans, monitoring devices could lessen the frequency of blood drawls.
"In 10-20 years, the dream is really to have many examples of these sensors available for monitoring our world in ways we can't do now because the machines to do it today are the size of a refrigerator, and we're trying to make it the size of a blueberry," he tells The Brink.
Read and watch a video about Jimenez's work here.
Meg Younger Featured in the Brink
Dr. Meg Younger was featured in The Brink alongside BU School of Public Health (SPH) Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, Dr. Julia Bond, for being awarded with the National Institute of Health's (NIH) Director's New Innovator Award. Meant to support "early career investigators of exceptional creativity who propose bold and highly innovative research projects," the award funds research with $450,000 annually for five years.
Dr. Younger will use the funding to strengthen her research on mosquito olfaction, particularly investigating how mosquitoes use their sense of smell to find humans. In her interview with The Brink, Younger describes her lab's investigation of strategies to uncover how mosquitoes process scent information. Younger hopes her research can advance the prevention of disease transmission via mosquito bites.
Read more about The Brink's interview with Younger here.
Congratulations, Meg!
Anne Curtis Receives Neurophotonics T32 Fellowship
Anne Curtis of the Chantranupong Lab recently received a Neurophotonics T32 Fellowship. Recipients of this fellowship are expected to continue to complete all the requirements of the NPC Research Training Program, including taking a leadership role in an NPC Committee and/or assisting with future bootcamps.
Anne is studying neuromelanin, a byproduct of dopamine metabolism, to investigate the function of this pigment and how it influences vulnerability during Parkinson’s Disease. She is modelling this in a midbrain organoid system. Furthermore, she plans to utilize Interference Differential Absorbance Confocal (IDAC) microscopy, developed by the Mertz Lab, to track neuromelanin with improved resolution.
Read the full announcement here.
Congratulations, Anne!
Lily Fenton Accepted into NSF Graduate Research Traineeship Program in Biological Feedback Control
Lily Fenton of the Dunlop Lab was accepted as a trainee in the NSF Graduate Research Traineeship Program in Biological Feedback Control for the 2025-2026 academic year. This program is an NSF funded research traineeship combining the study of the engineering principles in feedback control with investigations of how biological systems self-regulate, adapt, heal and evolve. The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) program seeks to provide effective training of STEM graduate students in high priority interdisciplinary or convergent research areas. Selected students participate in an industry internship, professional development events, and a co-mentored dissertation project in a breadth of topic areas including molecular level control algorithms, microbial feedback control systems, control of tissues homeostasis and regeneration, biohybrid and bioinspired engineered systems.
Lily is investigating methods of optogenetic post-translational control in E. coli. Her current project involves exploring different molecular methods to successfully engineer a light-switchable protease to degrade proteins of interest. She hopes to apply this system of post-translational control to a variety of biologically-relevant proteins, such as those involved in bioproduction.
Congratulations, Lily!