Today at #FridayScienceClub!

▶️ Watch part 2 of the video. #WhatIf

#WhatIf we could see disease decades before it begins? Stowers Investigator Randal Halfmann explores how proteins change as we age—and how those shifts could reveal early signs of diseases like #Alzheimers and #Parkinsons. ▶️ Watch part 1 of the video + learn more: bit.ly/3PMbkm8

New paper from the Stern and Gronenborn labs on structure and evolution of aphid bicycle effector proteins. We show how alphafold can generate accurate predictions for these rapidly evolving proteins and that these proteins are diverse in every possible way. www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...

#WhatIf we could see disease decades before it begins? Randal Halfmann, Ph.D., studies how proteins change as we age—and how understanding those changes might one day help scientists detect & prevent diseases earlier. ▶️ Watch a preview. Full video tomorrow. Learn more: bit.ly/4v1D85W

Thank you to Dianne Newman (@Caltech) for joining us today for a great #StowersSeminarSeries talk "Unveiling low-power survival strategies on life's metabolic edge". Hosted by the Sankari and Mashruwala Labs.

At the Stowers Institute, scientists are exploring bold ideas about #aging, #regeneration, and the #health of our planet, questions that could reshape how we understand life itself. This week, we’re launching a new series about the curiosity that drives discovery: #WhatIf 🔗More: bit.ly/4v1D85W

Want to keep up with discoveries from the Stowers Institute? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter for research highlights, stories from our scientists, and upcoming events. 📬 Stowers.org/signup

This #WomensHistoryMonth, we’re celebrating the women across the Institute whose work, creativity, and leadership help make groundbreaking science possible. 💜

The countdown to #SRCKC26 has begun! ⏲️ Join scientists from around the world 4/22–24 in #KansasCity for an immersive meeting on developmental #biology, regulatory genomics, and cutting-edge #AI in gene regulation. Secure your spot 🔗 bit.ly/4kUvNAn

Another beauty of an image from our Nematostella stinging cell reporter line @mgstowers.bsky.social @stowersinstitute.bsky.social! #StunningStella #ToxinTuesday

This beautiful #MicroscopyMonday shows a sea anemone’s tentacle, which contains numerous stinging cells (green) used to ensnare and capture prey. 🔬 (@mgstowers.bsky.social Lab) #SciSky

The conceptual novelty of the study is that key innate-immune adaptor proteins behave like biological ‘phase-change batteries,’ storing latent energy through metastable supersaturation & releasing it on demand to power rapid, ATP-independent life-or-death signaling Read more doi.org/10.7554/eLif...

Science meets nature at #BIGIDEAS: The Minds of Insects. 🧠 An evening exploring how insects think, adapt, and shape the world around us. 🎟️ Register now—space is limited: bit.ly/4aFHJ5A

A new Science Magazine commentary highlights #research from the Halfmann Lab exploring how immune signaling proteins act like a “phase-change battery,” storing energy until cells need to respond. 🔋 Read here: bit.ly/4rUEOv9

Sometimes the path to #discovery isn’t a straight line, it’s a 2,200-mile bike ride. 🚲 Stowers Fellow Friederike Benning, Ph.D. cycled from Seattle to #KansasCity to begin the next chapter of her scientific journey. 🔗Read her story: bit.ly/3PnBs6D

🚨 Register now for this spring's #SRCKC26! Explore how the cis-regulatory code, genomic technologies, and #AI models are reshaping our understanding of development. 📍 4/22–24 | Kansas City 🔗 bit.ly/4kUvNAn Hosted by @saukaspengler.bsky.social, @juliazeitlinger.bsky.social, and Neşet Özel.

Thank you to Christine Jacobs-Wagner (@stanfordpress.bsky.social) for joining us for a great #StowersSeminarSeries talk "Shining light on old mysteries: From bacterial cell replication to host defenses". 🦠 Hosted by the Sankari and Mashruwala Labs.

