Katharina Ribbeck Explained

Katharina Ribbeck
Birth Place:Darmstadt, Germany
Fields:Biological Engineering
Workplaces:Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Harvard University
Alma Mater:University of Heidelberg, Germany
Thesis Title:Mechanistic analysis of transport through the nuclear pore complex
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Thesis Year:2001
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Academic Advisors:Dirk Görlich, Tim Mitchison, Iain Mattaj, Andrew Murray, Jan Ellenberg
Known For:Studies on the role of mucus in human health, mucus’ influence on the behavior of harmful pathogens, and the molecular mechanism by which the nuclear pore mediates selective transport
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Katharina Ribbeck is a German-American biologist. She is the Andrew (1956) and Erna Viterbi Professor of Biological Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.[1] She is known as one of the first researchers to study how mucus impacts microbial behavior.[2] [3] Ribbeck investigates both the function of mucus as a barrier to pathogens such as fungi, bacteria, and viruses [4] [5] [6] and how mucus can be leveraged for therapeutic purposes. She has also studied changes that cervical mucus undergoes before birth, which may lead to a novel diagnostic for the risk of preterm birth.[7]

Education

Ribbeck received her B.S. in biology[8] from the University of Heidelberg in 1998. During her senior year, she attended the University of California, San Diego, to study neurobiology for her diploma thesis. She earned her Ph.D. in biology, also from the University of Heidelberg, in 2001.[9]

Career

Upon completing her Ph.D., Ribbeck continued her research as a postdoctoral scientist at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory in Heidelberg, Germany, and then Harvard Medical School. After her postdoctoral research, she moved to Harvard University as an independent Bauer Fellow in 2007, where she began to investigate how particles and bacteria move through mucus barriers.[10]

In 2010, Ribbeck moved to the Department of Biological Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as an assistant professor. She attained tenure as a full professor in 2017.[11]

Research on nuclear pore complexes

During her Ph.D. work, Ribbeck investigated the selective transport of molecules through the nuclear pore complex,[12] [13] which is partly mediated by a hydrogel barrier. With her Ph.D. advisor, Dirk Görlich, Ribbeck developed a selective phase model for molecular transport through the nuclear pore barrier.[14] [15] Görlich and Ribbeck also showed that molecular transport through nuclear pore complexes may be facilitated by hydrophobic interactions.

Research on mitotic spindles

As a postdoctoral researcher at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory, Ribbeck studied proteins involved in the organization of the mitotic spindle, a dynamic bundle consisting of proteins and molecules that aids in chromosome segregation during cell division.[16] Her research contributed to the discovery of a novel protein (NuSAP) that plays a crucial role in mitotic spindle organization.[17]

Research on mucus

In 2007, Ribbeck's research returned to hydrogels, with a specific focus on mucus, i.e., a large natural hydrogel that is closely related to the polymer network she and Görlich had proposed to exist within nuclear pore complexes.[18] [19] Her work has elucidated the role of mucins, a primary component of mucus, in human health. Ribbeck is known for her pioneering work in this field, which has shown that mucus plays an active role in protecting against harmful pathogens,[20] [21] including fungi, bacteria, and viruses. Specifically, her research has shown that mucins and their associated sugar chains (glycans) can "tame" pathogens by inhibiting virulence traits such as biofilm formation, cell adhesion, and toxin secretion.[22] [23] [24] [25]

She has shown that mucins prevent bacteria such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Streptococcus mutans, the bacteria that cause tooth decay, from forming biofilms, which make them hard to eradicate.[26] [27] Ribbeck demonstrated that mucin glycans can reduce the virulence of pathogens such as Pseudomonas aeruginosa,[28] a bacterium that can cause illness in individuals with cystic fibrosis or compromised immune systems, by inhibiting the cell-cell communication, toxin secretion, and biofilm formation ability of these bacteria.

