Alexander Hoffmann (biologist)

Last updated
Alexander Hoffmann
Alma mater
Known forSystems biology
Scientific career
Institutions
Doctoral advisor Robert G. Roeder
Other academic advisors David Baltimore

Alexander Hoffmann is a German-American biologist. He is the director of the Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences (QCBio) and the Thomas M Asher Professor of Microbiology in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics (MIMG) at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). His research interest is the development of a predictive understanding of how cellular and molecular networks regulate immune responses. [1]

Contents

Education

Hoffmann gained his BA in Physics and Zoology at Cambridge University in 1988, pursuing research projects under the tutelage of John Gurdon and John Lasky.[ citation needed ] He obtained his Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Rockefeller University in 1994 under the supervision of Robert G. Roeder. [1] Working with Roeder, Hoffmann identified genes encoding the central transcription factor TFIID, including its DNA binding subunit TATA-box binding subunit. [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] He also developed the now popular His-tag expression system, [7] which facilitates the purification of recombinant proteins. [8] [9]

Career

Hoffmann pursued postdoctoral research with David Baltimore at MIT starting in 1998, focusing on the transcriptional control of HIV, [1] and then relocating with Baltimore to Caltech in 1998. At Caltech he focused on the transcriptional [10] and signaling functions of the immune response transcription factor NF-kB, discovering its oscillatory control. [11] Collaborating with Andre Levchenko, Hoffmann developed a mathematical model that explained the molecular basis for the complex dynamic control of NF-kB. [12] The paper describing this model is considered foundational for the field of cellular signaling.

Hoffmann established the Signaling Systems Laboratory at UCSD in 2003. A hallmark of his research is the Systems Biology research approach of iterative mathematical modeling and experimental analysis, and how kinetic and dynamic control of molecular processes confer specificity to cellular responses. [13] [14] In 2009, he co-founded the UCSD's Biocircuits Institute with Jeff Hasty and Lev Tsimring. [15]

In 2010, he established the San Diego Center for Systems Biology, being awarded a "Center of Excellence" grant from the National Institutes of Health. [16] In 2013 he took a position at UCLA, and, in 2014, established the Institute for Quantitative and Computational Biosciences (QCBio). [17]

Other roles

Hoffmann served with Pavel Pevzner as co-director of UCSD's Graduate Program in Bioinformatics from 2009 to 2013, overseeing a dramatic expansion and inclusion of systems biology, biomedical informatics and quantitative biology. [18]

Hoffmann has worked to improve equity in educational opportunities. He led educational outreach programs at Caltech (Young Engineering Science Scholars, [19] Freshman Summer Institute [20] ), and served at UCSD on the committee for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, and as chair of the Chancellor's Diversity Council, focusing on student and faculty recruitment and retention practices, and institutional change.

Related Research Articles

In molecular biology, the TATA box is a sequence of DNA found in the core promoter region of genes in archaea and eukaryotes. The bacterial homolog of the TATA box is called the Pribnow box which has a shorter consensus sequence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">NF-κB</span> Nuclear transcriptional activator that binds to enhancer elements in many different cell types

Nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) is a family of transcription factor protein complexes that controls transcription of DNA, cytokine production and cell survival. NF-κB is found in almost all animal cell types and is involved in cellular responses to stimuli such as stress, cytokines, free radicals, heavy metals, ultraviolet irradiation, oxidized LDL, and bacterial or viral antigens. NF-κB plays a key role in regulating the immune response to infection. Incorrect regulation of NF-κB has been linked to cancer, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, septic shock, viral infection, and improper immune development. NF-κB has also been implicated in processes of synaptic plasticity and memory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TATA-binding protein</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

The TATA-binding protein (TBP) is a general transcription factor that binds specifically to a DNA sequence called the TATA box. This DNA sequence is found about 30 base pairs upstream of the transcription start site in some eukaryotic gene promoters.

Transcription factor II E (TFIIE) is one of several general transcription factors that make up the RNA polymerase II preinitiation complex. It is a tetramer of two alpha and two beta chains and interacts with TAF6/TAFII80, ATF7IP, and varicella-zoster virus IE63 protein.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">RELB</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription factor RelB is a protein that in humans is encoded by the RELB gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAF6</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription initiation factor TFIID subunit 6 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TAF6 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAF7</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription initiation factor TFIID subunit 7 also known as TAFII55 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TAF7 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GTF2I</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

General transcription factor II-I is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GTF2I gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAF9</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

TAF9 RNA polymerase II, TATA box binding protein (TBP)-associated factor, 32kDa, also known as TAF9, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TAF9 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAF12</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription initiation factor TFIID subunit 12 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TAF12 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAF4</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription initiation factor TFIID subunit 4 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TAF4 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">SUB1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Activated RNA polymerase II transcriptional coactivator p15 also known as positive cofactor 4 (PC4) or SUB1 homolog is a protein that in humans is encoded by the SUB1 gene. The human SUB1 gene is named after an orthologous gene in yeast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cyclin-dependent kinase 8</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Cell division protein kinase 8 is an enzyme that in humans is encoded by the CDK8 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAF5</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription initiation factor TFIID subunit 5 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TAF5 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TAF11</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription initiation factor TFIID subunit 11 also known as TAFII28, is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TAF11 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">DRAP1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Dr1-associated corepressor is a protein that in humans is encoded by the DRAP1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GTF3A</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription factor IIIA is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GTF3A gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TBPL1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

