What if...?
This edition of the Stowers Institute’s “What if?” series follows Assistant Investigator Kamena Kostova, Ph.D., as she explores how cells detect defective ribosomes—and how uncovering these hidden failures could open new paths to treating cancer, neurodegeneration, and other diseases.
Assistant Investigator Kamena Kostova, Ph.D.
What if we could peer inside cells, see the molecular machine that builds every protein in the body, and witness the changes taking place? What if that machine—the ribosome—doesn’t always function as expected? And what if understanding those differences could help slow diseases like cancer and neurodegeneration?
For Kamena Kostova, Ph.D., these questions are central to how she approaches biology. And the independence to pursue big ideas took root early in life. Raised by her mother and grandmother in the mountain village of Shipka, Bulgaria, she lived in a culture where expectations for a young girl’s future were often narrowly defined. At home, those limits never took hold. “I was just very free,” she said. “I feel like I’ve always wanted to be a scientist, but I didn’t even know the word scientist.”
Kamena Kostova, Ph.D. as a child in Bulgaria
That early curiosity—paired with an openness to possibility—continues to shape her work today.
In the lab, Kostova studies ribosomes, the essential molecular machines that translate genetic code into proteins. For decades, scientists have focused on errors in the genetic instructions that ribosomes read. But Kostova began to ask a different question: What happens when the ribosome itself is the source of the problem? “There must be a way for cells to actually find defective ribosomes and deal with them,” she says. “And that was the question.”
That shift in perspective opened Kostova to new approaches. Every cell contains millions of ribosomes, making a single defective one extraordinarily difficult to detect. To address this, Kostova’s lab is developing tools to label and track malfunctioning ribosomes inside living cells—an approach that allows scientists to observe, in real time, how cells respond when their protein-building machinery breaks down.
Kamena Kostova, Ph.D. as a child
Her team is also exploring how ribosomes are built in the first place, studying systems like developing oocytes, where the process follows a distinct biological strategy. As these cells age, their ability to produce ribosomes changes, raising new questions about fertility and development. And for Kostova, the answers found in her lab serve to open the door to new questions and possibilities that she wants to pursue.
“I don’t like putting myself or my science in a box,” Kostova says. “I don’t like limits.”
The implications are significant. Defective ribosomes have been linked to a range of human diseases, including cancer and neurodegeneration. Understanding how cells identify and clear these faulty components could reveal entirely new strategies for slowing or even preventing disease. As new technology and tools enable her lab to study these systems more closely, Kostova sees a future where such questions move closer to answers and accelerate the potential for medical solutions. “What if we don’t have to wait?”
Assistant Investigator Kamena Kostova, Ph.D.
What if...?
30 April 2026
This edition of the Stowers Institute’s “What if?” series follows Assistant Investigator Kamena Kostova, Ph.D., as she explores how cells detect defective ribosomes—and how uncovering these hidden failures could open new paths to treating cancer, neurodegeneration, and other diseases.
Read Article
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