Featured Story:
Fruit Flies Can Be Guided to Interact With a Ball
March 19, 2026
Kenichi Iwasaki shares the highlights of two recent studies exploring the use of fruit flies in research probing the neural mechanisms of object interaction. This work includes the development of a behavioral study paradigm where fruit flies are guided to interact with a small plastic ball and found to manipulate it with great dexterity.
Community Stories
February 24, 2026
How do we prepare early-career scientists for today’s wide range of paths in and beyond the lab? Jelena Patrnogić shares a new flexible competency framework she developed with Xiuqi Li and David Van Vactor that makes expectations clearer for trainees, mentors, and programs, and supports growth across both research and professional skills.
Original article in: PLoS Biology >
February 3, 2026
iPSC-derived sensory neurons provide an accessible platform for scientists to study sensory biology and disease; however, these cells are similar to embryonic neurons. Chelsey Derderian-LeBlang and Rosalind Segal present a protocol to accelerate the maturation of iPSC-derived sensory neurons, by providing external signals from satellite glial cells. They show that satellite glia, while previously described as a support cell, play a major role in both sensory neuron development and degeneration.
Original article in: Stem Cell Reports >
January 14, 2026
New experiences trigger rapid changes in gene activity and DNA accessibility in the brain’s memory-center, the hippocampus. Lisa Traunmüller and Erin Duffy describe new research from the Greenberg lab that uses advanced sequencing to map how different hippocampal regions respond at the molecular level to a novel environment — revealing how experiences shape brain circuits that underlie learning and memory.
Original article in: Nature Communications >
October 31, 2025
Rémy Furrer and Amanda Merner share the results of a survey of 1,052 U.S. adults, which found that neurotechnologies targeting motor symptoms were viewed as more acceptable and beneficial than those for mood or memory symptoms. Non-surgical options like transcranial magnetic stimulation were generally preferred over invasive ones such as deep brain stimulation.
Original article in: Device >
In the News
April 29, 2026
New research from Bob Datta and colleagues, first author David Brann, created the first detailed map of the thousands of smell receptors in the mouse nose, catching up with similar achievements in sight, hearing, and touch. These findings provide the foundational knowledge necessary to identify develop better therapies for the loss of smell.
Original article in: Cell >
April 29, 2026
The third-most common kind of childhood brain tumor, supratentorial ependymoma, is an aggressive cancer that often returns after surgery and radiation therapy. New research from Mariella Filbin and colleagues, co-first authors Daeun Jeong and Sara Danielli mapped the different cell types in these tumors, finding they form neighborhoods based on cell characteristics. By learning more about the makeup of these tumors, researchers hope to better understand how to treat them and prevent recurrence.
Original article in: Nature >
April 29, 2026
New research from Zhengyi Chen, Yilai Shu, and colleagues, shows that an experimental gene therapy for people with an inherited form of deafness led to durable hearing improvements, with associated gains in patients’ ability to recognize speech.
From Read more in the Harvard Gazette and at HMS News.
Original article in: Nature >
Awards & Honors
April 29, 2026
Round up of awards and honors earned by the HBI community.
March 26, 2026
Round up of awards and honors earned by the HBI community.