NYE fireworks < neurons expressing iGluSnFR3! Developed at our Janelia Research Campus, iGluSnFR3 is a fluorescent sensor designed to rapidly detect & image glutamate — our brains' main chemical messenger — allowing researchers to observe (dazzling) neural communication as it happens. 🎆

When gene expression goes wrong, it can cause abnormal cellular growth, cancer, & more. HHMI Investigator Michelle Wang (Cornell University) & collaborators have discovered that nucleosomes—long thought to be obstacles to gene expression—actually help the process work more smoothly. bit.ly/4q9xA6e

Our kind of annual tradition: Glucose + Tollens’ reagent + festive swirling = a chemical reaction that creates a thin layer of silver, loads of seasonal cheer, & ornaments worthy of being passed down for ... well, a few weeks at least. Happy holidays to all those who celebrate! ✨

Rising undergrad junior or senior? Last chance to apply! Applications close TOMORROW, Dec. 22, 11:59pm EST. 🧪 Our 9-week summer research experience includes hands-on lab work, a generous stipend, & mentorship from some of the nation’s top scientists. Learn more & apply at bit.ly/CechFellows.

"Watching my students who didn’t really know if they wanted to do research turn around & fall in love with research … that’s been the most meaningful." — HHMI Postdoc Scientist Brea Manuel, '25 program mentor. 🧪 Rising junior or senior? *Applications close 11:59pm EST Dec. 22* ⏰❗bit.ly/CechFellows

(1/2): HHMI Investigator Alexander Rudensky & collaborators at @mskcancercenter.bsky.social have solved a 20-year mystery: Why are high levels of regulatory #Tcells linked to better survival in colorectal cancer, when they’re usually indicative of poor outcomes in most other cancers? bit.ly/3MGn9IY

“I feel being part of their life, being part of their career, is just priceless.” — HHMI Investigator Xin Chen, '25 Summer Undergraduate Research Program mentor 🧪 Rising junior or senior? Applications close 11:59pm Dec. 22! Explore a career in biological or biomedical research: bit.ly/CechFellows

(1/2): What if the bacteria living in our digestive tracts could produce compounds that help us live longer? The Wang (Meng) Lab at HHMI's Janelia Research Campus has found a way to get gut microbes to produce metabolites that promote longevity in animals: hhmi.news/48QyPAm.

Apply by Feb. 3 to join HHMI's Janelia Research Campus as a Group Leader! Group Leaders drive breakthroughs & experimental approaches in imaging, molecular engineering, protein chemistry, mass spectrometry, & methods that don't yet exist. Learn more: janelia.org/groupleader 🧪

"Having this experience … allowed me to explore my interests, goals, & work towards what I want to do in the future.” — Ariana Rodriguez, Summer Undergraduate Research Program alum 🧪 Rising junior or senior? Apply by Dec. 22 — no lab experience required! bit.ly/CechFellows

What happens when HHMI scientists come together? Inspiring conversations, new perspectives, and a shared excitement for discovery. No matter what program they’re part of, our Investigators, Scholars, Fellows, and more join a vibrant scientific community driven by bold ideas.

(1/2): Using cryo-electron tomography and an instrument like this one, HHMI Investigator Michael Rosen & team (not pictured) have captured the most detailed images to date of the molecules inside chromatin condensates. hhmi.news/4iFBIrV

A perfect model for coming together this season: mouse skeletal muscles undergoing fusion, obviously. In this mesmerizing confocal microscopy video, nuclei are labeled in green & cell bodies are labeled in red. Credit: Yue Lu, Elizabeth Chen Lab, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center

"My advice to other undergraduates: Just go for it!" — Lalitha Ravipati, alum, Summer Undergraduate Research Program Rising junior or senior who's interested in working alongside some of the nation's top scientists this summer? Apply now: bit.ly/CechFellows 🧪

Calling all rising juniors & seniors: Interested in biological or biomedical research? Applications for our ’26 Summer Undergraduate Research Experience Program are now open! Nine weeks, hands-on research, & mentorship from some of the nation’s top scientists — learn more: bit.ly/CechFellows

