Pigeon pea is a vital protein source in Asia & Africa but breeding hardier varieties is tough because of limited genetic diversity. The Gehring Lab has a new chemical method to introduce traits that could help crops, including pigeon pea, perform better, potentially boosting global food security 1/2

Time is one of biology’s most powerful forces ⏳ Join us at the MIT Museum on Jan. 21 for a public conversation on how cells keep time and change across early development and aging. Featuring Siniša Hrvatin and @remlehmann.bsky.social No prior science background needed — just bring your curiosity.

Some of medicine’s biggest breakthroughs have come from collaborations between clinicians and basic scientists. Bridge Across the Charles brings together scientists, physician-scientists and clinicians to spark partnerships that'll drive the next wave of advances in patient care. shorturl.at/WN5yL

“I want everyone in my lab to be exposed to many ways of thinking about biology,” says Whitehead Institute’s newest Member, immunologist Zuri Sullivan. “Creative science often comes from making connections across systems, and Whitehead is uniquely well-suited for that.” shorturl.at/EFsmh

Friends, family members, colleagues, and mentees gathered to celebrate the life and legacy of Whitehead Institute's Founding Director, David Baltimore. A globally respected researcher and academic leader, Baltimore shaped the careers of generations of scientists and educators. 🔗 shorturl.at/tHADF

Latest from Whitehead Institute's AI Fellow Na Sun 👇 Learn more about her work at the intersection of AI and biology: shorturl.at/K1AXP

Rare disease treatment relies on the combined efforts of clinicians, researchers, and families. Yet these people rarely find themselves in the same room. BridgeRD brought them together last week to address the challenges of understanding, diagnosing, and treating rare diseases. 🔗 shorturl.at/pJXcu

Whitehead Institute’s Innovation Centers are hubs of collaboration. Each center provides specialized expertise that expand what individual labs can achieve. Read how this collaboration drives Whitehead Institute science forward: shorturl.at/jQTPM

World-renowned cell biologist Ron Vale will join Whitehead Institute this December as a Member. Known for discovering the motor protein kinesin, he will explore how proteins function under different stressors—a direction that aligns with the Institute's focus on resilience. 🔗 shorturl.at/28Gpl

At BridgeRD today, clinicians and researchers are teaming up to tackle one of the biggest hurdles with rare diseases: connecting what's seen in the lab to patient experiences in the clinic. 1/2 #RareDisease #BridgeRD

Our Seminar Series for High School Teachers is underway! Postdoc Henry Kilgore of the Young Lab shared his latest research on how proteins reach their destinations within the cell. We’re thrilled to bring teachers and researchers together to help inspire the next generation of scientists!

From an accidental discovery of hidden biology to a new framework to understanding and diagnosing rare disease. Thrilled to share the most recent work from our lab and the amazing Jimmy Ly. wi.mit.edu/news/alterna...

1/ Happy to share important work done with my co-author Andrew Khalil in the labs of Rudolf Jaenisch @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social @mit.edu and David Mooney @harvard.edu @wyssinstitute.bsky.social trying to assess and fix the major problem of transgene silencing in human ESC/iPSC based work

"Fruit flies have a lot of fun gene names. Some of my favorites are Asterix and Obelix, which are named after a French comic book, because I have childhood associations with them," postdoc Julia Wucherpfennig says. wi.mit.edu/news/meet-wh... #WhiteheadPostdocProfiles

Panchito proudly sports his Whitehead bandana while plotting his next purrfect experiment. #PetsofWhitehead Alumni, grab your own pet bandana by joining our alumni LinkedIn group: www.linkedin.com/groups/12483...

In celebration of Massachusetts STEM Week, students from Prospect Hill Academy Charter School toured the Yamashita lab and got an introduction to fruit fly research. Thanks to everyone who participated!

In celebration of Massachusetts STEM Week, students from Prospect Hill Academy Charter School toured the Yamashita lab and got an introduction to fruit fly research. Thanks to everyone who participated!

A huge thank you to all the alumni and current trainees who joined us at Trillium Brewing in Fort Point last week. From swapping stories about lab days to hearing where your careers have taken you, the conversations were inspiring (and the good food and drinks didn’t hurt either).

Sometimes, one research project is an unexpected spin off of another project. That's exactly what happened in the Yamashita lab, where researchers identified a novel mechanism that keeps the "selfish" gene Stellate in check. wi.mit.edu/news/one-lab... #ResearchThreads

Pawfessor Jake reporting for duty! #PetsofWhitehead Alumni, grab your own pet bandana by joining our alumni LinkedIn group: www.linkedin.com/groups/12483...

@science.org High-resolution spatial mapping of cell state and lineage dynamics in vivo with PEtracer | Science www.science.org/doi/10.1126/... @lukekoblan.bsky.social @weissmanlab.bsky.social @zhuanglab.bsky.social @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social et al.

This week, I was grateful to be named a semifinalist for the ASHG Trainee Research Excellence Award. I also gave my first platform talk, detailing my work with @geneticsmike7.bsky.social on noncoding MS SNPs in microglia. Missed the talk? See our MedRXiV preprint: tiny.cc/gallagher-luna-2025

What causes dormant cancer cells to erupt into a frenzy of growth and division? New work from the Weinberg lab points to inflammation as a trigger. wi.mit.edu/news/inflamm...

Rudolf Jaenisch is recognized for his trailblazing contributions to epigenetics and stem cell biology, which have shaped modern regenerative medicine. @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social @cp-cellstemcell.bsky.social @cellpress.bsky.social

"Fruit flies have a lot of fun gene names. Some of my favorites are Asterix and Obelix, which are named after a French comic book, because I have childhood associations with them," Julia Wucherpfennig says. #WhiteheadPostdocProfiles wi.mit.edu/news/meet-wh...

