When mitochondria are under attack---from poisons, environmental stress or genetic mutations---cells wrench these power stations apart, strip out the damaged pieces and reassemble them into usable mitochondria. Reuben Shaw's lab has uncovered an unexpected way in which cells trigger this critical response to threats, offering insight into disorders such as mitochondrial disease, cancer, diabetes and neurodegenerative disease----particularly Parkinson's disease. The work appears in Science. 

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Scientists in Joanne Chory's lab have discovered a way by which plants assess the quality of shade to outgrow menacing neighbors, a finding that could be used to improve the productivity of crops. The work, published in Cell, shows how the depletion of blue light detected by molecular sensors in plants triggers accelerated growth to overcome a competing plant.

Glioblastoma multiforme is a particularly deadly cancer. A person diagnosed with this type of brain tumor typically survives 15 months, if given the best care. Inder Verma's lab discovered a key to how these tumor cells proliferate so quickly---and ways to turn this engine of tumor growth into a target for cancer treatment. The paper was published January in the journal Science Advances.

Joseph Ecker and collaborators shed new light on the age-old practice of plant grafting: joining a cut branch from one plant onto the stalk of another to create improved hybrid plants. The team showed that epigenetic information, in the form of tiny molecules called sRNA, is transferred between the two plants and can cause gene silencing in each other. The work appears in PNAS this week.

A gene linked to mental disorders helps lay the foundation for a crucial brain structure during prenatal development, according to research from Dennis O'Leary's lab published in Cell Reports. The findings reveal new mechanistic insights into the gene MDGA1, which may bring a better understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders.

The Salk Institute has named Professor Reuben Shaw as the new director of Salk's National Cancer Institute-designated Cancer Center. Shaw is a member of Salk's Molecular and Cell Biology Laboratory and the holder of the William R. Brody Chair. The Salk Cancer Center was established in 1970 to uncover the fundamental aspects of cancer biology and is just one of seven NCI-designated Basic Research Cancer Centers in the country.

Corina Antal, a Salk research associate in Ronald Evans' lab, has landed on the Forbes "30 under 30" list in science. According to the magazine, the class of 2016 is comprised of "bright entrepreneurs, breakout talents and change agents" in 20 sectors. Antal, 29, recently published her research about a group of proteins that was thought to promote growth in tumors but actually suppresses their growth, which could pave the way to new cancer treatments.

Markus Reinhard is the managing director of the Nomis Foundation, which promotes and funds highly innovative basic research in the natural sciences, social sciences and the humanities. Prior to Nomis, he held several senior executive positions at Baxter International. Known as an innovative global thought leader, Reinhard brings a wealth of business acumen to the Institute.

Haeyoung Kong Tang is a local philanthropist with a background in neuroscience. Apart from her PhD in pharmacology, Dr. Tang has co-written scholarly articles and holds patents related to biology, genetics and neurology. She has been a strong supporter of Salk for the past 10 years and most recently became a member of the Salk Institute Council. Dr. Tang has also served on the board of directors of Voices for Children for six years.

Terry Rosen is the co-founder and CEO of San Francisco-based Arcus Biosciences, a drug discovery company focused on the treatment of cancer by blocking tumor-induced immunosuppression. Prior to founding Arcus, Dr. Rosen was co-founder and CEO of Flexus Biosciences, which was acquired by Bristol-Myers Squibb in February 2015. Dr. Rosen holds numerous patents and has published extensively in the areas of medicinal and synthetic organic chemistry.

Salk neuroscientist Terry Sejnowski and educator Barbara Oakley have created the curriculum for----and teach----the world's most popular online course: an introduction to the art of learning. A survey of the 50 largest online courses released by onlinecoursereport.com revealed that, with 1,192,697 students enrolled since the course was created last year, "Learning How to Learn" bested a more tightly focused online offering, "Machine Learning," by more than 70,000 students.

With its mission to expose school children to genetics and biotechnology, Salk's Education Outreach program recently earned a spot on San Diego Magazine's "26 BIG Ideas" list. Showcased were Education Outreach's mobile science lab and SciChats, the new Skype talks between Salk researchers and students. "We want them to look at science as something they can understand," says Ellen Potter, who runs the program. "That's our real mission."