Nature has already run billions of biological experiments. Stowers scientist @batevodevo.bsky.social, Ph.D. joined @npr.org's All Things Considered to discuss how researchers study unusual species—like bats and pythons—to uncover clues about #metabolism, disease, and human health. 🦇 🎧 n.pr/4c2mlbj

This #NationalAgricultureDay, see how our researchers explore how plants & insects interact with the world around them. 🔬Siva Sankari studies plant–microbe communication. 🦗David Stern (@hhmi-science.bsky.social) studies molecular signals between insects and plants. bit.ly/4np96Fb & bit.ly/3BJ1lXm

This stunning #MicroscopyMonday shows a rosette of chromosomes, in a human cell line, during early stages of #mitosis. (Gerton Lab)

Really glad to see that my talk at the #StowersSeminarSeries resonated so well. Many thanks to Tatjana and everyone at Lab Piotrowski, as well as the PIs, staff, and students who took the time to share their work inspiring. The Stowers Institute is an incredible environment for doing great science.

What the #brain still has left to teach us 🧠 This #BrainAwarenessWeek, go inside the #research shaping our understanding of the brain—from #memory to disease to #development. 🔗 Read more: https://bit.ly/4rMiaFb @danafoundation.bsky.social#brain

Why do we remember some moments—and forget others? 🧠 This #BrainAwarenessWeek, explore 5 facts about #memory, from how it forms to how diseases like #Alzheimers disrupt it. 🔗 Read more: bit.ly/3PnnNcH @danafoundation.bsky.social#BrainAwarenessWeek

From watching cartoons as a kid to studying the molecular machinery of life—this is what a career in science can look like. 🧠 This #BrainAwarenessWeek, meet Mansoor Hussain, a postdoc in the Si Lab uncovering how proteins fold. 🔗 Read more: bit.ly/4spENka @danafoundation.bsky.social

Thank you to @lanevol.bsky.social for joining us for a fantastic #StowersSeminarSeries this week! 🦎 Hosted by the Piotrowski Lab.

This #BrainAwarenessWeek, meet Stowers Assistant Investigator, Neşet Özel, Ph.D., whose lab studies how the #brain develops and how neurons connect to form functional circuits. 🧠 🔗 Read more: https://bit.ly/45fg0mA @brainfacts.org @danafoundation.bsky.social#BrainAwarenessWeek

Not all memory looks like ours. This #BrainAwarenessWeek, explore nine surprising ways memory shows up across #biology—from flatworms to jellyfish to your own daily tools. 🪼 🔗 Read here: https://bit.ly/4bueOkc @danafoundation.bsky.social @brainfacts.org#BrainAwarenessWeek

A concussion. A football coach who taught #biology. A grandmother with #dementia. @stowersgrad.bsky.social alum, Kyle Patton Ph.D., shares the personal experiences that first sparked his fascination with the #brain 🧠 More: bit.ly/4byejpt #BrainAwarenessWeek @danafoundation.bsky.social

Happy that our lovely stinging cell transgenic is getting a spotlight! @mgstowers.bsky.social lab corals are also featured! #StunningStella #ToxinTuesday

Happy St. Patrick’s Day 🍀 We’re celebrating with a different kind of green—through the lens of #microscopy. Zooming in on the smallest details to uncover the biggest insights in #biology.

#BrainAwarenessWeek is underway🧠 @kshb41.bsky.social highlighted #research from the Si Lab exploring how amyloid proteins in the #brain may play an important role in #memory formation. The findings could reshape how scientists think about neurodegenerative diseases like #Alzheimers bit.ly/3LPwu0Y

🧠 #BrainAwarenessWeek Research from the Halfmann Lab found that some immune proteins act like stored-energy “batteries,” helping cells rapidly fight pathogens. But later in life, this same system may fuel inflammation linked to diseases like Alzheimer’s. bit.ly/4pm9Zjf @danafoundation.bsky.social