On Wednesday, former White House National Climate Advisor Gina McCarthy joined our Director Ruth Lehmann in conversation about cultivating trust in science. Thanks to all who joined us! Stay tuned for upcoming Director's Dialogues, and watch past talks on our website: wi.mit.edu/directors-di...

Most cells in our body live and die. But the germline, the cells that produce eggs and sperm, must carry on forever. Our first #ResearchThreads follows a string of discoveries made in the Yamashita lab that tease apart how the germline remains immortal. wi.mit.edu/news/one-lab...

Attention Whitehead alumni — please join us for an informal evening of connection and conversation during the ASHG meeting on October 16. For details and to RSVP, please contact [email protected]. (Photos are from our alumni event last month!)

Next Tuesday our director Ruth Lehmann joins Gina McCarthy, former White House National Climate Advisor and EPA Administrator, for a conversation about science, policy and public trust. RSVP: www.eventzilla.net/e/science-tr... @harvardkennedy.bsky.social @mitclimateproject.bsky.social

Julia Wucherpfennig studies Wolbachia — a bacteria that lives inside about half of all insects, generally without harming them. The research has real-world implications for pest control. Read our latest postdoc Q&A: wi.mit.edu/news/meet-wh... #WhiteheadPostdocProfiles @remlehmann.bsky.social

ICYMI: A new tool, LOCL-TL, maps where proteins are made in the cell. @jswlab.bsky.social developed this tool and used it to characterize translation happening at the mitochondria.

Join our director Ruth Lehmann and Gina McCarthy, former White House National Climate Advisor and EPA Administrator, for a conversation about the role of science in policy, public trust, and protecting the well-being of people and the planet. www.eventzilla.net/e/science-tr...

Thanks to everyone who visited our booth at the Cambridge Science Carnival. We had so much fun creating micropipette art — a great way to learn the basics of pipetting! #CSC2025

If you're heading to the Cambridge Science Carnival today, come visit us at the Whitehead Institute booth! We have a fun activity planned that everyone will enjoy. #WhiteheadInstitute #STEAM #CambridgeScienceCarnival #CSC2025 #ScienceIsFun

The Cambridge Science Carnival is happening this Sunday, September 21! Visit Whitehead Institute's booth for a fun art project that introduces the basics of micropipetting. Hope to see you there! cambridgesciencecarnival.org

"I'm working with a legume called pigeon pea, which is an underutilized crop that has received less attention than globally utilized crops...My project is trying to increase the genetic diversity of pigeon pea," postdoc Sonia Boor says. #WhiteheadPostdocProfiles wi.mit.edu/news/meet-wh...

Whitehead Institute, a leading biomedical research institute in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is hiring an Associate Director of Financial Strategy: www.linkedin.com/jobs/view/43...

"What strikes me is how much excitement has grown and community has been rallied around this idea of integrating biology with cutting-edge AI," Valhalla Fellow Allison Hamilos says. Whitehead Innovation Initiative gains momentum after a year of successes: wi.mit.edu/news/whitehe...

Fantastic talk by @stanford.edu's @jameszou.bsky.social for the first Innovation Initiative Distinguished Lecture at @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social. A fascinating look at how to use #AI to build intelligent research teams that can tackle open-ended scientific problems. #WhiteheadInstitute #MIT

PETracer is a new tool that can reveal a detailed history of tumor growth. By characterizing different populations of cells, researchers hope to develop therapies that target the most aggressive populations more effectively. wi.mit.edu/news/mapping...

Congratulations to @jimmy-ly.bsky.social on this well-deserved recognition! His research looking at variants of known proteins offers new insight into rare genetic disorders. tinyurl.com/5xfc3feh

Whitehead Institute's Scientific Webinar Series is back! Tune in September 16th to hear AI Fellow Na Sun speak about her work using deep learning to understand how tissues are reorganized in states of disease. www.eventzilla.net/e/uncovering...

We mourn the loss of David Baltimore, founding member of MIT’s Center for Cancer Research, founding director of @whiteheadinstitute.bsky.social & Nobel laureate. His leadership helped shape the KI’s culture of inquiry & collaboration. bit.ly/remembering-...

Whitehead Institute honors the life and legacy of Nobel Laureate David Baltimore (1938–2025), its Founding Director and a globally revered scientific leader. 1/4 lnkd.in/eUKd4zxh

New research from the Weinberg lab explores how inflammation can reawaken "sleeping" cancer cells. Read the full story: wi.mit.edu/news/inflamm...

New research from the Weinberg lab demonstrates how inflammation jolts "sleeping" breast cancer cells awake — enabling them to multiply again. wi.mit.edu/news/inflamm... @pnas.org

Mitochondria, structures that generate energy in the cell, originated from bacteria that once lived inside our ancestors' cells. A new tool from @weissmanlab.bsky.social is particularly useful for studying mitochondria, given their unusual evolutionary origin. wi.mit.edu/news/locally... @hhmi.org

Whitehead Institute Founding Member Rudolf Jaenisch has received the 2025 Ogawa-Yamanaka Stem Cell Prize, which recognizes his seminal role in establishing and advancing the field of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). wi.mit.edu/news/rudolf-... @gladstoneinst.bsky.social

LOCL-TL allows researchers to study which proteins are being made, or translated, at specific locations within the cell. @jswlab.bsky.social developed this tool and used it to characterize translation happening at the mitochondria. wi.mit.edu/news/locally... @hhmi.org

Here's another highlight from Expedition:Bio, Whitehead Institute's summer science program for middle school students. On an excursion with nature illustrator Sandy McDermott, students got to observe and draw a red-tailed hawk! wi.mit.edu/news/highlig...