Anna Akhmanova
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Anna Sergeevna Akhmanova (born 11 May 1967) is a Russian-born professor of Cell Biology at
Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; , formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public university, public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2023, it had an enrollment of ...
in the Netherlands. She is best known for her research regarding
microtubules Microtubules are polymers of tubulin that form part of the cytoskeleton and provide structure and shape to eukaryotic cells. Microtubules can be as long as 50 micrometres, as wide as 23 to 27  nm and have an inner diameter between 11 an ...
and the proteins, called TIPs, that stabilize one specific end of the tubules. Among the awards she has won, she was one of the recipients of the 2018
Spinoza Prize The Spinoza Prize () is an annual award of 1.5 million euro prize money, to be spent on new research given by the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The award is the highest scientific award in the Netherlands. It is named after the philosopher Baruc ...
, the highest honor for Dutch scientists.


Biography

Anna Akhmanova was born on 11 May 1967 in
Moscow Moscow is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia, standing on the Moskva (river), Moskva River in Central Russia. It has a population estimated at over 13 million residents with ...
, Russia, to a family of scientists. Her grandmother was an English and
linguistics Linguistics is the scientific study of language. The areas of linguistic analysis are syntax (rules governing the structure of sentences), semantics (meaning), Morphology (linguistics), morphology (structure of words), phonetics (speech sounds ...
professor, her father a
physics Physics is the scientific study of matter, its Elementary particle, fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge whi ...
professor, and her mother and now her brother hold PhDs in physics as well. She cites an interest in nature from an early age and that "a career in science was a very natural choice" for herself. She attended
Moscow State University Moscow State University (MSU), officially M. V. Lomonosov Moscow State University,. is a public university, public research university in Moscow, Russia. The university includes 15 research institutes, 43 faculties, more than 300 departments, a ...
, where she studied biology in the country's then-standard five-year program to receive her masters. During this program she studied basic biology, along with
cell biology Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the structure, function, and behavior of cells. All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life that is responsible for the living an ...
and
biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...
. Her fifth-year research thesis was completed in Alexander Mankin's laboratory where she researched halophilic
archaebacteria Archaea ( ) is a domain of organisms. Traditionally, Archaea only included its prokaryotic members, but this has since been found to be paraphyletic, as eukaryotes are known to have evolved from archaea. Even though the domain Archaea cladis ...
; she credits Mankin as the person from whom she learned most of her molecular biology knowledge. She received her master's degree in 1989. After graduating from Moscow State, Akhmanova left Russia to continue her studies in the Netherlands. She had originally looked for doctorate programs in Russia, but however, "the salaries were very low, there was absolutely no funding to do research, and the country as a whole was experiencing problems." During this time, the Soviet policy of
perestroika ''Perestroika'' ( ; rus, перестройка, r=perestrojka, p=pʲɪrʲɪˈstrojkə, a=ru-perestroika.ogg, links=no) was a political reform movement within the Communist Party of the Soviet Union (CPSU) during the late 1980s, widely associ ...
was negatively affecting the university and research programs there, which led to Akhmanova's decision to go to the Netherlands with her young daughter to obtain her PhD. There, she worked at
Radboud University Nijmegen Radboud University (abbreviated as RU, , formerly ) is a public university, public research university located in Nijmegen, Netherlands. RU has seven faculties and more than 24,000 students. Established in 1923, Radboud University has consistentl ...
(RU) in a lab under Wolfgang Hennig; her research then focused on obtaining mutants of
histone In biology, histones are highly basic proteins abundant in lysine and arginine residues that are found in eukaryotic cell nuclei and in most Archaeal phyla. They act as spools around which DNA winds to create structural units called nucleosomes ...
genes. She received her PhD in 1997 from RU. She completed two postdoctoral projects, the first of which was at RU, where she worked with
anaerobic organism An anaerobic organism or anaerobe is any organism that does not require oxygen, molecular oxygen for growth. It may react negatively or even die if free oxygen is present. In contrast, an aerobic organism (aerobe) is an organism that requires an o ...
s for the Department of Microbiology. Her second postdoc was done at the Erasmus University of Rotterdam. She worked in Niels Galjart's lab in the Department of Cell Biology which Frank Grosveld headed; her research focused on
gene regulation Regulation of gene expression, or gene regulation, includes a wide range of mechanisms that are used by cells to increase or decrease the production of specific gene products (protein or RNA). Sophisticated programs of gene expression are wide ...
and
transcription Transcription refers to the process of converting sounds (voice, music etc.) into letters or musical notes, or producing a copy of something in another medium, including: Genetics * Transcription (biology), the copying of DNA into RNA, often th ...
. She worked with one transcription factor using
two-hybrid screening Two-hybrid screening (originally known as yeast two-hybrid system or Y2H) is a molecular biology technique used to discover protein–protein interactions (PPIs) and DNA-binding protein#Protein–DNA interactions, protein–DNA interactions by t ...
and was asked by Casper Hoogenraad for help with screening CLIP-115, a
microtubule Microtubules are polymers of tubulin that form part of the cytoskeleton and provide structure and shape to eukaryotic cells. Microtubules can be as long as 50 micrometres, as wide as 23 to 27 nanometer, nm and have an inner diameter bet ...
-binding protein that Hoogenraad was working with. Akhmanova and Hoogenraad then created clones for the proteins CLASP and Bicaudal-D, which Akhmanova describes as the proteins that defined her career. In 2011, Akhmanova and Hoogenraad continued to collaborate on research and moved their laboratories to
Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; , formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public university, public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2023, it had an enrollment of ...
, where they began running the Division of Cell Biology. , she is still a cell biology professor at Utrecht University, where she continues to do research on intracellular transportation, especially involving microtubule proteins.


