Tanzi Lab

Research Team

Rudy Tanzi, PhD
Joseph P. and Rose F. Kennedy Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School

Dr. Tanzi’s team was the first to use human stem cells to create three-dimensional mini human brain organoids and 3D neural-glial culture models of AD”. These models were the first to recapitulate all three key AD pathological hallmarks and have made drug screening exponentially faster and cheaper. He and his team have successfully used these organoids to screen for approved drugs and natural products that can be repurposed to treat AD brain pathology. Combinations of these drugs are now being tested in AD clinical trials. Dr. Tanzi has helped to develop several novel therapies for AD, including gamma-secretase modulators targeting amyloid pathology, for which a phase 1 clinical trial is being prepared. Dr. Tanzi has helped establish numerous biotech companies, including Amylyx, which developed the newly approved ALS drug, Relyvrio™. Dr. Tanzi also recently discovered that beta-amyloid plays a functional role in the brain as a host-defense peptide, leading to the “antimicrobial protection hypothesis” of AD.

Dr. Tanzi serves as Chair of the Cure Alzheimer’s Fund Research Leadership Group and on numerous scientific advisory and editorial boards, He has published nearly 700 research papers (>155,000 citations) and is one of the top 50 most cited neuroscientists in the world. He is a member of the National Academy of Medicine and has received the highest awards in his field, including the Metropolitan Life Foundation Award, Potamkin Prize, Ronald Reagan Award, Oneness in Humanity Award, Silver Innovator Award, the Smithsonian American Ingenuity Award, the Brain Research Foundation Award, and the Kary Mullis Award for Medical Research. He was named to TIME magazine’s list of TIME100 Most Influential People in the World. Dr. Tanzi is also a New York Times bestselling author who has co-authored the books Decoding Darkness and bestsellers Super Brain, Super Genes, and The Healing Self, for which he has hosted several television shows on PBS.

William Eimer, PhD
Instructor

In Alzheimer’s disease, amyloid beta (Aβ) and tau have long been perceived as destructive elements essential to neurodegeneration in AD, but little thought has been given to their natural functions. Our team discovered that both play roles in the innate immune system, acting as antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). AMPs exist throughout the body performing many functions including microbe capture and destruction, opsonization, chemotaxis, and immune response modulation. Existing as an important link between the Amyloid Cascade hypothesis and the Pathogen hypothesis of AD, our Antimicrobial Protection hypothesis views Aβ and tau as the first line of defense in the brain, stimulated by actual or perceived microbial insults. Disruptions from persistent activation, failed clearance, or irregular modulation result in AD pathology. Our team continues to elucidate essential pathways and antimicrobial functions of Aβ and tau to better understand AD etiology and uncover novel immune pathways that may be used for more effective treatments.

Deepak Kumar Vijaya Kumar, PhD
Instructor

Dr. Deepak Vijaya Kumar’s research is focused on characterization of Aβ protein of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) as an antimicrobial peptide (AMP). Dr. Kumar is currently an instructor at Mass General and Harvard Medical School in Dr. Rudolph Tanzi’s laboratory in the Genetics and Aging Research Unit. Dr. Kumar’s expertise comprises a combination of academic and industrial skill sets including microbiology, neuroscience, infection, and immunity that he has aptly applied to his current research. His other projects include characterization of the human amylin peptide (another amyloid peptide), investigation of the in vitro and in vivo endotoxin-neutralization properties of Aβ, and screening of peptide-antibiotic conjugate molecules for their blood-brain barrier crossing ability. Dr. Kumar’s paper published in Science Translational Medicine in 2016 was considered by many experts in the field a breakthrough and has impressed upon the field of AD the role of infection in early AD pathology. He has been working on the gut-brain link in AD progression in relation to the gut microbiome and their secondary metabolites and how they might impact the early AD pathology.

