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Heidi A Tissenbaum PhD

TitleProfessor
InstitutionUMass Chan Medical School
DepartmentMolecular, Cell and Cancer Biology
AddressUMass Chan Medical School
364 Plantation Street LRB-621
Worcester MA 01605
Phone508-856-5840
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    Other Positions
    InstitutionT.H. Chan School of Medicine
    DepartmentMolecular, Cell and Cancer Biology

    InstitutionT.H. Chan School of Medicine
    DepartmentProgram in Molecular Medicine

    InstitutionMorningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
    DepartmentInterdisciplinary Graduate Program


    Collapse Biography 
    Collapse education and training
    Concordia University, Montreal, QC, CanadaB SCBiology
    University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, CanadaM SCPhysiology
    Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, United StatesPHDGenetics

    Collapse Overview 
    Collapse overview


    Academic Background



    Heidi Tissenbaum received her B.S. in Biology from Concordia University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada and an M.S. degree in Physiology from the University of Ottawa, in Ontario, Canada. In 1997, she graduated with a Ph.D. in Genetics from Harvard Medical School. From 1997 to 2001, she was a post-doc at MIT where she was supported by the Helen Hay Whitney Foundation. In 2001, Dr. Tissenbaum joined the Program in Gene Function and Expression at the University of Massachusetts Medical School, and also received a Career Award in the Biomedical Sciences from the Burroughs Wellcome Fund. Dr. Tissenbaum has received funding from the American Federation of Aging Research, the Worcester Foundation for Biomedical Research, the Concern Foundation, and the National Institute of Aging. Dr. Tissenbaum is also a William Randolph Hearst Young Investigator.



     



    Defining healthy aging



    Photo: Heidi <br/>Tissenbaum



    We age. Some of us age better than others. Some of us show prolonged health. Our research focuses on understanding the fundamental processes that define how we age. We use a combination of molecular biology, genetics, biochemistry, and genomics to define: what contributes to lifespan? What defines healthy aging (healthspan)? What dictates metabolic health? How does the environment contribute? What about nutrition/diet? Overall, we want to determine the critical pathways/genes that define health. 



    Specific Interests




    1. In C. elegans, the insulin/IGF-1 signaling pathway plays a central role in regulating lifespan, fat storage, stress and development. What are all the genes involved? How is each specific phenotype modulated? Are they modulated together?


    2. How do multiple conserved signaling pathways couple to the insulin/IGF-1 pathway to regulate lifespan? Fat storage? Stress? Development?


    3. How does the forkhead transcription factor DAF-16 function as a central mediator in C. elegans?



     



    Photo: Heidi <br/>Tissenbaum





    Collapse Rotation Projects


    Graduate students are encouraged to contact Heidi Tissenbaum to discuss projects available for rotations. Each student has a project tailored for both their abilities and class time commitments. 



