On #WorldBeeDay, we’re revisiting a #BIGIDEAS conversation that explored just how extraordinary insect minds can be. 🐝 Investigator @gallseeker.bsky.social, and author of The Mind of a Bee @larschittka.bsky.social, explored how insects reshape the world around them. Watch the convo: bit.ly/4mD7rfm

A new #leukemia study published in @natcellbio.nature.com builds on decades of #research from Investigator Linheng Li, Ph.D., into how #stem cell “niches” shape health and disease. #CancerResearchMonth Read more: bit.ly/4tLaeFg

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

New #research from the Gerton Lab⬇️

A Friday feast of brine shrimp for this one month old sea anemone, which is showing off its fluorescing tentacles in both red and green. Very glad these new dual reporter animals are happy (and hungry)! #FluorescenceFriday #StunningStella @stowersinstitute.bsky.social

Thank you to Eugene Berezikov for joining us for a #StowersSeminarSeries talk, hosted by Stowers Fellow Nelson Hall.

A new collab from @bazzinilab.bsky.social published in @nature.com explores the “dark proteome” — hidden regions of the #genome that appear to produce thousands of previously overlooked microproteins. 🔗 Read here: bit.ly/4d77ugB

#Research from @saukaspengler.bsky.social and collaborators – a new #AI tool predicts how cells choose their future, helping uncover hidden drivers of #development. ⬇️

Excited to share our RegVelo paper in Cell www.cell.com/cell/fulltex... We unify RNA velocity + GRNs into one model → better OOD prediction of perturbations (e.g. gene KOs), with examples incl. neural crest KO predictions 🔬 Big thanks to W Wang, Z Hu & T Sauka-Spengler 🙏

New research from the @saukaspengler.bsky.social Lab and collaborators ⬇️

(2/2) Learn more about the new @cellpress.bsky.social study on Stowers.org: bit.ly/42t1Uik

(1/2) 🧵 What tells a cell what to become? New #research from @saukaspengler.bsky.social & @fabiantheis.bsky.social @helmholtzmunich.bsky.social @ox.ac.uk published in Cell explores how gene regulatory networks guide cell fate — using a new #AI framework the team developed called RegVelo.

Today at #FridayScienceClub!

This week, postdocs gathered for the start of Faculty EDGE, a workshop series designed to help #scientists prepare for the next step in their careers. 📝 Yesterday’s session, led by Investigator Jennifer Gerton, focused on writing effective #research statements.

Today, the Institute community gathered to celebrate Investigator Jerry Workman, Ph.D., following his official induction into the @nasonline.org during its 163rd Annual Meeting. Congratulations, Jerry!

This week's #MicroscopyMonday shows HCR-based fluorescent in situ hybridization of human cells infected with Zika virus. 🔬 (@bazzinilab.bsky.social Lab)

Today at #FridayScienceClub!

(2/2) In our latest #WhatIf story, Investigator Kamena Kostova asks: what if we could find defective ribosomes and clear them before they contribute to diseases like #cancer and #neurodegeneration? 🔗 Read more: bit.ly/3P21Y5o

(1/2) #WhatIf we could detect and remove the broken machinery inside our cells? In every cell, millions of #ribosomes build the proteins that keep us alive. But when they break down, the effects can ripple across human #health.

More moments from our Spring Science Retreat📸

We are saddened to learn of the passing of pioneering scientist Craig Venter, whose work helped transform modern biology. We were honored to host him at our #BIGIDEAS event last December, where he reflected on a career defined by bold thinking and relentless curiosity. Learn more: bit.ly/48BWipA

Big questions. Fresh perspectives. Shared expertise. 🔬 Our Spring Science Retreat is a chance for investigators and technology center leaders to come together, exchange ideas, and push #science forward together.

Big questions. Breakthrough science. Real-world impact. Get the latest discoveries and stories from the Stowers Institute delivered straight to your inbox. 📧 🔗 Sign up: www.stowers.org/signup

#Biology today isn’t short on data, it’s overflowing with it. The real challenge? Making sense of billions of data points at once. That’s where #Bioinformatics meets #AI, unlocking patterns hidden deep within DNA and proteins and turning complexity into discovery. 🧬 🔗 More: bit.ly/4t6WOmB

Watch the full #BIGIDEAS talk featuring @larschittka.bsky.social, Ph.D., and David Stern, Ph.D., as they explore how small creatures do remarkably complex things, and what that reveals about life itself. 🐝 ▶️ Watch here: youtu.be/tutk6rmFRo4?...

A look back at #SRCKC26. From cutting-edge science to meaningful collaboration, last week brought together researchers exploring the future of genomics, development, and AI. Join us at an upcoming Stowers Research Conference: bit.ly/4hxsvBK

We’re excited to see Investigator @juliazeitlinger.bsky.social named a 2026 NextGen Leader by the Kansas City Business Journal. Her #research is advancing how scientists interpret the #genome, using #AI to uncover patterns that were once invisible. 🔗Read the full story: bit.ly/4wcn7ef

This week’s #MicroscopyMonday shows human breast epithelial cells growing in a 3D matrix. 🔬(Gerton Lab)

Day two of #SRCKC26 delivered. From insightful talks to lively discussions, yesterday highlighted the power of bringing together diverse perspectives in #genomics, #development, and #AI. On to the final day!

