Gail R. Martin facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Gail Roberta Martin
Martin in 2015
Born	Gail Roberta Zuckman 1944 (age 81–82) Bronx, New York, U.S.
Died	2026 (2027)
Alma mater	University of Wisconsin–Madison (UW-Madison) University of California Berkeley (UC Berkeley)
Spouse(s)	G. Steven Martin (m. 1969)
Children	1 son
Awards	Member, US National Academy of Sciences; Foreign Member, Royal Society; Pearl Meister Greengard Prize; E.G. Conklin Medal
Scientific career
Fields	Developmental Biology
Institutions	University of California, San Francisco (UCSF)

Gail Roberta Martin (born Zuckman, 1944-2026) was an important American biologist. She is famous for her groundbreaking work with special cells called pluripotent stem cells. These are like "master cells" that can turn into almost any other cell type in the body. She was the first to get these cells from normal embryos and called them embryonic stem cells. Dr. Martin also studied how certain signals, called fibroblast growth factors, help animals develop their organs. Her team also helped improve a method called gene targeting, which allows scientists to make specific changes to genes.

Early Life and School Days

Gail Martin grew up in The Bronx, New York. Her father was a pharmacist and her mother was a schoolteacher. She finished high school in 1960. Then, she studied Zoology at the University of Wisconsin, graduating in 1964.

After college, Gail went to the University of California, Berkeley. She studied Molecular Biology there. This was a busy time, as students were speaking up for their rights. Gail and her classmates often discussed important ideas. She earned her Ph.D. in 1971. During her studies, she worked in Dr. Harry Rubin's lab. There, she explored how cells called fibroblasts grow. Fibroblasts are common cells found in connective tissue. She also married Steven Martin, a scientist from Britain, during this time.

Discovering Stem Cells

After finishing her studies, Dr. Martin and her husband moved to London. In 1973, she worked with Dr. Martin J. Evans. Dr. Evans was studying special cells found in certain growths called teratocarcinomas. These growths contained "master cells" known as embryonal carcinoma (EC) cells. These EC cells were important because they could develop into many different types of cells.

Dr. Martin spent two years in Dr. Evans' lab. She created a way to find and keep these EC cells in their "master" state. She also learned how to make them change into other cell types in a lab dish. This important work helped pave the way for finding pluripotent stem cells in normal mouse and human embryos later on.

In 1976, Dr. Martin and her husband returned to California. She started working at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). There, she and her team showed that female EC cells had two active X chromosomes. This discovery helped scientists study how one of these X chromosomes usually becomes inactive in female cells.

Leading Research at UCSF

In 1976, Dr. Martin became a professor at UCSF. She opened her own lab, which was very active until 2012. Her biggest achievement was successfully getting pluripotent stem cells from normal mouse embryos. These early embryos are called blastocysts. Other scientists, Evans and Kaufman, also made this discovery around the same time.

Dr. Martin and her team used advanced genetic tools. They showed how important FGF signaling is for the development of many body parts, like arms and legs. FGF signaling is like a communication system between cells. Her lab also studied how the body controls these FGF signals. Their research showed that even small changes in these signals can greatly affect how an embryo develops.

Helping Other Scientists

Dr. Martin also helped lead the Developmental Biology program at UCSF for many years. She worked with a software engineer, Jonathan Scoles. Together, they created an online database. This database described all the special mice used for research at UCSF. These mice had small genetic changes. The database helped other scientists find specific mice for their studies. This saved a lot of time and money. It also encouraged scientists to work together more often.

From 2012 until her passing in 2026, Dr. Martin was a Professor Emerita at UCSF. This means she was a retired professor who still held an honored title. After retiring, she also volunteered at the San Francisco Asian Art Museum. She passed away in 2026 after a short illness.

Awards and Recognition

Dr. Martin received many important awards for her scientific work. These included:

• An American Cancer Society Faculty Research Award (1979–83).
• A Guggenheim Fellowship (1991–92).
• The Edwin Grant Conklin Medal (2002) from the Society for Developmental Biology.
• The Pearl Meister Greengard Prize (2007) from Rockefeller University. She shared this award with Beatrice Mintz and Elizabeth Robertson.
• The FASEB Excellence in Science Award (2011).

She also received an honorary doctorate degree from University College London in 2011. Dr. Martin gave many special lectures. She was the President of the Society for Developmental Biology from 2006 to 2007. She was also chosen as a member of important groups like the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (1991), the US National Academy of Sciences (2002), and a Foreign Member of the Royal Society (2015).