TATA box-binding protein-like protein 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the TBPL1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">GTF2A1</span> Protein-coding gene in the species Homo sapiens

Transcription initiation factor IIA subunit 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the GTF2A1 gene.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">TBP-associated factor</span> Protein domains

The TBP-associated factors (TAF) are proteins that associate with the TATA-binding protein in transcription initiation. It is a part of the transcription initiation factor TFIID multimeric protein complex. It also makes up many other factors, including SL1. They mediate the formation of the transcription preinitiation complex, a step preceding transcription of DNA to RNA by RNA polymerase II.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Alexander Hoffman". Signaling Systems Laboratory at the University of California Los Angeles. Retrieved 4 November 2022.
  2. ↑ Hoffmann, A., Horikoshi, M., Wang, C. K., Schroeder, S., Weil, P.A., Roeder, R.G. 1990. Cloning of the Schizosaccharomyces pombe TFIID gene reveals a strong conservation of functional domains present in Saccharomyces cerevisiae TFIID. Genes & Development 4, pp. 1141-1148
  3. ↑ Hoffmann, A., Sinn, E., Yamamoto, T., Wang, J., Roy, A., Horikoshi, M., Roeder, R.G. 1990. Highly conserved core domain and unique N-terminus with presumptive regulatory motifs in a human TATA factor (TFIID). Nature 346, No.6282, pp.387-390
  4. ↑ Gasch, A., Hoffmann, A., Horikoshi, M., Roeder, R.G., Chua, N.H. 1990. Arabidopsis thaliana contains two genes for TFIID. Nature 346, No.6282, pp.390-394
  5. ↑ Hoffmann, A., Chiang, C.-M., Oelgeschläger, T., Burley, S.K., Nakatani, Y., Roeder, R.G. 1996 A histone octamer-like structure within TFIID. Nature 380, No.6572, pp. 356-359
  6. ↑ Hoffmann, A., Oelgeschläger, T., Roeder, R.G. 1997 Considerations of transcriptional control mechanisms: Do TFIID-core promoter complexes recapitulate nucleosome-like functions ? Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94, pp. 8928-8935
  7. ↑ Hoffmann, A. and Roeder, R.G. 1991. Purification of his-tagged proteins in non-denaturing conditions suggests a convenient method for protein interaction studies. Nucleic Acids Research 19, No.22, pp. 6337-6338
  8. ↑ Nikolov, D.B., Hu, S.-H., Lin, J., Gasch, A., Hoffmann, A., Horikoshi, M., Chua, N.-H., Roeder, R.G., Burley, S.K. 1992. Crystal structure of TFIID TATA-box binding protein. Nature 360, pp. 40-46
  9. ↑ Xie, X.-L., Kokubo, T., Cohen, S., Mirza, U.A., Hoffmann, A., Chait, B.T., Roeder, R.G., Nakatani, Y., Burley, S.K. 1996 Structural similarity between TAFs and the heterotetrameric core of the histone octamer. Nature 380, No.6572, pp. 316-322.
  10. ↑ Hoffmann, A., Leung, T.H., Baltimore, D. 2003 Genetic analysis of NF-kB/Rel transcription factors reveals molecular specificities. EMBO J., 22, pp.5530-9.
  11. ↑ Hoffmann, A., Baltimore, D. 2006 Circuitry of NF-kB Signaling. Immunological Reviews, 210, pp.171-186. PMID   16623771
  12. ↑ Hoffmann, A., Levchenko, A., Scott, M., Baltimore, D. 2002 The NF-B/IB signaling module: temporal control and selective gene activation. Science, 298, pp. 1241-1245
  13. ↑ Behar, M., Hoffmann, A. 2010 Temporal Codes of Intra-Cellular Signals. Current Opinion in Genetics and Development, 20, pp.684-693. PMID   20956081, PMC   2982931
  14. ↑ Basak, S., Behar, M., Hoffmann, A. 2012 Lessons from mathematically modeling the NFκB pathway. Immunological Reviews, 246, pp.221-38. PMID   22435558, PMC   3343698
  15. ↑ "Establishment of the BioCircuits Institute (BCI) as an Organized Research Unit at UC San Diego". adminrecords.ucsd.edu. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  16. ↑ "San Diego Center for Systems Biology" . Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  17. ↑ "UCLA Sets Up New Quantitative and Computational Biosciences Institute". Genome Web. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  18. ↑ Hoffmann, Alexander; Pevzner, Pavel; Subramaniam, Shankar. "Graduate Training Program in Bioinformatics" . Retrieved 1 December 2023.
  19. ↑ "Young Engineering and Science Scholars". Archived from the original on 2015-02-09. Retrieved 2018-10-10.
  20. ↑ "Programs - Caltech Center for Diversity". Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2014-10-04.
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