Ribbeck's work has also demonstrated the role of mucus in protecting against fungal infections. Her studies have shown that mucins and specific mucin glycans induce a morphological change, accompanied by a reduction in biofilm formation and cell adhesion, in Candida albicans, a fungal pathogen that causes a variety of diseases in humans.[29] Her work has also shown that mucins found in multiple types of mucus, including human spit, can prevent fungal pathogens from causing disease in healthy humans.[30]

Ribbeck identified a correlation between the properties of mucus in the cervix in pregnant women and the likelihood of preterm birth[31] and has developed probes to test mucus permeability as a step towards diagnosing the risk for premature birth.[32]

Ribbeck has extensively investigated the biophysical properties of mucus and other hydrogels and the mechanisms by which some particles and molecules, including viruses such as SARS-CoV-2,[33] selectively pass through the barrier.[34] [35] [36] Ribbeck has also studied hydrogels produced by pathogens and has found that the extracellular matrix formed by the pathogenic bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa protects the bacterium against antibiotics.[37]

Ribbeck has investigated approaches for engineering mucus, with the aim of potentially influencing the population of bacteria in the human body.[38] [39] In collaboration with others, Ribbeck demonstrated that synthetic mucins can block toxins produced by Vibrio cholerae, the bacteria that causes cholera.[40] She has also shown that purified foreign mucins can prevent viruses from infecting cells and suggested that they could be used to supplement the anti-viral activity of native mucins.[41]

Awards and achievements

Ribbeck is passionate about educating others on the importance of mucus in human health. Together with her lab, she gives presentation about her work on mucus at the MIT Museum and the Boston Museum of Science.