Happy Administrative Professionals Day Sara! Thanks for all your work! You are great! @stowersinstitute.bsky.social

Day 1 ✔️ #SRCKC26 Researchers from around the world are gathering at the Institute to explore how #genomic technologies and #AI are reshaping our understanding of gene regulation and #development.

Since the first cell emerged, life on Earth has evolved in astounding ways. 🌎 This #EarthDay, we’re celebrating the incredible diversity of life that helps scientists understand how biology works. Learn more: bit.ly/3ZnG9ht

Thank you for joining us for #BIGIDEAS! 🐝

A fascinating night of #science and #discovery at the Institute. At #BIGIDEAS: The Minds of Insects, @larschittka.bsky.social , Ph.D., and David Stern, Ph.D., shared insights into how insects perceive the world and the #biology that powers their remarkable abilities. 🐝 🔗: bit.ly/4mD7rfm

A full house joined us at the Institute for BIG IDEAS: The Minds of Insects. 🐝 Speakers David Stern, Ph.D., and @larschittka.bsky.social Ph.D., took the audience inside the surprising #biology of aphids and bees. Explore the highlights & join us in the fall for another #BIGIDEAS! bit.ly/4mD7rfm

This week's #MicroscopyMonday shows the early pupal optic lobe in the fruit fly. 🪰 Some newborn #neurons had key developmental signals altered to understand the effect on the type of neurons they become. 🧠 (Özel Lab)

Our (@jeffsekelsky.bsky.social, Corbin Jones & me) #Meiosis, Recombination & Evo of Sex class @uncchapelhill.bsky.social loved talking w/ Jennifer Gerton from @stowersinstitute.bsky.social about her super cool @nature.com paper on #Robertsonian chromosomes + unpublished work! doi.org/10.1038/s415...

#BIGIDEAS: The Minds of Insects underway! We are ready for an evening of conversation and discovery with Lars Chittka, Ph.D, and David Stern, Ph.D. 🐝

Happy #FountainDay, Kansas City! ⛲ As fountains across the City of Fountains return for the season, here are a view from our campus.

NEXT WEEK #SRCKC26: Development, Regulatory Genomics & #AI will bring together leading scientists exploring how genomic technologies and computational models are advancing our understanding of gene regulation and #development. 📍Kansas City 📅 April 22–24 🔗 Register here: bit.ly/4kUvNAn

This #EarthMonth, we’re celebrating the organisms that help scientists understand how life works. From yeast & fruit flies to #zebrafish & coral, researchers at the Institute study a diverse range of organisms to uncover the biological processes that shape human #health and disease. bit.ly/3ZnG9ht

A 2,000-mile bike ride to your first day of work. 🚲 That’s how Stowers Fellow Friederike Benning, arrived in #KansasCity before beginning her #research at the Institute. She shared the story, and what the journey taught her about #science, on @kcur.org. 🎧 Listen here: bit.ly/4tElNOT

This #MicroscopyMonday is your #brain in motion. 🧠 Magenta = neurons Cyan = DNA These cells in the motor cortex help control how you move through the world—every second of every day. (Si Lab)

Before #Parkinsons symptoms appear, changes may already be happening at the molecular level. In the Halfmann Lab, researchers use #AI to study when proteins first begin to cluster—early signals that could reveal how #neurodegenerative disease begins. #WorldParkinsonsDay 🔗 bit.ly/4vcTpFb

Ended the week with great presentations at yesterday's #FridayScienceClub!

#DNA may hold far more protein-coding instructions than we once realized. 🧬 A collaboration including @bazzinilab.bsky.social, published in Nucleic Acids Research has created an expanded catalog of these hidden genetic elements, possibly opening new doors for biomedical #research. bit.ly/4ce6G7F

Please join us today for a talk by Dr. Sánchez Alvarado from @stowersinstitute.bsky.social on "Understanding the Sources of Regenerative Capacity In Animals" 🌟🔬🧪

#AI is reshaping how we study gene regulation. Hear from leaders, including Keynote Speaker Bing Ren, who are at the forefront of AI-powered #biology. Join us for #SRCKC26 4/22–24 in Kansas City. 🔗 Register today: bit.ly/4kUvNAn

A few behind-the-scenes moments from Investigator @juliazeitlinger.bsky.social's photo shoot for the Kansas City Business Journal's 2026 NextGen Leaders. 📸 We were proud to see Julia recognized among #KansasCity’s emerging leaders shaping the future of our community.

#WhatIf we could detect disease decades before symptoms appear? Stowers scientists are studying the earliest molecular changes in cells to understand how diseases like #Alzheimers begin. Better #health starts with understanding the #biology of life itself. #WorldHealthDay 🔗 bit.ly/4v1D85W