    Collapse Bibliographic 
    Collapse selected publications
    Publications listed below are automatically derived from MEDLINE/PubMed and other sources, which might result in incorrect or missing publications. Faculty can login to make corrections and additions.
    Newest   |   Oldest   |   Most Cited   |   Most Discussed   |   Timeline   |   Field Summary   |   Plain Text
    PMC Citations indicate the number of times the publication was cited by articles in PubMed Central, and the Altmetric score represents citations in news articles and social media. (Note that publications are often cited in additional ways that are not shown here.) Fields are based on how the National Library of Medicine (NLM) classifies the publication's journal and might not represent the specific topic of the publication. Translation tags are based on the publication type and the MeSH terms NLM assigns to the publication. Some publications (especially newer ones and publications not in PubMed) might not yet be assigned Field or Translation tags.) Click a Field or Translation tag to filter the publications.
    1. Tissenbaum HA. Characterizing the Role of daf-16/C. elegans FOXO in Lifespan and Healthspan. Methods Mol Biol. 2025; 2871:193-200. PMID: 39565590.
      Citations:    
    2. Rogina B, Franceschi C, Tissenbaum HA. Editorial: Year in review: discussions in genetics of aging. Front Genet. 2024; 15:1470451. PMID: 39355686.
      Citations:    
    3. Kingsley SF, Seo Y, Wood A, Wani KA, Gonzalez X, Irazoqui J, Finkel SE, Tissenbaum HA. Glucose-fed microbiota alters C. elegans intestinal epithelium and increases susceptibility to multiple bacterial pathogens. Sci Rep. 2024 06 07; 14(1):13177. PMID: 38849503.
      Citations:    
    4. Rogina B, Tissenbaum HA. SIRT1, resveratrol and aging. Front Genet. 2024; 15:1393181. PMID: 38784035.
      Citations:    
    5. Kingsley SF, Seo Y, Allen C, Ghanta KS, Finkel S, Tissenbaum HA. Bacterial processing of glucose modulates C. elegans lifespan and healthspan. Sci Rep. 2021 03 15; 11(1):5931. PMID: 33723307.
      Citations: 5     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    6. Seo Y, Kingsley S, Walker G, Mondoux MA, Tissenbaum HA. Metabolic shift from glycogen to trehalose promotes lifespan and healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2018 03 20; 115(12):E2791-E2800. PMID: 29511104.
      Citations: 48     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    7. Tissenbaum HA. DAF-16: FOXO in the Context of C. elegans. Curr Top Dev Biol. 2018; 127:1-21. PMID: 29433733.
      Citations: 28     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    8. Martell J, Seo Y, Bak DW, Kingsley SF, Tissenbaum HA, Weerapana E. Global Cysteine-Reactivity Profiling during Impaired Insulin/IGF-1 Signaling in C.?elegans Identifies Uncharacterized Mediators of Longevity. Cell Chem Biol. 2016 08 18; 23(8):955-66. PMID: 27499530.
      Citations: 17     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    9. Bansal A, Zhu LJ, Yen K, Tissenbaum HA. Uncoupling lifespan and healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans longevity mutants. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2015 Jan 20; 112(3):E277-86. PMID: 25561524.
      Citations: 166     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    10. Tissenbaum HA. Using C. elegans for aging research. Invertebr Reprod Dev. 2015 Jan 30; 59(sup1):59-63. PMID: 26136622.
      Citations:    
    11. Wang P, Liu B, Zhang D, Belew MY, Tissenbaum HA, Cheng JX. Imaging lipid metabolism in live Caenorhabditis elegans using fingerprint vibrations. Angew Chem Int Ed Engl. 2014 Oct 27; 53(44):11787-92. PMID: 25195517.
      Citations: 31     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    12. Bansal A, Kwon ES, Conte D, Liu H, Gilchrist MJ, MacNeil LT, Tissenbaum HA. Transcriptional regulation of Caenorhabditis elegans FOXO/DAF-16 modulates lifespan. Longev Healthspan. 2014; 3:5. PMID: 24834345.
      Citations:    
    13. Ritter AD, Shen Y, Fuxman Bass J, Jeyaraj S, Deplancke B, Mukhopadhyay A, Xu J, Driscoll M, Tissenbaum HA, Walhout AJ. Complex expression dynamics and robustness in C. elegans insulin networks. Genome Res. 2013 Jun; 23(6):954-65. PMID: 23539137.
      Citations: 49     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    14. Viswanathan M, Tissenbaum HA. C. elegans sirtuins. Methods Mol Biol. 2013; 1077:39-56. PMID: 24014398.
      Citations: 4     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    15. Parker JA, Vazquez-Manrique RP, Tourette C, Farina F, Offner N, Mukhopadhyay A, Orfila AM, Darbois A, Menet S, Tissenbaum HA, Neri C. Integration of ?-catenin, sirtuin, and FOXO signaling protects from mutant huntingtin toxicity. J Neurosci. 2012 Sep 05; 32(36):12630-40. PMID: 22956852.