Research

Akhmanova and her team study the cell
cytoskeleton The cytoskeleton is a complex, dynamic network of interlinking protein filaments present in the cytoplasm of all cells, including those of bacteria and archaea. In eukaryotes, it extends from the cell nucleus to the cell membrane and is compos ...
and its effect on human diseases, cell polarization, and vertebrate development. Their main focus is on the microtubules that form part of the cytoskeleton and are essential for many processes, especially cell division. Their research is important for battling disease processes such as
cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...
,
neurodegeneration A neurodegenerative disease is caused by the progressive loss of neurons, in the process known as neurodegeneration. Neuronal damage may also ultimately result in their cell death, death. Neurodegenerative diseases include amyotrophic lateral sc ...
, and the spread of
pathogen In biology, a pathogen (, "suffering", "passion" and , "producer of"), in the oldest and broadest sense, is any organism or agent that can produce disease. A pathogen may also be referred to as an infectious agent, or simply a Germ theory of d ...
s throughout the cell. In terms of methods, the team uses high resolution images of the cells they are studying. They utilize specific
assay An assay is an investigative (analytic) procedure in laboratory medicine, mining, pharmacology, environmental biology and molecular biology for qualitatively assessing or quantitatively measuring the presence, amount, or functional activity ...
s to measure protein dynamics, reconstitute cytoskeleton processes
in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning ''in glass'', or ''in the glass'') Research, studies are performed with Cell (biology), cells or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called "test-tube experiments", these studies in ...
, and identify the interactions of different proteins. The team studies specific proteins that interact on the plus and minus ends of the microtubules, specifically the plus end tracking proteins (+TIPs), which associate with the plus end of the microtubule to regulate its dynamics, and how the +TIPs interact with other structures in the cell. More recently, they have started researching "the biochemical properties and functional roles of the proteins" which organize minus end tracking proteins (-TIPs).4 There is far less information about –TIPs, and they are still not fully understood; however, recent research on CAMSAP, a type of –TIP, has shown that it plays an important role for organizing and stabilizing microtubules during
interphase Interphase is the active portion of the cell cycle that includes the G1, S, and G2 phases, where the cell grows, replicates its DNA, and prepares for mitosis, respectively. Interphase was formerly called the "resting phase," but the cell i ...
. Akhmanova's group now focus on finding how CAMSAP contributes to the organization and stabilization of non-
centrosomal In cell biology, the centrosome (Latin centrum 'center' + Greek sōma 'body') (archaically cytocentre) is an organelle that serves as the main microtubule organizing center (MTOC) of the animal cell, as well as a regulator of cell-cycle progress ...
microtubules during cell division. Another of their projects concerns the mechanisms involved in microtubule-based
vesicle Vesicle may refer to: ; In cellular biology or chemistry * Vesicle (biology and chemistry), a supramolecular assembly of lipid molecules, like a cell membrane * Synaptic vesicle ; In human embryology * Vesicle (embryology), bulge-like features ...
transport. They identified several structures that link the microtubule motors, kinesin and dynein, to vesicles, and they developed procedures to show the function of the linkers when gathering
motor protein Motor proteins are a class of molecular motors that can move along the cytoskeleton of cells. They do this by converting chemical energy into mechanical work by the hydrolysis of ATP. Cellular functions Motor proteins are the driving force b ...
s to associate with membrane
organelle In cell biology, an organelle is a specialized subunit, usually within a cell (biology), cell, that has a specific function. The name ''organelle'' comes from the idea that these structures are parts of cells, as Organ (anatomy), organs are to th ...
s. Inside the cell,