"The intention here is to really introduce a field to the generations to come, so they grow up understanding that mucus is not a waste product. It's an integral part of our physiology and a really important piece of our health. If we understand it, it can really give us a lot of information that will help us stay healthy and possibly treat diseases." (Ribbeck, 2018)
In 2015, Ribbeck and her team produced a TED-Ed lesson to provide basic education about mucus and its role in human health. Ribbeck has been interviewed on NPR[42] and STAT news and has been featured in articles in WIRED and MIT News.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Katharina Ribbeck, PhD MIT Department of Biological Engineering . 2022-10-05 . be.mit.edu . en.
  2. Web site: The science of slime . 2022-10-05 . MIT Technology Review . en.
  3. Web site: WATCH: Why mucus is the 'unsung hero' of the human body. 2018-01-17. STAT. en-US. 2019-02-14.
  4. Web site: Mucus Is Beneficial In The Fight Against Bacteria. Medical News Today. 9 November 2012. en. 2019-02-14.
  5. Web site: Synthetic Mucus Helps Fight Antibiotic Resistance. Walter. Kenny. 2017-04-27. Research & Development. en. 2019-02-14.
  6. Web site: The science of slime. Trafton. Anne. MIT Technology Review. en. 2019-03-22.
  7. Web site: Test of cervical mucus may reveal pregnant women's risk of going into labor too early. ScienceDaily. en. 2019-02-14.
  8. Web site: Exploring the many roles of mucus . 2022-10-05 . MIT News Massachusetts Institute of Technology . 3 April 2018 . en.
  9. Web site: Universität Heidelberg. www.uni-heidelberg.de. 2019-04-07. 2007-06-09. https://web.archive.org/web/20070609221032/http://www.uni-heidelberg.de/presse/personalien/pers02_12.html. dead.
  10. Lieleg . Oliver . Vladescu . Ioana . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2010-05-19 . Characterization of particle translocation through mucin hydrogels . Biophysical Journal . 98 . 9 . 1782–1789 . 2010BpJ....98.1782L . 10.1016/j.bpj.2010.01.012 . 1542-0086 . 2862156 . 20441741.
  11. Web site: The tenured engineers of 2017 . 2022-10-05 . MIT News Massachusetts Institute of Technology . 12 May 2017 . en.
  12. Ribbeck. K.. Kutay. U.. Paraskeva. E.. Görlich. D.. 1999-01-14. The translocation of transportin-cargo complexes through nuclear pores is independent of both Ran and energy. Current Biology. 9. 1. 47–50. 0960-9822. 9889126. 10.1016/S0960-9822(99)80046-3. 1999CBio....9...47R . 11858/00-001M-0000-002D-1CB6-0. 15414916. free.
  13. Ribbeck. Katharina. Görlich. Dirk. 2002-06-03. The permeability barrier of nuclear pore complexes appears to operate via hydrophobic exclusion. The EMBO Journal. 21. 11. 2664–2671. 10.1093/emboj/21.11.2664. 0261-4189. 126029. 12032079.
  14. Marte . Barbara . June 2001 . Passage through the nuclear pore . Nature Cell Biology . en . 3 . 6 . E135 . 10.1038/35078596 . 11389450 . 34734320 . 1476-4679. free .
  15. Ribbeck . Katharina . Görlich . Dirk . 2001-03-15 . Kinetic analysis of translocation through nuclear pore complexes . The EMBO Journal . 20 . 6 . 1320–1330 . 10.1093/emboj/20.6.1320 . 0261-4189 . 145537 . 11250898.
  16. Ribbeck . Katharina . Groen . Aaron C. . Santarella . Rachel . Bohnsack . Markus T. . Raemaekers . Tim . Köcher . Thomas . Gentzel . Marc . Görlich . Dirk . Wilm . Matthias . Carmeliet . Geert . Mitchison . Timothy J. . Ellenberg . Jan . Hoenger . Andreas . Mattaj . Iain W. . 2006-06-01 . NuSAP, a Mitotic RanGTP Target That Stabilizes and Cross-links Microtubules . Molecular Biology of the Cell . 17 . 6 . 2646–2660 . 10.1091/mbc.e05-12-1178 . 1059-1524 . 1474800 . 16571672.
  17. Tim . Raemaekers . Katharina . Ribbeck . Joël . Beaudouin . Wim . Annaert . Mark . Van Camp . Ingrid . Stockmans . Nico . Smets . Roger . Bouillon . Jan . Ellenberg . Geert . Carmeliet . NuSAP, a novel microtubule-associated protein involved in mitotic spindle organization. 2022-10-06 . Journal of Cell Biology. September 8, 2003 . 162 . 6 . 1017–1029 . 10.1083/jcb.200302129. 12963707 . 2172854 .
