A. Sánchez Alvarado

Meet #StowersGrad Faculty, Assistant Investigator Neşet Özel ⬇️ #GradSchool #PhD

Eight Fascinating Scientific Discoveries From 2025 That Could Lead to New Inventions By studying the natural world, scientists find blueprints for innovations that can improve human lives—in the genes of a shark, the fur of a polar bear and the flipper of an extinct reptile

Golden apple snails can regrow an eye in just one month & scientists in the @planaria1.bsky.social Lab helped uncover the genetic blueprint behind this remarkable ability.

Highlighted in @smithsonianmag.bsky.social 's roundup of the most fascinating scientific discoveries of 2025.

bit.ly/3YY4GdP

Always a pleasure to welcome outstanding scientists to campus. 📍

Today’s Seminar Series featured @thejainlab.bsky.social from @rutgersu.bsky.social, hosted by the Zanders Lab. Thanks for the insightful talk! #SciSky

(2/2) The lab's #discovery forces us to rethink long-standing assumptions about memory and the consequence of #amyloid formation in the #brain, potentially providing new avenues for treating amyloid-related disorders of the nervous system.

A little winter magic on campus. ❄️ Stay warm, #KansasCity.

A great presentation at #FridayScienceClub last week!

New #research from the Si Lab has identified the mechanism that makes a fleeting moment unforgettable. The team has provided the first direct evidence that the nervous system can deliberately form amyloids to help turn sensory experiences into lasting memories. @pnas.org (1/2)

More: bit.ly/3LPwu0Y

#ImmigrantStoryoftheWeek 🔬 Meet Alejandro Sánchez Alvarado, a Venezuelan molecular biologist whose curiosity was sparked by his grandfather’s ranch. His research reveals how organisms regenerate themselves, offering insight into treating human disease. Watch the full video: https://vilcek.co/3YPdH8W

A full house last Friday to honour Dr. #JoanGuinovart—visionary scientist, leader, and advocate for science. His legacy spans discovery, institutions, and generations of researchers.

Full story & videos from the event here:

➡️ https://shorturl.at/zk6Sa

#IRBBarcelona

Meet a #StowersGrad #PhD student in this #StudentSpotlight! ⬇️

Curious what it's like to be a #CompBio Scholar at the Institute? Find out in this Q&A! ⬇️

Hear from previous Summer Scholars ⬇️ and apply before the deadline THIS Friday to spend the summer doing hands-on research!

A milestone moment for #Stowers25 🎉 We were honored to receive a Missouri State Resolution celebrating the Institute’s 25 years of advancing foundational biomedical #research.

Thank you to Missouri Senator Patty Lewis for recognizing the impact of #science in our state.

What comes after 25 years of #discovery?

A future where #biology is redefined, powered by new technologies, expansive thinking, and the freedom to ask the biggest questions. At Stowers, we’re not just keeping pace with #science. We’re helping set it. #Stowers25

Learn more: bit.ly/46KoZ2Y

The #CompBio Scholars Program provides a valuable, career-enhancing research and mentoring opportunity for early-career computational biologists and bioinformaticians. Don't miss your chance to apply⬇️

🔬✨ 2025 in Review

From welcoming new scientists to bold discoveries across #biology, 2025 was a milestone year at the Institute, marking 25 years of curiosity-driven #discovery.

Explore 15 highlights ➡️ bit.ly/48JGku3

Last night, Biff Mann, Senior Research Associate in the @planaria1.bsky.social Lab joined Science Over Spirits for a talk titled “The Joy of Science: the quest for the unknown.”

Biff explored what drives scientists to ask big questions, and why the unknown is where the excitement begins. 🧪🔍

🎙️ President and Chief Scientific Officer @planaria1.bsky.social, joined @scifri.bsky.social to explore the #biology of #regeneration — and what tiny worms can teach us about renewal, resilience, and growth. 🪱

🎧 Listen to the full episode: www.sciencefriday.com/segments/reg...

Un nuevo hallazgo revela cómo el embrión asume el control de la vida desde sus primeras horas Un equipo internacional de investigación ha identificado por primera vez un mecanismo decisivo que permite al embrión activar su propio genoma y dar inicio autónomo a su desarrollo.

#Research from the @bazzinilab.bsky.social helped uncover how embryos activate their own #genome in the earliest hours of development—an essential step for continued growth. 🧬 #ResearchSky #SciSky

📄 Read more in @antena3com.bsky.social: www.antena3.com/noticias/cie...

The moon wrasse, Thalassoma lunare

Moon wrasses are protogynous hermaphrodites: all individuals start life as females & some later change sex to become males

Sex change can be rapid (a few days days) & is associated with social structure

The double-spined or banded sea urchin Echinothrix calamaris. A long‑spined, nocturnal Indo‑Pacific echinoid.

Newly metamorphosed juveniles possess short spines and gradually develop the characteristic long and short spine complement of adults as the test plates grow and add new tubercles.

Reflecting on a Year of Discovery: A Message from our President and… Alejandro Sánchez Alvarado, Ph.D., reflects on a year of discovery, gratitude, and the community that helps support our mission.

A year of #discovery, driven by curiosity and community. 🔬

Our President and Chief Scientific Officer @planaria1.bsky.social reflects on the #science, people, and shared purpose that shaped 2025, & why the future of discovery at the Institute is bright.

🔗Read the full message here: bit.ly/4aNOvqv

Congratulations to Investigator @kkostova.bsky.social!

In axolotls and flatworms, regeneration is a body-wide choreograph Discover how axolotls and flatworms coordinate regeneration through body-wide signals, revealing a complex healing process.

Cut a flatworm in pieces—and each piece can regrow a whole animal. 🪱 Featured in The Hindu, #research from the @planaria1.bsky.social Lab helps explain how #regeneration in flatworms & axolotls depends on coordinated signals across the entire body—not just local stem cell niches.

🔗 bit.ly/4aNDaGX

Did you know that over the past year, most of your body has replaced itself cell by cell? Even so, according to biologist Alejandro Sánchez Alvarado, you've been one-upped by flatworms: buff.ly/ky5PM6u

Your Cells Are Always Building A Whole New You Over the past year, most of your body has replaced itself cell by cell. What can we learn from other animals’ dramatic feats of regeneration?

Fantastic interview with @planaria1.bsky.social "about the science of regeneration & the biology lessons we can carry into the new year."

#regeneration #metaphors

www.sciencefriday.com/segments/reg...

Your Cells Are Always Building A Whole New You Over the past year, most of your body has replaced itself cell by cell. What can we learn from other animals’ dramatic feats of regeneration?

New year, new you—literally. 🧬 Pres & CSO @planaria1.bsky.social joined @scifri.bsky.social to ring in 2026 with a convo about #regeneration, tiny worms with extraordinary abilities, and what #biology can teach us about renewal and resilience. 🪱

🎧 Listen now: www.sciencefriday.com/segments/reg...

#2025Rewind ⏪ #BIGIDEAS returned in 2025, bringing science, curiosity, and conversation back to the stage. From plant intelligence to a dialogue with Craig Venter, the series connects #research with the public.

Learn more: www.stowers.org/events/big-i...

#2025Rewind ⏪ Stowers scientists have established the apple snail as a new #research organism for investigating eye #regeneration, which may hold the key for restoring vision due to damage and disease.

🐌Read here: www.stowers.org/news/seeing-...

Count me in!