Kicking off #BrainAwarenessWeek with a #MicroscopyMonday showing an adult fruit fly #brain imaged on a confocal microscope, sweet-sensing #neurons are seen in yellow, while magenta shows the neuronal connections. (Si Lab) 🧠 #BrainWeek @danafoundation.bsky.social @brainfacts.org @sfn.org

Happy #PiDay! π starts with 3.14159… How many digits can you remember without Googling? 🤔 Drop them below ⬇️

At #StowersGrad, training extends beyond the lab. Alum Stefanie Williams, Ph.D. gained hands-on #teaching experience by designing exams and delivering lectures in an undergraduate #genetics course at University of Missouri-Kansas City. 🔬Read more: bit.ly/4sHyBUq

Clock’s ticking! ⏰ Early-bird pricing for #SRCKC26 ends this Friday, 3/13. Don't miss our sessions on #Development, Regulatory Genomics, and #AI + a great lineup of speakers! Register and submit an abstract today: bit.ly/4kUvNAn

Thank you to Onn Brandman (@stanfordbiochem.bsky.social) for joining us for a great #StowersSeminarSeries on "The Curious Things Cells Do When Ribosomes Stall". Hosted by the Halfmann Lab. #SciSky #ResearchSky

🐟 We are hiring a postdoc! Interested in RNA regulation, gene expression, and zebrafish embryogenesis? Join the Bazzini Lab at @stowersinstitute.bsky.social www.stowers.org/labs/bazzini... Please share! Details below 👇 #Postdoc #RNAbiology #zebrafish #devbio #Genomics

“You don’t need to be a “genius”… to succeed in science — but you do need curiosity, rigor, & persistence. Experiments fail all the time. What matters is how thoughtfully you learn from failure & that you keep improving. The best scientists I’ve met are simply resilient.” @ramankaushik.bsky.social 🐟

From playing cricket in India to studying sensory cell #regeneration in the Piotrowski Lab. In our latest #PostdocProfile, Raman Kaushik shares his journey to #science, and how #zebrafish may hold clues to helping damaged hair cells grow back. 🐟 🔗 Read more: bit.ly/3OT9JKR

This week's #MicroscopyMonday shows digital collage of bacteroids, a special form of bacteria that lives inside alfalfa roots. 🌱 (Sankari Lab)

Today at #FridayScienceClub!

Even at a few days old, these sea anemone planulae are already covered in stinging cells! The stingers of these young Nematostella are marked with a fluorescent green. @stowersinstitute.bsky.social #StunningStella

Congratulations!

Congratulations to Investigator @juliazeitlinger.bsky.social, Ph.D., who has been named a 2026 NextGen Leader by the Kansas City Business Journal! 🎉 The award recognizes emerging leaders across the #KansasCity region who are making an impact in their fields and in the community. 🔗 bit.ly/4rbNAEE

Today we welcomed Geraldine Seydoux @hhmi-science.bsky.social) for a #StowersSeminarSeries on “Germ granules: Compartments for RNA regulation or incidental condensates?” Thanks to the @kkostova.bsky.social Lab for hosting!

⏳ More time to submit! The abstract deadline for #SRCKC26 has been extended to March 13. Join scientists exploring the frontiers of #development, regulatory #genomics, and AI-based DNA sequence modeling in #KansasCity. 📅 April 22–24, 2026 🔗 Submit your abstract: bit.ly/4kUvNAn

👂Today is #WorldHearingDay. How do we hear? The answer starts with tiny sensory cells called hair cells. These cells allow us to detect sound and maintain balance, but once lost in humans, they don’t grow back. But, #zebrafish can regenerate theirs. 🐟 Learn more in this #BioBasics: bit.ly/402Sid3

Music filled our library Monday evening as we welcomed the Park University International Center for Music for our latest Experiments in Sound performance. 🎻 🎼 Thank you to everyone who joined us for an evening of music and community.