What roots the animal tree of life — the sponge, or the comb jelly? HHMI Investigator Nicole King & her team used a new method to answer an old question, & their results offer strong evidence that sponges may have evolved first. hhmi.news/3M2JkbG

We’re thrilled to announce that Dr. Xin Jin has been named the 2026 Peter Gruss Young Investigator. Her pioneering work developing high-throughput in vivo screening strategies is unraveling the genetic mechanisms of neurodevelopmental disorders. buff.ly/RI9emVa

The world’s “most dangerous animal” just got easier to study 🦟 HHMI’s @leslievosshall.bsky.social & #VosshallLab at @rockefeller.edu have built the 1st cellular atlas of Aedes aegypti, mapping everything from legs to antennae. Available now to all researchers, & the public: bit.ly/4oO4MzB

ICYMI: A team of researchers unveiled the complete connectome of an entire male fruit fly central nervous system, encompassing the central brain, optic lobes, and ventral nerve cord. https://hhmi.news/4o3EJnk

Happy Halloween! 🎃🦇 Bats are more than just Halloween icons — HHMI scientists are studying them to explore fundamental questions about the brain & behavior. Their discoveries could have important implications for other species, including humans. Read more: bit.ly/434gm18

The first detailed look at how mosquitoes mate from @leslievosshall.bsky.social's lab reverses the assumption that male mosquitoes control the process, finding that a subtle female behavior dictates whether mating will take place or not. @currentbiology.bsky.social More here: https://bit.ly/4huwEpL

4 HHMI Investigators have been elected to the @nam.edu! Election to the Academy is considered one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine. Learn how these investigators are advancing our understanding of biology and human health: hhmi.news/4oxodfS #NAMmtg

Rockefeller's Jeff Friedman has won the 2025 Albany Medical Center Prize, one of the nation’s most prestigious prizes in biomedicine. Friedman is recognized for his discovery of leptin, which established a biological basis for obesity. Congrats, Jeff!

🎉Congrats to Freeman Hrabowski Scholar @ishmailsaboor.bsky.social on receiving the NIH Director’s Pioneer Award! His research will explore how sense of touch contributes to communal behaviors.

NEWS🎉 We’re excited to announce @hhmijanelia.bsky.social Investigator David Stern will join the Institute from Janelia Research Campus. His lab studies how aphids transform plants at the genetic level, uncovering secrets of #evolution & new strategies for pest control. @hhmi.org bit.ly/4np96Fb

🪱New research from the Wang Lab shows how changes in a worm’s lysosomes promoting longevity are transferred to its offspring through the epigenome, revealing how epigenetic modifications that help organisms cope with environmental stress can be inherited. 🔗 www.janelia.org/news/leaving...

🎉 Congratulations to HHMI Investigators Clifford Brangwynne and Akiko Iwasaki, the two winners of the 30th annual Keio Medical Science Prize. This international prize, awarded by Keio University in Tokyo, honors scientists who have made major contributions to the fields of medical or life sciences.

🌟 Launch your own lab at Janelia 🌟 Advance our understanding of biology through theory, computational modeling & machine learning. 🔹 No teaching requirements 🔹 100% internally funded 🔹 Collaborate with expert support teams 📅 Apply by Nov. 4 👉 https://janelia.link/groupleader

We are looking for an #AIEngineer to help build protein language models that capture evolutionary constraints with @matsen.bsky.social and @jbloomlab.bsky.social at #AI@HHMI @hhmijanelia.bsky.social hhmi.wd1.myworkdayjobs.com/en-US/Extern...

🎉Congratulations to @maribyndloss.bsky.social @jenniferdoudna.bsky.social and Kim Orth—three HHMI scientists recently honored by The American Society for Microbiology @asm.org asm.org/press-releas...

🧪For more than a decade, the GENIE Project Team has collaborated with tool developers & users to take innovative biological sensors from novel prototypes to widely used laboratory staples. Now, @janeliagenie.bsky.social is unveiling their latest collaborations. www.janelia.org/news/unleash...

