John Gurdon as Traveller and as I like him most

Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz His experiments inspired me to enter Ph.D. research on DNA replication and RNA transcription in X. laevis. Thank you Sir John for making basic research so exciting. Love this picture of the squamous epithelial cells keeping him company. 🔬

🚨 Just out in Science: 2/3 of bacterial gene families have a preferred position on the chromosome—and natural selection put them there! science.org/doi/10.1126/sc… Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf CEPLAS

We felt it during our lab meeting so many miles away, in Pasadena

This is exactly right and we'll experiment with this format in Woodstock Night Science in June! "Day science" prepared talks will be followed up on with "Night Science" explorations. Join us! #theconferencetoendallconferences

In this conference we couldn't care less where you published your story because 1. we only care if it's interesting and good and 2. participants will discuss unpublished work

My son sang last night. It’s hard to believe that before he was born, tests suggested he might not survive or thrive. I’m endlessly grateful for the path I chose. To study human embryos is not to lessen the mystery of life—but to honour it, and to save it when we can.

Dear all, Please comment on the importance of model organisms research

Is you support animal research, watch the video and comment!

While I’m a big fan of new technologies that help us study human biology…there’s still no replacement for animal research! I wrote an article outlining this in Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News genengnews.com/topics/transla…

I saw it firsthand at the #Lindau2025 Nobel Laureates meeting--international young scientists welcomed and recruited in Germany and elsewhere. Some of the very best are leaving, and many of the best will no longer come. wsj.com/politics/polic…

Society for Developmental Biology Another example of what a whole embryo of a model/ research animal provides that in silico and in vitro conditions cannot offer.

Warmest congratulations & thanks to brilliant member of our team Caltech Wenqi Hu, collaborator Jason Rose 💙 Vento (not on X) & HDBR for a fantastic journey in bringing this unique resource. We hope it will be valuable as a reference point to build more powerful stem cell models

Online now: Efficient stem cell-derived mouse embryo models for environmental studies dlvr.it/TMl3LF

Apply for the brand-new interdisciplinary PhD program in Dresden! Tony Hyman and I are seeking a student to study how condensates influence cellular reaction kinetics across different animal species. dresdencondensates.org/projects/b4/

New protocol for growing mouse embryo-like models (blastoids) from stem cells aiding study of effects of environmental factors on embryo development 📷 Victoria Jorgensen, Min Bao & Sergi Junyent et al Magdalena Zernicka-Goetz lab Caltech in Developmental Cell ➡️ bpod.org.uk/archive/2025/9…

John Gurdon, whom we lost today, was not only my mentor but a dear friend. We met 30 years ago in Cambridge. He believed in me more than I believed in myself. His generosity, boundless curiosity, and sense of adventure shaped my life as a scientist 🖤 He will be missed by many.

I’m excited to share a new postdoctoral opportunity in my lab to use chromosome engineering to study the consequences of chromosomal rearrangements in iPS cells. Check out the posting below and shoot me an email if you’re interested -

Polar Bearings: Cells at the poles at different times in the early developing embryo have distinct behaviours breaking symmetry Image made with Leica Microsystems microsystems 📷 Adiyant Lamba & Meng Zhu et al Cambridge University in eLife - the journal ➡️ bpod.org.uk/archive/2025/1… with John Ankers

Such a great pleasure to visit Harvard today - thank you all for coming to my talk to hear news about our embryos and their models!