Media Center

18-Jun-2020
Press Release

Biology in Art: Genetic Detectives ID Microbes Suspected of Slowly Ruining Humanity’s Treasures

DNA science may help restore, preserve historic works, unmask counterfeits

The trait elite baseball hitters share with Leonardo da Vinci: A “quick eye” with higher “frames per second.” A function of training, genetics, or both?

26-May-2020
Press Release

Maintaining a Healthy Upper Respiratory Tract Microbiome May Help Prevent Secondary Infections in Influenza A Patients

An influenza-impacted upper respiratory tract microbiome may invite opportunistic bacterial pathogens

12-Mar-2020
Collaborator Release

LJI Scientists Identify Potential Targets for Immune Responses to Novel Coronavirus

The research, which includes comparative genomics analysis by JCVI scientists Yun Zhang and Richard Scheuermann, provides essential information about the human immune response to coronavirus infection that will guide the design and evaluation of diagnostics and vaccine candidates

03-Mar-2020
Collaborator Release

Presence of Staph Bacteria in Skin Microbiome Promotes Netherton Syndrome Inflammation

The research, which includes work by JCVI scientists Drishti Kaul and Christopher Dupont, provides one of the most detailed genomic descriptions to date of the skin microbiome

19-Feb-2020
Collaborator Release

Bacteria on the International Space Station no more dangerous than earthbound strains

Microbes that likely colonized the water dispenser before takeoff are still susceptible to antibiotics

18-Feb-2020
Press Release

Scientists Identify Genome-Wide Traits Associated with Microbial Growth Strategy and Ecosystem Nutrient Status

New Methods Developed May Shed Light on Evolution in the World’s Oceans

14-Feb-2020
Collaborator Release

Emory School of Nursing faculty member receives research grant from The ALS Association

J. Craig Venter Institute is a major partner, providing whole genome sequencing and data analysis needed to identify microbial makeup of ALS patients

13-Feb-2020
Collaborator Release

Al Gore to lead global ‘healthy planet, healthy lives’ forum in Switzerland

Former US Vice President to address climate solutions in Montreux

JCVI President Karen Nelson to speak on “getting to the guts of health and disease”

13-Nov-2019
Press Release

J. Craig Venter Institute and UC San Diego Develop Phage Treatment as Potential Cure for Alcoholic Liver Disease

Team targeted specific toxin-producing strains of the bacterium, Enterococcus faecalis, which is shown to be responsible for most liver damage

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Back on The Road, Mar Menor to Blanes, Spain

May 7th 2010 After a successful day of sampling in Mar Menor and a great local dinner of lobster paella, Chris and I loaded up the van and got back on the road early Friday morning. We had a 757 kilometer (470 miles) drive ahead of us to arrive in Blanes to meet with a team of collaborators...

The Green Lagoon — Sampling in Albufera de Valencia

During our sampling in Spain last year Chris and I met up with Francisco Rodriguez-Valera. Francisco had some great suggestions for sampling sites and one of them was Albufera de Valencia, a shallow hypertrophic fresh water lagoon, located just 30 minutes drive south of Valencia . When...

Road Sampling Starts in Mar Menor, Spain

Before sampling was to resume on Sorcerer II, a 2 week multiple-site road sampling trip was planned. Chris Dupont arrived in Valencia a day after me, in the next two days we would load up a giant rental van and hit the road. On Wednesday May 5th we drove the 322 kilometers (200 miles) from...

Return to Sorcerer II, The Mediterranean Season

Hello everyone! On May 2nd I flew from San Diego to rejoin Sorcerer II in Valencia Spain. Sorcerer II has been in Spain since our last sample in November, during that time her crew has been very busy upgrading systems and getting the rig certified. Sorcerer II is looking great and is ready for...

Looking for a Few Good Genomes (to sequence)!

The JCVI is one of three centers funded by the National Institutes of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) to provide sequencing and genotyping services to the infectious disease community. We are continually looking for researchers who would like to have organisms of research interest to...

Influences of trace metals on biological evolution

Scientists show how trace metal chemistry and global changes in oxygen have influenced the evolution of metalloproteins and the Eukaryotes A paper is being published in PNAS this week about how the varying abundance of trace metals in the environment has influenced biological...

JCVI Scientists Recognized by ASM

Drs. Karen E. Nelson and Kenneth H. Nealson are both being recognized by the American Academy of Microbiology (ASM) tomorrow, May 26, 2010. Karen has been elected to Fellowship in the ASM. She is one of seventy-eight new members that have been selected through a peer-review process based on...

Scientist Spotlight: Hamilton O. Smith and Clyde A. Hutchison III

Editor’s note: Clyde Hutchison died on September 27, 2025. Less than a month later, Hamilton Smith died on October 25, 2025. This post memorializes their dear friendship and the quest to construct the first bacterium with a synthetic genome in 2010. Their friendship endured and their work...

Happy DNA Day!

This past March, we had a great time participating in the science programs in San Diego. We ended the month with the SD Science Festival with over 30,000 participants. It was such a busy day - I forgot to take pictures. The venue was Petco Park with hundreds of exhibits and hands-on...

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24-Dec-2020
The San Diego Union Tribune

Scientists rush to determine if mutant strain of coronavirus will deepen pandemic

U.S. researchers have been slow to perform the genetic sequencing that will help clarify the situation

19-Dec-2020
The San Diego Union-Tribune

After saving countless lives, Nobel laureate Hamilton Smith retires as his own health falters

He has been a fixture in San Diego science for decades

14-Dec-2020
Medscape

The 'Wondrous Map': Charting of the Human Genome, 20 Years Later

Twenty years ago, President Bill Clinton announced completion of what was arguably one of the greatest advances of the modern era: the first draft sequence of the human genome.

05-Apr-2020
Deutsche Welle

Craig Venter: 20 years of decoding the human genome

The human genome is 99% decoded, the American geneticist Craig Venter announced two decades ago. What has the deciphering brought us since then?

10-Jan-2020
Issues in Science and Tech

Gene Drives: New and Improved

As the science advances, policy-makers and regulators need to develop responses that reflect the latest developments and the diversity of approaches and applications.

13-Nov-2019
The San Diego Union-Tribune

Pink shoes and a lab jacket: Finding your way as a female scientist

Women in science tell high school girls they, too, can change the world

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