Vyas Laboratory: Jatin Vyas, MD, PhD

About Us

Invasive fungal infections are a leading cause of death among immunocompromised patients. It is therefore essential to define the cellular and molecular mechanisms of host-pathogen interactions in order to improve outcomes for patients with invasive fungal infections. At the Vyas Laboratory in the Infectious Diseases Division of Massachusetts General Hospital, our research interests lie at the intersection between pathogenic fungal organisms and the immune system.

The first line of defense against these pathogens is phagocytic cells including neutrophils, macrophages, and dendritic cells. Once phagocytes recognize and engulf fungal pathogens, they are placed into membrane-delimited compartments termed phagosomes. In a process known as phagosome maturation, ingested materials are trafficked through a series of increasingly acidified structures, ultimately leading to the degradation of the pathogen. The Vyas Lab uses fungal pathogens of clinical importance including Cryptococcus neoformans, Aspergillus fumigatus and Candida albicans as the model pathogens to study phagosome formation and maturation. Using live-cell imaging, fluorescently-tagged proteins, and genetic models we visualize primary macrophages and their responses to fungi. We examine the role of pattern-recognition receptors such as Dectin-1 and Toll-like receptors in fungal immunity. We are also interested in the role of type I interferons (IFNs) and members of the tetraspanin family and their effects on host defense to fungal pathogens. Knowledge gained understanding these molecular events will hopefully tailor the immune response to these clinically relevant fungal pathogens in immunocompromised patients.

Check out our website and Twitter to keep up to date with our research!

Publications

View a full list of the Vyas Lab publications on PubMed.

Select Publications

• Reedy JL, Crossen AJ, Negoro PE, Harding HB, Ward RA, Vargas-Blanco DA, Timmer KD, Reardon CM, Basham KJ, Mansour MK, Wüthrich M, Fontaine T, Latgé JP, Vyas JM. (2023). The C-type lectin receptor Dectin-2 is a receptor for Aspergillus fumigatus galactomannan . mBio. Jan 4:e0318422.
• Crossen AJ*, Ward RA*, Reedy JL, Surve MV, Klein BS, Rajagopal J, Vyas JM. 2022. Human airway epithelium responses to invasive fungal infections: a critical partner in innate immunity. J Fungi (Basel). 9(1):40.
• Feldman MB, Dutko RA, Wood MA, Ward RA, Leung HM, Snow RF, De La Flor DJ, Yonker LM, Reedy JL, Rearney GJ, Mou H, Hurley BP, Vyas JM (2020). Aspergillus fumigatus cell wall promotes apical airway epithelial recruitment of human neutrophils. Infect Immun. 88(2): e00813-19.
• Khan NS, Lukason DP, Feliu M, Ward RA, Lord AK, Reedy JL, Ramirez-Ortiz ZG, Tam JM, Kasperkovitz PV, Negoro PE, Vyas TD, Xu S, Brinkmann MM, Acharaya M, Artavanis-Tsakonas K, Frickel EM, Becker CE, Dagher Z, Kim YM, Latz E, Ploegh HL, Mansour MK, Miranti CK, Levitz SM, Vyas JM (2019). CD82 controls CpG-dependent TLR9 signaling. FASEB J. 33(11): 23500-12514.
• Tam JM, Reedy JL, Lukason DP, Kuna SG, Acharya M, Khan NS, Negoro PE, Xu S, Ward RA, Feldman MB, Dutko RA, Jeffery JB, Sokolvska A, Wivagg CN, Lassen KG, Le Naour F, Matzaraki V, Garner EC, Xavier RJ, Kumar V, van de Veerdonk FL, Netea MG, Miranti CK, Mansour MK, Vyas JM (2019). Tetraspanin CD82 organizes Dectin-1 into signaling domains to mediate cellular responses to Candida albicans. J Immunol. 202(11): 3256-3266.
• Reedy JL, Negoro PE, Feliu M, Lord AK, Khan NS, Lukason DP, Wiederhold NP, Tam JM, Mansour MK, Patterson TF, Vyas JM (2017). The carbohydrate lectin receptor Dectin-1 mediates the immune response to Exserohilum rostratum. Infect Immun. 85(3): e00903-16.
• Khan NS, Kasperkovitz PV, Timmons AK, Mansour MK, Tam JM, Seward MW, Reedy JL, Puranam S, Feliu M, Vyas JM (2016). Dectin-1 controls TLR9 trafficking to phagosomes containing beta-1,3 glucan.J Immunol. 196(5):2249-61.
• Tam JM, Mansour MK, Acharya M, Sokolovska A, Timmons AK, Lacy-Hulbert A, Vyas JM(2016). The role of autophagy-related proteins in Candida albicans Pathogens. 5(2):34.
• Tam JM, Mansour MK, Khan NS, Seward M, Puranam S, Tanne A, Sokolovska A, Becker CE, Acharya M, Baird MA, Choi AM, Davidson MW, Segal BH, Lacy-Hulbert A, Stuart LM, Xavier RJ, Vyas JM(2014). Dectin-1-dependent LC3 recruitment to phagosomes enhances fungicidal activity in macrophages. J Infect Dis. 210, 1844-1854.
• Mansour MK, Tam JM, Khan NS, Seward M, Davids PJ, Puranam S, Sokolovska A, Sykes DB, Dagher Z, Becker C, Tanne A, Reedy JL, Stuart LM, Vyas JM(2013). Dectin-1 activation controls maturation of beta-1,3-glucan-containing phagosomes. J Biol Chem. 288, 16043-16054.
• Tam JM, Mansour MK, Khan NS, Yoder NC, Vyas JM(2012). Use of fungal derived polysaccharide-conjugated particles to probe Dectin-1 responses in innate immunity. Integr Biol (Camb). 4, 220-227.
• Artavanis-Tsakonas K, Kasperkovitz PV, Papa E, Cardenas ML, Khan NS, Van der Veen AG, Ploegh HL, Vyas JM(2011). The tetraspanin CD82 is specifically recruited to fungal and bacterial phagosomes prior to acidification. Infect Immun. 79, 1098-1106.
• Tam JM, Castro CE, Heath RJ, Mansour MK, Cardenas ML, Xavier RJ, Lang MJ, Vyas JM (2011). Use of an optical trap for study of host-pathogen interactions for dynamic live cell imaging.J Vis Exp. 53:3123.
• Kasperkovitz PV, Cardenas ML, Vyas JM(2010). TLR9 is actively recruited to Aspergillus fumigatus phagosomes and requires the N-terminal proteolytic cleavage domain for proper intracellular trafficking. J Immunol. 185:7614-7622.
• Tam JM, Castro CE, Heath RJ, Cardenas ML, Xavier RJ, Lang MJ, Vyas JM(2010). Control and manipulation of pathogens with an optical trap for live cell imaging of intercellular interactions. PLoS One. 5: e15215.
• Artavanis-Tsakonas K, Love JC, Ploegh HL, Vyas JM(2006). Recruitment of CD63 to Cryptococcus neoformans phagosomes requires acidification. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 103:15945-15950.

