John Boothroyd
Academic Appointments
- Professor, Microbiology & Immunology
- Member, Child Health Research Institute
- Member, Stanford Cancer Institute
- Member, Bio-X
Key Documents
Contact Information
- Academic Offices
Personal Information Email Tel (650) 723-7984Alternate Contact Bonda Lewis Administrative Assistant Email Tel Work 650-725-4753
Professional Overview
Administrative Appointments
- Associate Vice-Provost for Graduate Education, Stanford University (2008 - present)
- Senior Associate Dean for Research and Training, Stanford University School of Medicine (2002 - 2005)
- Chair, Dept. Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine (1999 - 2002)
- Chair, Burroughs Wellcome Fund Advisory Panel on Molecular Parasitology (1999 - 2001)
- Chair, Gordon Conference on Parasitism (1999 - 1999)
- Director, MBL Summer Course on Biology of Parasitism (1991 - 1993)
Honors and Awards
- Leuckart Medal, German Society for Parasitology (2008)
- Fellow, American Academy of Microbiology (2007)
- Senior Scholar in Global Infectious Diseases, Ellison Medical Foundation (2002-2006)
- Bass University Fellow in Undergraduate Education, Stanford University (2002)
- Scholar Award in Molecular Parasitology, Burroughs Wellcome Fund (1986-1991)
- Merit Award, NIH (1994-2004)
Professional Education
| Ph.D.: | Edinburgh University, Molecular Biology (1979) |
| B.Sc. (Hons): | McGill University, Cell, Mol. and Devel. Biology (1975) |
Postdoctoral Advisees
Kerry Buchholz, Sarah Ewald, Pascale Guiton, Felice Kelly, Michael Panas, Moritz Treeck
Graduate & Fellowship Program Affiliations
Internet Links
Scientific Focus
Current Research Interests
Studies on the cell and molecular biology of parasitic protozoa are critically important for two reasons; first, these organisms are major pathogens of humans and anaimals and, second, they have proven to be a source of some remarkable phenomena that have challenged much of the dogma thought to be universal in eukaryotic biology. We have been studying two of these single-celled eukaryotes, Trypanosoma brucei and Toxoplasma gondii. Each has its own features that make it interesting to the scientist and both are major pathogens, trypanosomes being the cause of sleeping sickness in Africa and Toxoplasma being a major opporunistic pathogen of AIDS patients. As of, 1998, however, we have focused our entire effort on Toxoplasma because of its growing importance and our results developing this system for modern genetic analysis (we now have a full genetic "toolbox" for this intracellular parasite including a genetic map, efficient genetic transformation and gene knock-out).
The major areas where the lab is currently working are:
(i) Intracellular parasitism: how does this parasite attach, invade and reproduce within virtually any nucleated cell.
(ii) Protein trafficking; how are proteins destined for novel secretory organelles specifically targeted and, ultimately, injected into the host cell during invasion?
(iii) Developmental biology; what genes are crucial for asexual development from the actively dividing to the latent form of the parasite and what are the cis- and trans-elements that control that expression.
(iv) Host-pathogen interaction: what changes occur in the host cell in response to infection?
(v) Pathogenesis: what properties make certain strains more virulent than others?
Publications
- A nucleotide sugar transporter involved in glycosylation of the toxoplasma tissue cyst wall is required for efficient persistence of bradyzoites. PLoS Pathog. 2013; (5): e1003331
- Bradyzoite pseudokinase 1 is crucial for efficient oral infectivity of the Toxoplasma gondii tissue cyst. Eukaryot Cell. 2013; (3): 399-410
- Have it your way: how polymorphic, injected kinases and pseudokinases enable toxoplasma to subvert host defenses. PLoS Pathog. 2013; (4): e1003296
- A Toxoplasma gondii pseudokinase inhibits host IRG resistance proteins. PLoS Biol. 2012; (7): e1001358
- A forward genetic screen reveals that calcium-dependent protein kinase 3 regulates egress in Toxoplasma. PLoS Pathog. 2012; (11): e1003049
- Infected dendritic cells facilitate systemic dissemination and transplacental passage of the obligate intracellular parasite Neospora caninum in mice. PLoS One. 2012; (3): e32123
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