Group leader: 

Anura Rambukkana

Position: 

Professor of Regeneration Biology

Contact: 

a [dot] rambuka [at] ed [dot] ac [dot] uk

Aims
Our group brings a new approach from a natural bacterial infection process with cellular reprogramming to address basic biology of stem cells and to develop new strategies for reversing adult tissue cells to lineage committed stem cell-like cells that do not develop into teratomas or any form of tumours in vivo. Our long-term goals will focus on how the property of adult tissue plasticity can be exploited to generate lineage committed stem cell-like cells that could eventually be developed into safer and tumour-free cell based therapies, a major challenge in regenerative medicine. We are also studying how bacterial-induced cellular reprogramming influence the infectious process and how we can explore the bacterial property of inhibition of cell differentiation and myelination as a model to gain new molecular insights into myelination process itself. We anticipate that such knowledge could be used for developing new strategies for myelin repair and remyelination.

Prof Rambukkana and his group joined the CRM from the Rockefeller University, New York, and relocated to the Centre in the summer of 2009. 

Prof Rambukkana is also a member of the Centre for Neuroregeneration and the Centre for Infectious Diseases.

Selected publications

• Takatsuka M, Osada-Oka M, Satoh E.F, Kitadokoro K, Nishiuchi Y, Niki M, Inoue M, Iwai K, Arakawa T, Shimoji Y, Ogura H, Kobayashi K, Rambukkana A, Matsumoto S. A Histone-Like Protein of Mycobacteria Possesses Ferritin Superfamily Protein-Like Activity and Protects against DNA Damage by Fenton Reaction. 2011. PLoS One 6(6): e20985. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0020985.
• Rambukkana A. Usage of signaling in neurodegeneration and regeneration of peripheral nerves by leprosy bacteria. 2010. Prog Neurobiol June 91(2):102-7.
• Tapinos N, Ohnishi M, Rambukkana A. 2006. ErbB2 receptor tyrosine kinase mediates early demyelination induced by leprosy bacilli. Nature Medicine 12:961-966.
  See commentary: Franklin RJM and Zhao C. 2006. Tyrosine Kinases: maiming myelin in leprosy. Nature Medicine 12:889-890 and Noon LA and Lloyd AC. 2007. Treating Neurological Injury of Leprosy: An Erb-al remedy? Pharmacol. Sciences 28:103-105.
• Im JS, Tapinos N, Chae GT, Besra GS, De Vries GH, Modlin RL, Sieling PA, Rambukkana A, Porcelli SA. 2006. Expression of CD1d molecules by human Schwann cells and potential interactions with immunoregulatory invariant NK T cells. Journal of Immunology 177:5226-5235.
• Tapinos N, Rambukkana A. 2005. Insights into regulation of human Schwann cell proliferation by ERK-1/2 via a MEK-independent and p56Lck-dependent pathway from leprosy bacilli. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 102:9188-9193.
  See perspective: Noon LA and Lloyd AC. 2005. Hijacking the ERK signaling pathway: Mycobacterium leprae shuns MEK to drive the proliferation of infected Schwann cells. Science STKE. Nov 8:309, pe52.
• Rambukkana A. 2004. Mycobacterium leprae-induced demyelination: a model for early nerve degeneration. Current Opinion Immunology 16:511-518.
• Rambukkana A*, Kuntz S, Min J, Kampbell KP, Oldstone MB. 2003. Targeting Schwann cells by nonlytic arenaviral infection selectively inhibits myelination. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 100:16071-10676. *corresponding author
• Oliveira RB, Ochoa MT, Sieling PA, Rea TH, Rambukkana A. 2003. Modlin RL: Expression of Toll-like receptor 2 on human Schwann cells: a mechanism of nerve damage in leprosy. Infection & Immunity 71:1427-1433.
• Rambukkana A*, Zanazzi G, Tapinos N, Salzer JL. 2002. Contact-dependent demyelination by Mycobacterium leprae in the absence of immune responses. Science 296:927-931.
  See also perspective: Brophy P. 2002. Subversion of Schwann cells and the Leper’s bell. Science 296:862-863. *corresponding author
• Rambukkana A. 2001. Molecular basis for the neural predilection of Mycobacterium leprae. Current Opinion Microbiology 4:21-27.
• Ng V, Zanazzi G, Salzer JL, Timpl R, Talts JF, Brennan P, Rambukkana A. 2000. Role of the cell wall Phenolic Glycolipid-1 in the peripheral nerve predilection of Mycobacterium leprae. Cell 103:511-524.
• Shimoji Y, Ng V, Matsumura K, Fischetti VA, Rambukkana A. 1999. A novel surface protein of M. leprae binds peripheral nerve laminin-2 and mediates Schwann cell invasion. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 96:9857-9862.
• Rambukkana A*, Yamada, H, Sanazzi, G, Salzer JL, Yurchenco PD, Campbell, KP. 1998. Role of alpha-dystroglycan as a Schwann cell receptor for Mycobacterium leprae. Science 282:2076-2079.
  See also perspectives: Spear PG. 1998. Wellcome Mat for Leprosy and Lassa Fever Virus. Science 282:1999-2000 and Hemler ME. 1999. Dystroglycan versatility. Cell 97:543-546. *corresponding author
• Rambukkana A*, Salzer JL, Yurchenco PD, Tuomanen EI. 1997. Neural targeting Mycobacterium leprae mediated by the G domain of the laminin alpha2 chain. Cell 88:811-821. *corresponding author

Funding

• National Institutes of Health
• The Maltalep Program
  
• University of Edinburgh, acknowledgement of the generosity of the late Jean Torrance.