Abstract: How do we interpret the biology of one system to understand and predict the biology of another? A specific instance of this question emerges when predicting human disease biology from results obtained in animal models, an especially challenging task when phenotypes and data types are discordant between species. In the first part of this seminar, I will discuss a cross-species, systems modeling approach that identified collagen-binding integrin signaling in anti-TNF therapy resistant Crohn’s disease (CD). Single cell sequencing and multiplexed immunoassays were used to confirm the role of this signaling network in mediating response to anti-TNF therapy, providing a potential new therapeutic avenue in CD. In the second part of this seminar, I will discuss new methods for integrated modeling of microbe-metabolite interactions in CD and show how these tools can enable identification of disease-associated, host-microbiome interactions that may mediate response to therapy. Together, these approaches provide a framework for understanding how dysregulation of tissue, immune, and microbiome signaling manifests in disease as the basis for developing new therapeutic paradigms.

Bio: Dr. Douglas Brubaker is currently a Post-doctoral Research Associate working with Professor Douglas Lauffenburger in the Department of Biological Engineering at MIT and a SHINE Fellow at Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals. He has a BS in Mathematics and a PhD in Systems Biology and Bioinformatics from Case Western Reserve University. His research focuses on developing therapeutic concepts at the immune system-microbiome interface, developing computational methods for inter-species translation, predicting human disease signaling when the corresponding biological features are not present in animal models. He has used these methods to date to identify new therapeutic targets in Crohn’s Disease and KRAS mutant cancers. His ultimate aim is to revolutionize disease treatment through a systems understanding of signaling dysregulation.

BME Faculty Host: Young Kim

Coffee and juice will be provided at West Lafayette.