Paul W. Sternberg

Paul W. Sternberg is the Bren Professor of Biology and William K. Bowes Jr. Leadership Chair at the California Institute of Technology's Division of Biology and Biological Engineering. He holds a B.A. from Hampshire College (1978) and a Ph.D. from MIT (1984). His research focuses on systems biology of C. elegans development, neural circuits underlying sex and sleep, and functional genomics of nematodes. Sternberg pioneered tools like Textpresso for text mining in biological literature and co-leads WormBase, a central database for nematode research. His work includes sequencing genomes of parasitic nematodes and studying behavior, such as CO₂ response and host-finding mechanisms. Awards include HHMI Investigator (1992–2017) and the Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal (2023).

Research interests span systems biology, evolutionary biology, and microbiology. Key projects involve understanding developmental decisions (e.g., dauer larva formation), neural circuitry, and applying genomics to combat parasitic nematodes. Collaborations include the Alliance of Genome Resources and Gene Ontology Consortium. Sternberg’s lab also studies cell migration and signaling pathways in development, leveraging CRISPR and optogenetics.

• Education: B.A., Hampshire College; Ph.D., MIT
• Awards: HHMI Investigator (1992–2017), Thomas Hunt Morgan Medal (2023)
• Labs/Teams: Sternberg Lab, WormBase, Alliance of Genome Resources