  18. Li . Leon D. . Crouzier . Thomas . Sarkar . Aniruddh . Dunphy . Laura . Han . Jongyoon . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2013-09-17 . Spatial configuration and composition of charge modulates transport into a mucin hydrogel barrier . Biophysical Journal . 105 . 6 . 1357–1365 . 2013BpJ...105.1357L . 10.1016/j.bpj.2013.07.050 . 1542-0086 . 3785869 . 24047986.
  19. Samad . Tahoura . Witten . Jacob . Grodzinsky . Alan J. . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2022-01-18 . Spatial configuration of charge and hydrophobicity tune particle transport through mucus . Biophysical Journal . 121 . 2 . 277–287 . 10.1016/j.bpj.2021.12.018 . 1542-0086 . 8790233 . 34951982. 2022BpJ...121..277S .
  20. Web site: Molecules found in mucus can thwart fungal infection . 2022-10-05 . MIT News Massachusetts Institute of Technology . 6 June 2022 . en.
  21. Web site: 2020-07-07 . Not as Gross as It Sounds: Predicting How Bacteria in Mucus Affect Human Health . 2022-10-05 . UVA Today . en.
  22. Wheeler . Kelsey M. . Cárcamo-Oyarce . Gerardo . Turner . Bradley S. . Dellos-Nolan . Sheri . Co . Julia Y. . Lehoux . Sylvain . Cummings . Richard D. . Wozniak . Daniel J. . Ribbeck . Katharina . December 2019 . Mucin glycans attenuate the virulence of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in infection . Nature Microbiology . 4 . 12 . 2146–2154 . 10.1038/s41564-019-0581-8 . 2058-5276 . 7157942 . 31611643.
  23. Wang . Benjamin X. . Wheeler . Kelsey M. . Cady . Kyle C. . Lehoux . Sylvain . Cummings . Richard D. . Laub . Michael T. . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2021-01-11 . Mucin Glycans Signal through the Sensor Kinase RetS to Inhibit Virulence-Associated Traits in Pseudomonas aeruginosa . Current Biology . en . 31 . 1 . 90–102.e7 . 10.1016/j.cub.2020.09.088 . 33125866 . 8759707 . 2021CBio...31E..90W . 0960-9822.
  24. Takagi . Julie . Aoki . Kazuhiro . Turner . Bradley S. . Lamont . Sabrina . Lehoux . Sylvain . Kavanaugh . Nicole . Gulati . Megha . Valle Arevalo . Ashley . Lawrence . Travis J. . Kim . Colin Y. . Bakshi . Bhavya . Ishihara . Mayumi . Nobile . Clarissa J. . Cummings . Richard D. . Wozniak . Daniel J. . July 2022 . Mucin O-glycans are natural inhibitors of Candida albicans pathogenicity . Nature Chemical Biology . en . 18 . 7 . 762–773 . 10.1038/s41589-022-01035-1 . 35668191 . 7613833 . 1552-4469.
  25. Web site: Synthetic Mucus Can Mimic the Real Thing . 2022-10-05 . The MIT Campaign for a Better World . en.
  26. Werlang . Caroline A. . Chen . Wesley G. . Aoki . Kazuhiro . Wheeler . Kelsey M. . Tymm . Carly . Mileti . Cassidy J. . Burgos . Ana C. . Kim . Kris . Tiemeyer . Michael . Ribbeck . Katharina . May 2021 . Mucin O-glycans suppress quorum-sensing pathways and genetic transformation in Streptococcus mutans . Nature Microbiology . en . 6 . 5 . 574–583 . 10.1038/s41564-021-00876-1 . 33737747 . 8811953 . 2058-5276.
  27. Web site: Mucus: The Body's Unsung Hero. Kwon. Diana. Scientific American. en. 2019-07-04.
  28. Web site: Study reveals how mucus tames microbes . 2022-10-05 . MIT News Massachusetts Institute of Technology . 14 October 2019 . en.
  29. Kavanaugh . Nicole L. . Zhang . Angela Q. . Nobile . Clarissa J. . Johnson . Alexander D. . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2014-11-11 . Mucins suppress virulence traits of Candida albicans . mBio . 5 . 6 . e01911 . 10.1128/mBio.01911-14 . 2150-7511 . 4235211 . 25389175.
  30. Chen . Maggie . How the Sugars In Spit Tame the Body's Unruly Fungi . en-US . Wired . 2022-10-05 . 1059-1028.
  31. Critchfield. Agatha S.. Yao. Grace. Jaishankar. Aditya. Friedlander. Ronn S.. Lieleg. Oliver. Doyle. Patrick S.. McKinley. Gareth. House. Michael. Ribbeck. Katharina. 2013. Cervical mucus properties stratify risk for preterm birth. PLOS ONE. 8. 8. e69528. 10.1371/journal.pone.0069528. 1932-6203. 3731331. 23936335. 2013PLoSO...869528C. free.
