Gladstone Institutes

04/26/2026

Get to know Shu Zhang, a graduate student in bioinformatics in Katie Pollard’s lab at Gladstone, where she’s using machine learning to uncover how DNA sequence variation shapes the 3D organization of the genome.

Originally from the Chicago suburbs and a Cornell University alum, Shu previously worked as a computational biologist at the Broad Institute. Now, her research focuses on leveraging deep learning to model genome folding and better understand how genetic variation contributes to diseases like autism, cancer, and congenital heart defects.

04/25/2026

🧬 Happy !

On April 25, we celebrate two landmark moments in science: the discovery of DNA's double helix and the completion of the Human Genome Project.

At Gladstone, DNA is the foundation to some of our most groundbreaking research. From next-gen CRISPR tools mapping the human immune system, to retron-based gene editing, to single-molecule sequencing that works on tiny biological samples, our scientists are turning genomic science into real medical breakthroughs.

Read about 5 ways our researchers are harnessing DNA to overcome disease 👇

For National DNA Day, discover how Gladstone scientists are utilizing the power of DNA to deepen our understanding of disease.

04/25/2026

Check out this highlight reel from Graduate Student Appreciation Week! 🎉 During this week-long celebration, we showcased the milestones and the people behind the science.

Grad students: you showed up, you showed out, and we're so glad you're here.

04/23/2026

Scientists at Gladstone expanded their retron-based genome editing technology beyond E. coli, showing it works in 15 diverse bacterial species.

04/22/2026

Scientist by day, potter and knitter by night 🧶

Meet Shu Zhang, a Gladstone graduate student using AI to study DNA.

Graduate student Shu Zhang uses machine learning to reveal how DNA variation shapes genome structure and drives disease.

04/22/2026

Today, we’re celebrating the incredible administrative professionals who keep everything at Gladstone running smoothly.

From coordinating complex schedules and supporting our scientists, to ensuring day-to-day operations never miss a beat, your work is essential to every discovery we make.

Thank you for your dedication, your attention to detail, and the countless ways you support our mission behind the scenes. We truly couldn’t do this without you.

Happy Administrative Professionals Day!

04/21/2026

Gladstone scientists, in collaboration with NVIDIA, developed a new AI model—MaxToki—that can predict how individual cells change as we age. By analyzing gene activity across the human lifespan, this model is helping uncover the genes that drive aging and age-related diseases.

When researchers tested the model’s predictions in heart cells, the results held up—activating certain genes triggered clear signs of aging.

This breakthrough opens the door to identifying therapies that could slow—or even reverse—cellular aging linked to diseases like heart disease and dementia.

The MaxToki model is publicly available, so scientists everywhere can build on this work and accelerate discovery.

04/20/2026

A team of scientists at Gladstone and UCSF created a new genetic roadmap that reveals hundreds of hidden players in HIV infection, including two proteins that stop HIV in its tracks. QBI UCSF

A new genetic roadmap reveals hundreds of hidden players in HIV infection, including two proteins that stop HIV in its tracks.

04/19/2026

New research from Yadong Huang’s team reveals how the APOE4 gene disrupts brain circuits early in life, identifying a reversible pathway in Alzheimer’s disease.

New research reveals how the APOE4 gene disrupts brain circuits early in life, identifying a reversible pathway in Alzheimer’s disease.

04/18/2026

For the millions of people who carry the gene APOE4, the strongest known genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, their brain activity may begin changing long before any memory problems appear. Now, researchers at Gladstone have uncovered a precise chain of molecular events behind those early changes and identified a potential way to reverse them.

Published in the journal Nature Aging, their new study in mouse models reveals how APOE4 triggers increased production of the protein Nell2, which makes neurons shrink and become hyperactive. The more hyperactive the neurons were in early life, the more severe were the memory problems the mice developed later in life.

Read more about this study on our website. Link in comments.

04/18/2026

The Pershing Square Foundation’s MIND Prize recognizes individuals making significant contributions to neuroscience, cognition, and neurodegenerative disease research. Ryan Corces was selected for his innovative approach to uncovering biological mechanisms that drive Alzheimer’s disease.

Ryan Corces, a researcher at Gladstone Institutes, has […]

04/18/2026

Researchers in the lab of Christina Theodoris have built a temporal foundation model that forecasts cell state trajectories across the human lifespan.

A temporal AI model predicts how human cells age and identifies targets to slow age-related disease progression.