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News

Federal Government Shutdown Updates

A federal government shutdown began on October 1, 2025. Federally funded projects may experience delays in communication, funding actions, and approvals. Please refer to the Sponsored Programs Administrion office for guidance. learn more
4 people standing near a beach on a sunny day

Afro-Caribbean Artists Reclaim Stories of Slave Trade in New Documentary

Safoi Babana-Hampton, Professor of French and Francophone Studies in the Department of Romance and Classical Studies at Michigan State University, has produced and directed a documentary that features artists, historians, and policymakers who challenge Eurocentric narratives to reclaim, reshape, and preserve the memory of the Black Atlantic experience.
A zoom in of two orange butterflies sitting on a blade of grass together

Study Raises the Possibility of a Country Without Butterflies

Butterflies are disappearing in the United States. All kinds of them. With a speed scientists call alarming. Elise Zipkin, director of MSU’s Ecology, Evolution and Behavior Program, and her MSU colleague and co-author Nick Haddad, professor of integrative biology in EEB, have been major figures in assessing the state of U.S. butterflies.
A lake surrounded by trees

How MSU’s Global Reach Benefits Michigan

MSU is one of the most internationally engaged universities in the U.S. With more than 350 partnerships in 60 countries and more than 1,600 faculty and academic staff involved in international research, teaching and outreach, MSU continues to share knowledge and improve lives around the globe and right here in Michigan.
Picture captured of space with clouds of gas and dust swirling around forming stars

MSU Scientists Discover New Sources for ‘The Molecule That Made the Universe’

From helping catalyze interstellar reactions and fueling the birth of stars to its presence in neighborhood gas giants like Saturn and Jupiter, trihydrogen, or H3+, is best known as the “the molecule that made the universe.”
Close-up of a microscope focusing in on a glass slide with a small green leaf underneath

Pestka Seeking to Improve Treatments for Autoimmune Diseases

According to the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association, as many as 50 million Americans may be living with an autoimmune disorder. Many of these remain undiagnosed and, without intervention, can worsen over time. Given current treatment options, however, even those being actively managed can be met with complications.
Monarch butterfly landing on a red flower in nature

MSU Brings New Approach to Stopping the Biodiversity Crisis

What if saving one animal species from extinction at a time isn’t the most effective approach? Michael Belitz, a Michigan State University postdoctoral researcher in the Zipkin Quantitative Ecology Lab, asked himself that question during his graduate work protecting a single butterfly species.
Art of semi-transparent human body with highlighted stomach surrounded by helixes and molecules

More Than a Gut Feeling: How Climate Change Affects GI Health

From heat-related illnesses to the geographic expansion of infectious diseases, the effects of climate change on human health are complex. And indeed, dimensions of this interaction, such as the impact of climate change on gut health, remain overlooked. Emerging research shows this global phenomenon may make you sick to your stomach — literally.
Michigan State University, a pioneer land grant college

MSU Reports $932 Million in Research Expenditures

Michigan State University reported a new record of $932 million in research and development expenditures for the fiscal year 2024, maintaining a positive trajectory with cumulative 30% growth over the past three years.
Announcements
Applications Open for the BioInnovation Institute and Science Prize for Innovation
Through the BioInnovation Institute & Science Prize for Innovation, the editors of Science seek to recognize bold researchers who are asking fundamental questions at the intersection of the life sciences and entrepreneurship. We seek scientists who can show that they have reached across field boundaries with an enthusiasm that combines outstanding basic science with an eye toward application in the marketplace.
MSU Unveils First-Ever Strategy for Shared Research Resources
MSU has unveiled a groundbreaking blueprint to strategically coordinate its shared research resources across campus. Led by the Office of Research & Innovation and shaped by 140+ community members, this is the university’s first unified plan to enhance access, visibility, and efficiency of its many research resources, everything from labs and tech, to field stations and high-performance computing.
Sustaining Spartan Research: The Jenison Fund Impact
The Jenison Fund, a strategic endowment established to support disruptions in research funding, is accepting applications for its second round of funding through November 17, 2025.
Williams Receives NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award
Michigan State University College of Human Medicine researcher Michael R. Williams, has received the National Institutes of Health Director’s Transformative Research Award.
Pollanen and Singh Awarded Moore Foundation Grants to Advance Quantum Science, Fundamental Physics
Michigan State University physicists work every day to advance quantum computing and help unravel the mysteries of the universe. Now, two are receiving private $1.3 million five-year grants that will further launch their research and give them more opportunities to collaborate.
The Future of Health Forum Highlights AI's Impact on Precision Medicine
Interdisciplinary leaders gathered in Grand Rapids to discuss the future of AI in healthcare.