Center for Computational and Integrative Biology

About our Center

Faculty in the Center for Computational and Integrative Biology (CCIB) apply interdisciplinary approaches and new technologies to answer enduring biological questions and provide insights into human disease. Novel chemical, genomics and computational tools are developed to probe signaling pathways, identify mediators of host-microbe interactions, and design therapeutic disease interventions. Center investigators also conduct translational research to explore the potential utility of early-stage drug candidates in phase 1 studies carried out in small populations of individuals with the target disease indication. 

The CCIB provides support for investigators at Mass General Hospital and across the greater Boston area through a variety of autonomous cores that provide services in DNA sequencing, oligonucleotide synthesis and research laboratory automation. 

In the News

CONGRATULATIONS GARY ON RECEIVING THE 2024 NOBEL PRIZE IN PHYSIOLOGY OR MEDICINE FOR THE DISCOVERY OF microRNAs! Gary Ruvkun and Victor Ambros have been honored for their discovery of a fundamental principle governing how gene activity is regulated. Read the full announcement here.


Congratulations Ramnik on being elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science!  This lifetime honor recognizes recipients' achievements across disciplines, from research, teaching, and technology, to administration in academia, industry and government, to excellence in communicating and interpreting science to the public. 

Welcome Jonathan Strecker, new faculty member in CCIB!  A main interest in the Strecker lab will be to investigate diverse immune proteins throughout nature, including phage defense and CRISPR-Cas systems, with the long-term goal of using these basic discoveries to enable new programmable functions in biology.

Congratulations Chris Smillie for being selected to join the  Pew Scholars Program in Biomedical Sciences ! The Scholars were chosen from 188 applicants nominated by leading academic institutions and researchers throughout the United States. This year’s class includes scientists who are studying how external and internal factors affect the gut microbiome, what causes HIV to re-emerge when treatment is halted, and how living an urban lifestyle affects long-term health.

Celebrating a historic $100M gift to establish the Gene Lay Institute for Immunology and Inflammation! The gift, from eminent biotechnology entrepreneur Gene Lay, founder and CEO of BioLegend, is the largest in Brigham's history. The  Gene Lay Institute will be led by Vijay Kuchroo, an immunologist and principal investigator at the Brigham who will serve as inaugural director, Arlene Sharpe, chair of the Department of Immunology at HMS, and Ramnik Xavier, our Center Director. Areas of research will include basic understanding of immune-mediated diseases, aging, and cancer toward the development of new immunotherapies. The Institute will also provide training opportunities for students and fellows to support immunology innovators of the future.

Publications

  • Perturbation-specific transcriptional mapping for unbiased target elucidation of antibiotics. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2024;121(45):e2409747121

  • Mutations in nucleotide metabolism genes bypass proteasome defects in png-1/NGLY1-deficient Caenorhabditis elegans. PLoS Biol. 2024;22(7):e3002720

  • 3-Hydroxykynurenine targets kainate receptors to promote defense against infection. Nat Chem Biol. 2024;:ePub

  • Discovery of disease-adapted bacterial lineages in inflammatory bowel diseases. Cell Host Microbe. 2024;32(7):1147-1162.e12

  • CMTR-1 RNA methyltransferase mutations activate widespread expression of a dopaminergic neuron-specific mitochondrial complex I gene. Curr Biol. 2024;34(12):2728-2738.e6

  • An esophagus cell atlas reveals dynamic rewiring during active eosinophilic esophagitis and remission. Nat Commun. 2024;15(1):3344

  • Gut microbiome and metabolome profiling in Framingham heart study reveals cholesterol-metabolizing bacteria. Cell. 2024;187(8):1834-1852.e19

  • Translational genetics identifies a phosphorylation switch in CARD9 required for innate inflammatory responses. Cell Rep. 2024;43(3):113944

  • Hypoxia-inducible factor induces cysteine dioxygenase and promotes cysteine homeostasis in Caenorhabditis elegans. Elife. 2024;12:ePub

  • Hypoxia and intra-complex genetic suppressors rescue complex I mutants by a shared mechanism. Cell. 2024;187(3):659-675.e18

  • Trivalent rare earth metal cofactors confer rapid NP-DNA polymerase activity. Science. 2023;382(6669):423-429

  • Identification of host regulators of Mycobacterium tuberculosis phenotypes uncovers a role for the MMGT1-GPR156 lipid droplet axis in persistence. Cell Host Microbe. 2023;31(6):978-992.e5

  • Centenarians have a diverse gut virome with the potential to modulate metabolism and promote healthy lifespan. Nat Microbiol. 2023;8(6):1064-1078

  • Association of distinct microbial signatures with premalignant colorectal adenomas. Cell Host Microbe. 2023;31(5):827-838.e3

  • Genome-wide tiled detection of circulating Mycobacterium tuberculosis cell-free DNA using Cas13. Nat Commun. 2023;14(1):1803

  • Remodeling of colon plasma cell repertoire within ulcerative colitis patients. J Exp Med. 2023;220(4):ePub

See all publications