Tomas Kirchhausen, Ph.D.

Tomas Kirchhausen, Ph.D.

Senior Investigator, Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine (Boston Children's Hospital)
Springer Family Professor of Pediatrics (HMS)
Professor of Cell Biology (HMS)

The Kirchhausen Lab focuses on understanding processes that mediate and regulate cellular membrane remodeling, the biogenesis of organelles, and the ways by which viruses, biologicals and oligonucleotides are delivered to the cell interior. 

By direct observation of molecular events obtained using Lattice Light Sheet Microscopy and Lattice Light Sheet Microscopy optimized with Adaptive Optics (AO-LLSM), frontier optical-imaging modalities with high temporal resolution and spatial precision, we aim to bridge the gap between molecules and cells, either as independent entities in culture, as components of organoids, or as constituents of living tissues. The richness and magnitude of the big-data obtained over periods ranging from seconds to hours create new challenges for obtaining quantitative representations of the observed dynamics and for deriving accurate and comprehensive models for the underlying developmental mechanisms. With these type of dynamic studies we expect to integrate molecular snapshots obtained at molecular and atomic resolution using cryoEM with live-cell processes, in an effort to generate ‘molecular movies' allowing us to obtain frameworks for analyzing some of the molecular contacts and switches that participate in the regulation, availability, and intracellular traffic of the many molecules involved in signal transduction, immune responsiveness, lipid homeostasis, cell-cell recognition and organelle biogenesis. Such biological phenomena have importance for our understanding of many diseases including cancer, viral infection and pathogen invasion, Alzheimer's, as well as other neurological diseases.

Harvard Medical School

Dept. of Cell Biology, WAB-133

200 Longwood Avenue

Boston, MA 02115

Lab telephone: 617-713-8888

Lab fax: 617-713-8898

Constitutive Endolysosomal Perforation in Neurons allows Induction of a-Synuclein Aggregation by Internalized Pre-Formed Fibrils.
Authors: Authors: Sanyal A, Scanavachi G, Somerville E, Saminathan A, Nair A, Oikonomou A, Hatzakis NS, Kirchhausen T.
bioRxiv
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Deep learning assisted single particle tracking for automated correlation between diffusion and function.
Authors: Authors: Kæstel-Hansen J, de Sautu M, Saminathan A, Scanavachi G, Da Cunha Correia RFB, Nielsen AJ, Bleshøy SV, Boomsma W, Kirchhausen T, Hatzakis NS.
bioRxiv
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Temporal Dynamics and Stoichiometry in Notch Signaling - from Notch Synaptic Complex Formation to NICD Nuclear Entry.
Authors: Authors: Tveriakhina L, Scanavachi G, Egan ED, Correia RBDC, Martin AP, Rogers JM, Yodh JS, Aster JC, Kirchhausen T, Blacklow SC.
bioRxiv
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A spatiotemporal Notch interaction map from plasma membrane to nucleus.
Authors: Authors: Martin AP, Bradshaw GA, Eisert RJ, Egan ED, Tveriakhina L, Rogers JM, Dates AN, Scanavachi G, Aster JC, Kirchhausen T, Kalocsay M, Blacklow SC.
Sci Signal
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A Serotonergic Axon-Cilium Synapse Drives Nuclear Signaling to Maintain Chromatin Accessibility.
Authors: Authors: Sheu SH, Upadhyayula S, Dupuy V, Pang S, Deng F, Wan J, Walpita D, Pasolli HA, Houser J, Sanchez-Martinez S, Brauchi SE, Banala S, Freeman M, Xu CS, Kirchhausen T, Hess HF, Lavis L, Li Y, Chaumont-Dubel S, Clapham DE.
Microsc Microanal
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Complete Protection from SARS-CoV-2 Lung Infection in Mice Through Combined Intranasal Delivery of PIKfyve Kinase and TMPRSS2 Protease Inhibitors.
Authors: Authors: Kant R, Kareinen L, Ojha R, Strandin T, Saber SH, Lesnikova A, Kuivanen S, Sirnonen T, Joensuu M, Vapalahti O, Kirchhausen T, Kipar A, Balistreri G.
bioRxiv
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Structure-based design of a SARS-CoV-2 Omicron-specific inhibitor.
Authors: Authors: Yang K, Wang C, Kreutzberger AJB, White KI, Pfuetzner RA, Esquivies L, Kirchhausen T, Brunger AT.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
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Deep neural network automated segmentation of cellular structures in volume electron microscopy.
Authors: Authors: Gallusser B, Maltese G, Di Caprio G, Vadakkan TJ, Sanyal A, Somerville E, Sahasrabudhe M, O'Connor J, Weigert M, Kirchhausen T.
J Cell Biol
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The beauty of simplicity in membrane biology.
Authors: Authors: Stachowiak JC, Kirchhausen T.
Nat Cell Biol
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An antibody from single human VH-rearranging mouse neutralizes all SARS-CoV-2 variants through BA.5 by inhibiting membrane fusion.
Authors: Authors: Luo S, Zhang J, Kreutzberger AJB, Eaton A, Edwards RJ, Jing C, Dai HQ, Sempowski GD, Cronin K, Parks R, Ye AY, Mansouri K, Barr M, Pishesha N, Williams AC, Vieira Francisco L, Saminathan A, Peng H, Batra H, Bellusci L, Khurana S, Alam SM, Montefiori DC, Saunders KO, Tian M, Ploegh H, Kirchhausen T, Chen B, Haynes BF, Alt FW.
Sci Immunol
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