      Citations: 34     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    16. Perrin AJ, Gunda M, Yu B, Yen K, Ito S, Forster S, Tissenbaum HA, Derry WB. Noncanonical control of C. elegans germline apoptosis by the insulin/IGF-1 and Ras/MAPK signaling pathways. Cell Death Differ. 2013 Jan; 20(1):97-107. PMID: 22935616.
      Citations: 24     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    17. Tissenbaum HA. Genetics, life span, health span, and the aging process in Caenorhabditis elegans. J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2012 May; 67(5):503-10. PMID: 22499764.
      Citations: 46     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    18. Narasimhan SD, Yen K, Bansal A, Kwon ES, Padmanabhan S, Tissenbaum HA. PDP-1 links the TGF-? and IIS pathways to regulate longevity, development, and metabolism. PLoS Genet. 2011 Apr; 7(4):e1001377. PMID: 21533078.
      Citations: 48     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    19. Yen K, Narasimhan SD, Tissenbaum HA. DAF-16/Forkhead box O transcription factor: many paths to a single Fork(head) in the road. Antioxid Redox Signal. 2011 Feb 15; 14(4):623-34. PMID: 20673162.
      Citations: 35     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimals
    20. Yen K, Le TT, Bansal A, Narasimhan SD, Cheng JX, Tissenbaum HA. A comparative study of fat storage quantitation in nematode Caenorhabditis elegans using label and label-free methods. PLoS One. 2010 Sep 16; 5(9). PMID: 20862331.
      Citations: 104     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    21. Baur JA, Chen D, Chini EN, Chua K, Cohen HY, de Cabo R, Deng C, Dimmeler S, Gius D, Guarente LP, Helfand SL, Imai S, Itoh H, Kadowaki T, Koya D, Leeuwenburgh C, McBurney M, Nabeshima Y, Neri C, Oberdoerffer P, Pestell RG, Rogina B, Sadoshima J, Sartorelli V, Serrano M, Sinclair DA, Steegborn C, Tatar M, Tissenbaum HA, Tong Q, Tsubota K, Vaquero A, Verdin E. Dietary restriction: standing up for sirtuins. Science. 2010 Aug 27; 329(5995):1012-3; author reply 1013-4. PMID: 20798296.
      Citations: 35     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    22. Kwon ES, Narasimhan SD, Yen K, Tissenbaum HA. A new DAF-16 isoform regulates longevity. Nature. 2010 Jul 22; 466(7305):498-502. PMID: 20613724.
      Citations: 94     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    23. Narasimhan SD, Mukhopadhyay A, Tissenbaum HA. InAKTivation of insulin/IGF-1 signaling by dephosphorylation. Cell Cycle. 2009 Dec; 8(23):3878-84. PMID: 19901535.
      Citations: 15     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    24. Narasimhan SD, Yen K, Tissenbaum HA. Converging pathways in lifespan regulation. Curr Biol. 2009 Aug 11; 19(15):R657-66. PMID: 19674551.
      Citations: 80     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    25. Padmanabhan S, Mukhopadhyay A, Narasimhan SD, Tesz G, Czech MP, Tissenbaum HA. A PP2A regulatory subunit regulates C. elegans insulin/IGF-1 signaling by modulating AKT-1 phosphorylation. Cell. 2009 Mar 06; 136(5):939-51. PMID: 19249087.
      Citations: 95     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    26. Barber LJ, Youds JL, Ward JD, McIlwraith MJ, O'Neil NJ, Petalcorin MI, Martin JS, Collis SJ, Cantor SB, Auclair M, Tissenbaum H, West SC, Rose AM, Boulton SJ. RTEL1 maintains genomic stability by suppressing homologous recombination. Cell. 2008 Oct 17; 135(2):261-71. PMID: 18957201.
      Citations: 216     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    27. Mukhopadhyay A, Deplancke B, Walhout AJ, Tissenbaum HA. Chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) coupled to detection by quantitative real-time PCR to study transcription factor binding to DNA in Caenorhabditis elegans. Nat Protoc. 2008; 3(4):698-709. PMID: 18388953.
      Citations: 126     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    28. Mukhopadhyay A, Pan X, Lambright DG, Tissenbaum HA. An endocytic pathway as a target of tubby for regulation of fat storage. EMBO Rep. 2007 Oct; 8(10):931-8. PMID: 17762880.
      Citations: 34     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    29. Mukhopadhyay A, Tissenbaum HA. Reproduction and longevity: secrets revealed by C. elegans. Trends Cell Biol. 2007 Feb; 17(2):65-71. PMID: 17187981.
      Citations: 45     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    30. Tissenbaum HA. Serotonin's SOS signal. Cell Metab. 2006 Dec; 4(6):415-7. PMID: 17141622.
      Citations: 1     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    31. Wang Y, Oh SW, Deplancke B, Luo J, Walhout AJ, Tissenbaum HA. C. elegans 14-3-3 proteins regulate life span and interact with SIR-2.1 and DAF-16/FOXO. Mech Ageing Dev. 2006 Sep; 127(9):741-7. PMID: 16860373.