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Principal Investigator

Jatin M. Vyas, MD, PhD
Associate Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School
Internal Medicine Residency Program Director, Massachusetts General Hospital
View Dr. Vyas's Harvard Catalyst profile

Lab Members

Jennifer L. Reedy, MD, PhD
Instructor in Medicine, Harvard Medical School

Hannah Brown, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow

Rebecca Ward, PhD
Medical Writer

Arianne Crossen
Research Technician

Kyle Basham
Research Technician

Chris Reardon
Research Technician

Geneva Kwaku
Undergraduate Student

Patricia Simaku
Undergraduate Student

Tammy Vyas
Lab Manager

Previous Lab Members

Michael Mansour, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School

Jenny M. Tam, PhD
Instructor of Genetics, HMS; Principal Scientist of the Advanced Technology Team, Wyss Institute

Michael Feldman, MD, PhD
Medical Director in Clinical Development, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Allison (Timmons) Lord, PhD
Senior Manager, Global Medical Communications, Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Nida S. Khan, PhD
Senior Scientist in Immunology ADC, AbbVie Inc

Diego Vargas Blanco, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow

Jessica Pacia
Research Assistant, Brown University

Marianela Feliu
MD Candidate, The Ohio State University College of Medicine

Paige Negoro
Medical Student, Loyola University Chicago

Daniel Lukason
PhD Candidate, Tufts University

Richard Dutko, MS
Senior Research Associate, Generate Biomedicines

Jane Jeffery, MPH
Medical Student, Duke University

Natalie Alexander
PhD Student, Rockefeller University

Shoilee Banerjee
Student, Amherst College

Pia Kasperkovitz, PhD
Senior Director of Toxicology, Bright Peak Therapeutics

Sunnie Kuna, DMD
Orthodontics Resident, Harvard School of Dental Medicine

Peter Davids
Tech Lead, Drift

Michael Seward
Orthopedic Surgery Resident, Mayo Clinic

Srav Puranam, MD, MSc
Pediatric Anesthesia Resident, Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, Stanford

Michael Cardenas, MD
Radiation Oncologist, Signature Healthcare Brockton Hospital