David Stern
Investigator
Stowers Institute for Medical Research
Insect-Plant Interactions, Genetics and Genomics, Evolutionary Biology, Molecular and Cell Biology, Neuroscience, Plant Biology, Behavioral Genetics
Profile
David Stern, Ph.D., is an Investigator at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research and a Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Investigator. Stern joined the Institute in February 2026 after more than a decade at HHMI’s Janelia Research Campus, where he served as a Senior Group Leader since 2011 and built a research program spanning genetics, evolution, neuroscience, and field-based systems.
Stern investigates how insects hijack plant development to induce plant galls. The Stern lab has discovered that aphids inject a novel family of BICYCLE proteins that appear to contribute to gall development. The team is studying many aspects of this problem, with a focus on how BICYCLE proteins alter plant cell biology. He's investigating where they go in plant cells, what they do, and what they interact with. Insights from this work could one day help inform more precise strategies for controlling crop pests.