  32. Smith-Dupont. K. B.. Wagner. C. E.. Witten. J.. Conroy. K.. Rudoltz. H.. Pagidas. K.. Snegovskikh. V.. House. M.. Ribbeck. K.. 2017-09-04. Probing the potential of mucus permeability to signify preterm birth risk. Scientific Reports. 7. 1. 10302. 10.1038/s41598-017-08057-z. 2045-2322. 5583328. 28871085. 2017NatSR...710302S.
  33. Web site: A Slippery Viral Defense . 2022-10-06 . MIT Spectrum . en-US.
  34. Witten . Jacob . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2017-06-22 . The particle in the spider's web: transport through biological hydrogels . Nanoscale . 9 . 24 . 8080–8095 . 10.1039/c6nr09736g . 2040-3372 . 5841163 . 28580973.
  35. Chen . Wesley G. . Witten . Jacob . Grindy . Scott C. . Holten-Andersen . Niels . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2017-11-07 . Charge Influences Substrate Recognition and Self-Assembly of Hydrophobic FG Sequences . Biophysical Journal . 113 . 9 . 2088–2099 . 2017BpJ...113.2088C . 10.1016/j.bpj.2017.08.058 . 1542-0086 . 5685782 . 29117531.
  36. Wagner . C. E. . Wheeler . K. M. . Ribbeck . K. . 2018 . Mucins and Their Role in Shaping the Functions of Mucus Barriers . Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology . 34 . 189–215 . 10.1146/annurev-cellbio-100617-062818 . 1530-8995 . 30296390. 52941033 . free .
  37. Billings. Nicole. Millan. MariaRamirez. Caldara. Marina. Rusconi. Roberto. Tarasova. Yekaterina. Stocker. Roman. Ribbeck. Katharina. 2013. The extracellular matrix Component Psl provides fast-acting antibiotic defense in Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms. PLOS Pathogens. 9. 8. e1003526. 10.1371/journal.ppat.1003526. 1553-7374. 3738486. 23950711 . free .
  38. Werlang . Caroline . Cárcarmo-Oyarce . Gerardo . Ribbeck . Katharina . February 2019 . Engineering mucus to study and influence the microbiome . Nature Reviews Materials . en . 4 . 2 . 134–145 . 10.1038/s41578-018-0079-7 . 2019NatRM...4..134W . 92604550 . 2058-8437.
  39. Wagner . C.E. . Wheeler . K.M. . Ribbeck . K. . 2018-10-06 . Mucins and Their Role in Shaping the Functions of Mucus Barriers . Annual Review of Cell and Developmental Biology . en . 34 . 1 . 189–215 . 10.1146/annurev-cellbio-100617-062818 . 30296390 . 52941033 . 1081-0706. free .
  40. Kruger . Austin G. . Brucks . Spencer D. . Yan . Tao . Cárcarmo-Oyarce . Gerardo . Wei . Yuan . Wen . Deborah H. . Carvalho . Dayanne R. . Hore . Michael J. A. . Ribbeck . Katharina . Schrock . Richard R. . Kiessling . Laura L. . 2021-04-28 . Stereochemical Control Yields Mucin Mimetic Polymers . ACS Central Science . en . 7 . 4 . 624–630 . 10.1021/acscentsci.0c01569 . 2374-7943 . 8155468 . 34056092.
  41. Lieleg . Oliver . Lieleg . Corinna . Bloom . Jesse . Buck . Christopher B. . Ribbeck . Katharina . 2012-06-11 . Mucin biopolymers as broad-spectrum antiviral agents . Biomacromolecules . 13 . 6 . 1724–1732 . 10.1021/bm3001292 . 1526-4602 . 3597216 . 22475261.
  42. Web site: Mucus: It's Snot What You Think . 2022-10-06 . Science Friday . en-US.
  43. Web site: Aus der Stiftung Universität Heidelberg - Universität Heidelberg. www.uni-heidelberg.de. 2019-04-07.
  44. Web site: Merck Presents 2007 Awards for Genome-Related Research. 2007-04-30. Harvard University - Department of Molecular & Cellular Biology. en-US. 2019-03-10.
  45. Web site: Alumni Awards - The John Kendrew Award - EMBL. www.embl.de. 2019-02-13.
  46. Web site: The Brilliant Ten of 2014. Popular Science. 4 October 2014 . en. 2019-02-13.
  47. Web site: NSF Award Search: Award#1454673 - Career: Selective Transport in Biological Hydrogels – From Design Principles to Mechanisms. www.nsf.gov. 2019-03-22.
  48. Web site: MIT School of Engineering » Teaching Awards. Mit Engineering. en-US. 2019-03-10.
  49. Web site: Harold E. Edgerton Faculty Achievement Award. MIT Institutional Research. en-US. 2019-03-10.
  50. Web site: Bose grants for 2018 fund research at the frontier of discovery. MIT News. 11 February 2019 . 2019-02-13.

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