guest post by Hermann Haller, M.D., president of MDI Biological Laboratory
All my life I have been interested in studying the complications of diabetes. Diabetes has two sides: on the one hand it is a metabolic disorder that effects glucose levels, and the metabolism is treated by medications that lower glucose. On the other hand, over time diabetes leads to damaging changes in the vascular bed,…
Read MoreIf there is a threat with the potential to overwhelm the health care system on a scale comparable to that of COVID-19, it is Alzheimer’s disease. We are on the brink of an epidemic of this deadly disease: the number of people with Alzheimer’s is expected to more than double by 2050, from 6 million…
Read MoreIt’s hard to believe that we’re once again approaching a new season — when fall’s bright colors fade to usher in the inevitable Maine winter. During this tumultuous year, nature has had a calming influence on me. It’s reassuring to know that time and the seasons march determinedly forward, regardless of circumstance. And so…
Read MoreOriginal artwork completed by eco-artist Mariah Reading during MDI Biological Laboratory’s From Debris to Art project, is now on display at the Maine Center for Biomedical Innovation. While the campus remains closed to the public for COVID-19 safety precautions, the exhibition can be viewed in a virtual gallery on our project website. As soon as…
Read MoreTranscriptome-profiling is the primary means by which researchers characterize what is happening at the molecular level. When a transcriptome profile is generated for a sample, it tells us which genes are active (being expressed) and at what amount. Comparing profiles among samples allows us to identify genes, and importantly the biological processes that are varying…
Read More“MDI Biological Laboratory has enriched our lives — our daughter’s medical career started here doing kidney research as a high school student, then as a college student. We want to be part of the discoveries that will improve people’s lives for generations to come.” Don and Heather Parker’s (pictured right) journey with MDI Biological Laboratory…
Read MoreNature Links for Lifelong Learning is a Blue Hill-based nonprofit offering continuing education opportunities for young adults with intellectual disabilities. For one of their classes, students took part in this year’s Art Meets Science project, “From Debris to Art,” with the help of their teacher Maddy Johnson. This post is slightly adapted from a piece…
Read MorePart three of a guest blog series by Joel Graber, Ph.D., director of MDI Biological Laboratory's Computational Biology and Bioinformatics Core.
(Read part one or part two of the series.) For this entry into our ongoing discussion of the MDI Biological Laboratory Computational Biology Core, I want to take a step back and, rather than talk about the specifics of the science, instead talk about who we are, what we do, and why it is so…
Read Moreguest post by Liz List, art teacher at South Carolina School for the Blind
“From Debris to Art” was a program created through MDIBL’s Art Meets Science initiative and made possible by the generous support of the Onion Foundation. The project encourages participants to collect marine debris, log their observations and actively engage their creativity to create a unique piece of personal artwork. You can read more about the…
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