Variants to Function & Mechanism

Variants to Function & Mechanism2024-07-02T14:12:09-04:00

Determining the detailed mechanisms by which variants in the human genome or genes associated with human genetic variants operate to contribute to disease or health/wellness.

News | Variants to Function & Mechanism

Riboflavin depletion promotes longevity and metabolic hormesis in Caenorhabditis elegans

This study makes a very important statement about assumptions that have been made regarding what is “good for you” in aging. In this study led by CGM Investigator Alex Soukas and CGM and MGH Endocrine Instructor Armen Yerevanian, the authors show that reducing levels of an essential vitamin, riboflavin, which is necessary to make the cofactor FAD, is beneficial in aging, prompting stress defenses and promoting lifespan extension in C. elegans. While there is a ways to go to prove benefits in humans, it challenges the “dogma” that with vitamins more is better for you.

December 6, 2022

Publication

CGM Primary Investigator

December 6, 2022|

Tissue-specific and repeat length-dependent somatic instability of the X-linked dystonia parkinsonism-associated CCCTCT repeat

The length of a CCCTCT repeat within the SINE-VNTR-Alu retrotransposon associated with X-linked dystonia-parkinsonism (XDP) is inversely correlated with the age of disease onset. Here, the Wheeler lab investigated the instability of this repeat. Findings reveal:1) length-dependent and expansion-biased instability, with greater expansions in brain than in blood; 2) brain region-specific patterns of expansion that are broadly similar to those of the Huntington’s disease CAG repeat; 3) evidence that CCCTCT expansion propensity may be modified by local chromatin structure. The data support a role for CCCTCT somatic expansion underlying the rate of XDP onset.

December 5, 2022

Publication

Investigator Name
December 5, 2022|

Faculty | Variants to Function & Mechanism

Rakesh Karmacharya, MD, PhD

Categories: Training Program Faculty, Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Associate Professor of Psychiatry
Massachusetts General Hospital: Physician Investigator
Physician Investigator, Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School

Our lab uses experimental approaches at the intersection of chemical biology, genetics and stem cell biology to investigate cellular pathways relevant to schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism and related neuropsychiatric disorders. We utilize complementary approaches in specific cellular subtypes and in three-dimensional cerebral organoids generated from human iPSCs. We employ a range of methods including high-content imaging to investigate synaptic biology, multi-electrode arrays to examine neuronal function along with transcriptomic, proteomic and metabolomic experiments. We seek to develop new small molecules that can modulate disease-related processes in patient-derived neurons and develop new therapeutic approaches for targeting cognitive deficits in psychiatric disorders.

Rakesh Karmacharya, MD, PhD

Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School

W. Taylor Kimberly, MD, PhD

Categories: Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Associate Professor of Neurology
Massachusetts General Hospital: Chief, Division of Neurocritical Care
Chief, Division of Neurocritical Care, Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

The Kimberly Lab is committed to reducing the devastating effects of acute brain injury by focusing on translational studies that bridge basic science and clinical research. We believe that therapeutic discovery is not a linear path from fundamental mechanism to new drug, but instead a cycle that requires bi-directional and multidisciplinary integration of basic and patient-oriented research. A presence at each stage of discovery—both directly and through strategic collaboration—is central to our mission to advancing new treatments. Consequently, our laboratory is highly multidisciplinary and collaborative, and our work could not be accomplished without our collaborative partners.

W. Taylor Kimberly, MD, PhD

Associate Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

Ben P. Kleinstiver, PhD

Categories: Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Assistant Professor of Pathology
Massachusetts General Hospital: Investigator; Kayden-Lambert MGH Research Scholar 2023-2028
Investigator; Kayden-Lambert MGH Research Scholar 2023-2028, Massachusetts General Hospital
Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School

The Kleinstiver lab develops genome editing technologies for research applications and for the treatment of human diseases. We develop new approaches and methods to engineer genome editing enzymes, to optimize the properties of CRISPR tools, and to add new functionalities to the editor toolbox, all with the ambition of enabling new treatments for disease.