      Citations: 58     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    32. Mukhopadhyay A, Oh SW, Tissenbaum HA. Worming pathways to and from DAF-16/FOXO. Exp Gerontol. 2006 Oct; 41(10):928-34. PMID: 16839734.
      Citations: 86     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    33. Deplancke B, Mukhopadhyay A, Ao W, Elewa AM, Grove CA, Martinez NJ, Sequerra R, Doucette-Stamm L, Reece-Hoyes JS, Hope IA, Tissenbaum HA, Mango SE, Walhout AJ. A gene-centered C. elegans protein-DNA interaction network. Cell. 2006 Jun 16; 125(6):1193-205. PMID: 16777607.
      Citations: 125     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    34. Oh SW, Mukhopadhyay A, Dixit BL, Raha T, Green MR, Tissenbaum HA. Identification of direct DAF-16 targets controlling longevity, metabolism and diapause by chromatin immunoprecipitation. Nat Genet. 2006 Feb; 38(2):251-7. PMID: 16380712.
      Citations: 188     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    35. Wang Y, Tissenbaum HA. Overlapping and distinct functions for a Caenorhabditis elegans SIR2 and DAF-16/FOXO. Mech Ageing Dev. 2006 Jan; 127(1):48-56. PMID: 16280150.
      Citations: 100     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    36. Grabowski MM, Svrzikapa N, Tissenbaum HA. Bloom syndrome ortholog HIM-6 maintains genomic stability in C. elegans. Mech Ageing Dev. 2005 Dec; 126(12):1314-21. PMID: 16181657.
      Citations: 17     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    37. Mukhopadhyay A, Deplancke B, Walhout AJ, Tissenbaum HA. C. elegans tubby regulates life span and fat storage by two independent mechanisms. Cell Metab. 2005 Jul; 2(1):35-42. PMID: 16054097.
      Citations: 49     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    38. Oh SW, Mukhopadhyay A, Svrzikapa N, Jiang F, Davis RJ, Tissenbaum HA. JNK regulates lifespan in Caenorhabditis elegans by modulating nuclear translocation of forkhead transcription factor/DAF-16. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2005 Mar 22; 102(12):4494-9. PMID: 15767565.
      Citations: 238     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    39. Tissenbaum HA, Guarente L. Model organisms as a guide to mammalian aging. Dev Cell. 2002 Jan; 2(1):9-19. PMID: 11782310.
      Citations: 48     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    40. McVey M, Kaeberlein M, Tissenbaum HA, Guarente L. The short life span of Saccharomyces cerevisiae sgs1 and srs2 mutants is a composite of normal aging processes and mitotic arrest due to defective recombination. Genetics. 2001 Apr; 157(4):1531-42. PMID: 11290710.
      Citations: 55     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    41. Tissenbaum HA, Guarente L. Increased dosage of a sir-2 gene extends lifespan in Caenorhabditis elegans. Nature. 2001 Mar 08; 410(6825):227-30. PMID: 11242085.
      Citations: 733     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    42. Tissenbaum HA, Hawdon J, Perregaux M, Hotez P, Guarente L, Ruvkun G. A common muscarinic pathway for diapause recovery in the distantly related nematode species Caenorhabditis elegans and Ancylostoma caninum. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2000 Jan 04; 97(1):460-5. PMID: 10618440.
      Citations: 44     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    43. Tissenbaum HA, Ruvkun G. An insulin-like signaling pathway affects both longevity and reproduction in Caenorhabditis elegans. Genetics. 1998 Feb; 148(2):703-17. PMID: 9504918.
      Citations: 121     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    44. Ogg S, Paradis S, Gottlieb S, Patterson GI, Lee L, Tissenbaum HA, Ruvkun G. The Fork head transcription factor DAF-16 transduces insulin-like metabolic and longevity signals in C. elegans. Nature. 1997 Oct 30; 389(6654):994-9. PMID: 9353126.
      Citations: 809     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    45. Kimura KD, Tissenbaum HA, Liu Y, Ruvkun G. daf-2, an insulin receptor-like gene that regulates longevity and diapause in Caenorhabditis elegans. Science. 1997 Aug 15; 277(5328):942-6. PMID: 9252323.
      Citations: 856     Fields:    Translation:HumansAnimalsCells
    46. Morris JZ, Tissenbaum HA, Ruvkun G. A phosphatidylinositol-3-OH kinase family member regulating longevity and diapause in Caenorhabditis elegans. Nature. 1996 Aug 08; 382(6591):536-9. PMID: 8700226.
      Citations: 305     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
    47. Tissenbaum HA, Parry DJ. The effect of partial denervation of tibialis anterior (TA) muscle on the number and sizes of motorneurons in TA motornucleus of normal and dystrophic (C57BL dy2j/dy2j) mice. Can J Physiol Pharmacol. 1991 Nov; 69(11):1769-73. PMID: 1804521.
      Citations: 8     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
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