Chih-Chung "Jerry" Lin, PhD
Instructor

As an instructor at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Dr. Chih-Chung 'Jerry' Lin's research is focused on the roles of immune cells in the animal models of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Dr. Lin was trained as an immunologist, and his current research is dedicated to investigating the influence of peripheral immune cells (both innate and adaptive immune systems) on the pathogenesis of AD. He discovered that the depletion of mast cells, a type of innate immune cell, yields remarkable outcomes. AD mice without mast cells showed restored cognitive function, increased disease-associated microglia gene expression, and reduced markers indicative of reactive astrocytes. This endeavor seeks to uncover the immunological mechanisms that underlie the progression of Alzheimer's, with the ultimate goal of contributing to the development of innovative therapeutic approaches that could mitigate the disease.

Nanda Kumar Navalpur Shanmugam, PhD
Instructor

Dr. Shanmugam’s research focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms of the gut microbiota-host relationship, particularly in brain health. He investigates how gut microbiota influences immune balance, gut health, and bidirectional communication with the brain, with implications for aging and Alzheimer’s disease (AD). While studying the gut-brain axis in AD, Dr. Shanmugam explores the benefits of prebiotics and probiotics on gut microbiota and brain function. Additionally, he is deeply involved in investigating the complex interplay of the gut-brain axis in AD. This involves examining the correlation between dietary changes, gut inflammation, and microbiome alterations in AD progression. He also examines whether chronic gut inflammation exacerbates brain amyloid deposition in AD mouse models. Furthermore, Dr. Shanmugam identifies potential triggers of beta-amyloid pathology and neuroinflammation using advanced sequencing techniques on brain, blood, and saliva samples. Through high-throughput screening, his work aims to uncover microbial signatures contributing to AD pathogenesis, addressing key questions in the field.

Luisa Quinti, PhD
Instructor

Dr. Quinti received her undergraduate degree in Italy and then pursued a Ph.D. in Chemistry in the UK. She moved to Massachusetts General Hospital as a post-doctoral fellow and is currently an Instructor in Dr. Tanzi’s Genetics and Aging Research unit. She has been involved in the development of therapeutics for neurodegenerative diseases since 2005. Dr. Quinti is passionate about generating reliable models of Alzheimer’s disease that can fast-track the search for a cure and identify novel drug candidates and targets. To that effect, together with Dr. Doo Yeon Kim, she is translating 3D AD models into robust drug-screening platforms to find potential AD drugs that can be readily evaluated for human trials. She also closely collaborates with Dr. Ana Griciuc to investigate natural products and other compounds that reduce neuroinflammation.

Moriah Hovde, PhD
Research Fellow

Dr. Hovde is interested in how cholesterol metabolism and protein homeostasis contribute to neurodegenerative diseases with a large focus on Alzheimer’s disease. The major focus of her research with the Tanzi lab has been understanding how the regulation of cellular cholesterol impacts amyloid pathology in Alzheimer’s disease by influencing microglia-mediated uptake of Aβ. Other areas of interest include how post-translational modifications, specifically phosphorylation and palmitoylation, impact protein regulation and lead to various pathologies.

Anna Maaser-Hecker, PhD
Research Fellow

Anna joined Dr. Tanzi’s laboratory in January 2020, bringing together her computational expertise and wet-lab skills. Her primary focus is on uncovering the role of genetic variations linked to Alzheimer’s disease. Utilizing CRISPR Cas technology, Anna translates rare genetic variants, particularly those involving microglia, into iPSC-derived cell models and studies their impact on microglial function in health and disease contexts. Her doctoral research at the University of Bonn in Germany concentrated on complex psychiatric disorders, particularly the role of rare genetic variants found in families with multiple affected members in the etiology of these conditions. Outside of the lab, Anna enjoys practicing yoga, hiking, and spending quality time with her family.

Minhae Cha, PhD
Research Fellow

Dr. Cha received her undergraduate degree in Chemistry and earned her Ph.D. in Pharmacy in South Korea. Her research focuses on Alzheimer’s disease (AD) drug discovery using human-relevant experimental platforms. She has expertise in the full process of preclinical drug discovery, including chemical library screening, peptide and small-molecule design, and in vitro and in vivo efficacy evaluation. Her work aims to bridge basic chemical research with translational therapeutic development. Her long-term research goal is to develop affordable and accessible therapeutic strategies for AD, particularly for elderly patients who are most affected by this condition.