Ben P. Kleinstiver, PhD

Assistant Professor of Pathology, Harvard Medical School

Phil H. Lee, PhD

Categories: Variants to Diagnosis, Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Assistant Professor of Psychiatry
Massachusetts General Hospital: Assistant in Research
Investigator, Massachusetts General Hospital
Associate Professor, Harvard Medical School

We use computational and statistical approaches to understand the genetic bases of complex neuropsychiatric traits and mental disorders. Multivariate pathway analysis forms the backbone of our research on identifying disease risk genes and mechanisms. We also apply multi-modal data analysis integrating genomic and neuroimaging data.

Phil H. Lee, PhD

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School

Marcy E. MacDonald, PhD

Categories: Populations to Variants, Variants to Diagnosis, Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Professor of Neurology
Massachusetts General Hospital: Research (Non-Clinical) Staff
Research (Non-Clinical) Staff, Massachusetts General Hospital
Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

Our research, evolving from the discovery of the genetic causes of inherited brain disorders (hereditary spastic paraparesis, neurofibromatosis, neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis, Huntington’s disease), is now largely focused on the DNA variants that modify the effects of the unstable expanded CAG repeat that causes Huntington’s disease. We do molecular genetic studies with disease and population cohorts and genetically precise model systems. Our goal is to enable timely intervention, diagnosis and disease-management.

Marcy E. MacDonald, PhD

Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

Jonathan Rosand, MD, MSc

Categories: Training Program Faculty, Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Professor of Neurology
Massachusetts General Hospital: J. P. Kistler Endowed Chair in Neurology
J. P. Kistler Endowed Chair in Neurology, Massachusetts General Hospital
Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

The hallmark of our work is the combination of careful clinical characterization of patients with the most rigorous approaches to genetics. We work in partnership with patients and their families to understand the factors that contribute to maintaining vascular brain health across the lifespan. We are a leading contributor to the performance and analysis of high-throughput genome-wide association and sequencing studies in stroke and related traits. At our core, we serve as a training ground for outstanding scientists and clinician-scientists who go on to become world-class leaders in the field. The lab has created a legacy of multidisciplinary teams that are successfully tackling some of the most pressing challenges in brain disease. Among these teams is the International Stroke Genetics Consortium, which we founded in 2007 to bring together the world’s pre-eminent stroke investigators.

Jonathan Rosand, MD, MSc

Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

Jeremiah M. Scharf, MD, PhD

Categories: Populations to Variants, Training Program Faculty, Variants to Diagnosis, Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Assistant Professor of Neurology
Massachusetts General Hospital: Physician-Scientist
Physician-Scientist, Massachusetts General Hospital
Assistant Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

The Scharf lab investigates the genetic and neurobiological mechanisms of Tourette Syndrome (TS) and related developmental neuropsychiatric disorders that lie at the interface between traditional concepts of neurologic and psychiatric disease, including obsessive compulsive spectrum disorders (OCD/OCSD) and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). We conduct genetic and clinical research to identify both genetic and non-genetic risk factors that contribute to the predisposition of TS, ADHD, and OCD in patients and families. We hope to identify novel targets for treatment, to understand the course of TS and related conditions at a patient-specific level, and to better predict treatment response.

Jeremiah M. Scharf, MD, PhD

Assistant Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School

Jordan W. Smoller, MD, ScD

Categories: Training Program Faculty, Variants to Diagnosis, Variants to Disease & Traits, Variants to Function & Mechanism
Harvard Medical School: Professor of Psychiatry
Massachusetts General Hospital: MGH Trustees Endowed Chair in Psychiatric Neuroscience
Massachusetts General Hospital: MGH Trustees Endowed Chair in Psychiatric Neuroscience
MGH Trustees Endowed Chair in Psychiatric Neuroscience, Massachusetts General Hospital
MGH Trustees Endowed Chair in Psychiatric Neuroscience, Massachusetts General Hospital
Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School

The focus of Dr. Smoller’s research interests has been:

  • Understanding the genetic and environmental determinants of psychiatric disorders across the lifespan.
  • Integrating genomics and neuroscience to unravel how genes affect brain structure and function.
  • Using “big data”, including electronic health records and genomics, to advance precision medicine.

Jordan W. Smoller, MD, ScD

Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School

We are hiring! We are inviting applications for full-time CGM faculty with an Assistant or Associate Professor of Neurology appointment at Harvard Medical School (HMS), commensurate with accomplishments and experiences. See more and apply on our careers page >

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