Gerald Crabtree

Gerald Crabtree is the David Korn, MD, Professor of Pathology and Professor of Developmental Biology at Stanford University School of Medicine. He is a member of multiple interdisciplinary institutes, including Bio-X, the Cardiovascular Institute, SPARK at Stanford, and the Stanford Cancer Institute. His research bridges chromatin biology, cancer, neurodevelopment, and synthetic biology, with a focus on ATP-dependent chromatin remodeling complexes such as BAF (mSWI/SNF).

His laboratory investigates how mutations in chromatin regulators contribute to cancer and neurodevelopmental disorders. He has pioneered methods using synthetic ligands to control gene function and chromatin dynamics. His work has revealed that chromatin remodeling complexes are highly dosage-sensitive and context-specific, with unique neural assemblies playing critical roles in brain development.

Dr. Crabtree's recent publications focus on:

• Minute-scale changes in BAF complex composition in response to synaptic activity
• Chemical-induced proximity strategies to reactivate tumor suppressor genes in lymphoma
• Chromatin priming in T cell development
• Transdiagnostic metabolic endophenotypes in neuropsychiatric disorders

His honors include:

• Member of the National Academy of Sciences (1997)
• HHMI Investigator (1988–2021)
• NIH Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award (2013)
• Stanford Faculty Mentor of the Year (2008)
• Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (2015)

He actively mentors postdoctoral fellows and doctoral students, serving as advisor to Samuel Kim and sponsor to Moritz Classen, Sabin Nettles, and Yanlan Wang. He teaches in multiple graduate programs, including Cancer Biology, Developmental Biology, Immunology, and Chemical and Systems Biology. His lab, accessible at www.crablab.com, continues to explore fundamental mechanisms of chromatin regulation with therapeutic implications.