📢 Applications are open! Join us in May to explore computational simulation of biomechanical body models, bridging #neuroethology, #ML, physics simulation & computer vision. 🧠🤖 👁 🛏️ Lodging, meals & registration covered ➡️ Apply by Nov. 21 @ https://janelia.news/SIB26

📢 Conduct your PhD thesis research at Janelia. 🎓 Apply by Dec 3 for our joint graduate programs with Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in neuroscience & cross-disciplinary biology. 🌐 Collaborate across disciplines 🛠️ Work with tool builders 🤝 Train in a supportive environment ➡️ janelia.org/graduate

Out now in @Nature.Com: Researchers from @UCSDMedSchool.bsky.social develop engineered proteins to selectively reduce #cocaine-seeking behavior without affecting natural rewards. This innovative method may lead to new gene therapies for cocaine #addiction buff.ly/2LEPha8

🎉Congratulations to David Baker, winner of the @royalsociety.org's Croonian Medal and Lecture for pioneering the design of completely new proteins and playing key roles in the development of protein structure prediction and protein engineering tools. 🔗 royalsociety.org/medals-and-p...

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

🧪 New proteomics research is enabling scientists to decipher how neurotransmitter receptors behave & change as an organism develops, information that could help scientists better understand the formation & function of synapses.➡️ https://hhmi.news/4mFMhMY

📢We're #hiring Group Leaders! Apply to lead a lab at Janelia & advance biology using theory, computational modeling & machine learning. 🔹5-year renewable appointment 🔹Pioneer new tools & approaches 🔹Collaborate across disciplines Apply by Nov. 4👉 https://janelia.link/groupleader

Please join us in congratulating HHMI Investigators Jennifer Doudna (@jenniferdoudna.bsky.social) and David R. Liu, recipients of national awards from the American Chemical Society (@acs.org) for 2026.‬‬ 🔗 cen.acs.org/people/award...

Congratulations 2025 Gilliam Fellows and Advisors! 🎉 The Gilliam Fellows Program launches promising PhD students into impactful scientific research careers while fostering inclusive training environments. Through this program, HHMI supports both graduate students and their faculty thesis advisors.

New findings show low-oxygen air reverses Parkinson’s symptoms in mouse model, suggesting possible new way to treat this neurodegenerative disorder: a pill that mimics low oxygen.

HHMI Chief of Strategic Initiatives Bodo Stern writes in the LSE Impact of Social Sciences Blog about Nature's recent decision to publish peer review reports. "True transparency in peer review must begin at the outset," he writes, "not as an afterthought to editorial gatekeeping."

🚨 Attention early-career scientists! 🚨 Become a Theory Fellow at Janelia and use computation & theory to tackle biological problems. ✅ Three-year appointment ✅ Collaboration across scientific disciplines ✅ Dynamic research environment

🪰 A new ‘Eyemap’ developed by a team led by Arthur Zhao & @michaelreiser.bsky.social reveals how visual information detected by the fly’s eye shows up in neurons deep in the brain. Remarkably, the eye’s shape determines how flies see motion.👁️ 🔗 hhmi.news/4kSZjou

🌿 How do plants defend themselves against microbial invaders? HHMI Hanna Gray Fellow @kcox-bioguy.bsky.social is working to uncover the cellular-level interactions that shape plant immunity.

Partnership between David Liu, @jacksonlab.bsky.social, and rare disease group RARE Hope leads to first use of prime editing for a brain disease that reduced symptoms, extended lifespan in mice, offering hope for other rare genetic diseases. #Science #PrimeEditing

Igor Siwanowicz created these images of the underside of the front foot of a male diving beetle. You can see suction cups that are used during mating, as well as a broad plate and exterior spines that aid in swimming.

Meet Kyndall Nicholas, an HHMI Gilliam Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania (@upenn.edu). She studies how our everyday diet can build resilience against traumatic brain injury, asking what we can eat daily to help protect our brains.

Our paper describing how in-host evolution of a recently emerged, highly pathogenic coronavirus modulates entry into cells, membrane fusion and likely pathogenicity has now been published in its peer-reviewed form! Led by Ale Tortorici! @hhmi.org www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Andy Moore at @hhmijanelia.bsky.social created this image to visualize the organization of microtubules in several adjacent cells. Like a spider web, cells use a network of molecular “highways” called microtubules to move cellular and molecular components around.