kinesin A kinesin is a protein complex belonging to a class of motor proteins found in eukaryotic cells. Kinesins move along microtubule (MT) filaments and are powered by the hydrolysis of adenosine triphosphate (ATP) (thus kinesins are ATPases, a typ ...
and
dynein Dyneins are a family of cytoskeletal motor proteins (though they are actually protein complexes) that move along microtubules in cells. They convert the chemical energy stored in ATP to mechanical work. Dynein transports various cellular cargo ...
protein motors are required for long-range transport along microtubules. Akhmanova's team focuses mainly on dynein, the motor that moves toward the minus end of the microtubule, and how it is linked to the various organelles and vesicles it transfers. They also study how dynein coordinates with kinesin, the motor that moves toward the plus end of the microtubule, when they are attached to the same organelle or vesicle, and they study the different signaling pathways that affect these motors. As of 2016, they were examining the protein Bicaudal D and its role in dynein-dependent transport, as it has been found to be important for dynein-dependent transport of mRNA in flies and of exocytotic vesicles in mammals. Bicaudal D was also found to be important for the positioning of the centrosomes and nucleus during
mitosis Mitosis () is a part of the cell cycle in eukaryote, eukaryotic cells in which replicated chromosomes are separated into two new Cell nucleus, nuclei. Cell division by mitosis is an equational division which gives rise to genetically identic ...
, as the positioning is facilitated by dynein and kinesin. Akhmanova and her team use constitutive exocytosis as a model system for their study of kinesin and dynein. Exocytotic carriers move from the Golgi to the
plasma membrane The cell membrane (also known as the plasma membrane or cytoplasmic membrane, and historically referred to as the plasmalemma) is a biological membrane that separates and protects the interior of a cell from the outside environment (the extr ...
along microtubules. The team has found that the same cortical complexes are used to attach the microtubule to the plasma membrane as are used to attach them to vesicles. From here, the team plans to study how the cortical complexes are made and regulated, how they affect the attachments and dynamics of microtubules, and what the mechanism is that allows them to fuse vesicles. Also, they would like to find more information on the
NF-κB Nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) is a family of transcription factor protein complexes that controls transcription (genetics), transcription of DNA, cytokine production and cell survival. NF-κB is found i ...
signaling pathway as it was found to have proteins, called ELKS, which are found in the cortical complex. They plan to research how the pathway's components interact and how it affects microtubule stabilization and vesicle fusion.


Honours and awards

Akhmanova has received several awards, including the NWO
Spinoza Prize The Spinoza Prize () is an annual award of 1.5 million euro prize money, to be spent on new research given by the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The award is the highest scientific award in the Netherlands. It is named after the philosopher Baruc ...
in 2018, the ALW Vernieuwingsimpuls VIDI award in 2001, and the VICI award in 2007. In 2013, she and her colleague
Marileen Dogterom Marileen Dogterom (born 20 November 1967, in Utrecht) is a Dutch biophysicist and professor at the Kavli Institute of Nanoscience at Delft University of Technology. She published in Science, Cell, and Nature and is notable for her research of th ...
received a
European Research Council The European Research Council (ERC) is a public body for funding of scientific and technological research conducted within the European Union (EU). Established by the European Commission in 2007, the ERC is composed of an independent Scientific ...
Synergy grant of 7.1 million euro. The grant was given for research on
cell division Cell division is the process by which a parent cell (biology), cell divides into two daughter cells. Cell division usually occurs as part of a larger cell cycle in which the cell grows and replicates its chromosome(s) before dividing. In eukar ...
and cell movement. Akhmanova is a member of the
European Molecular Biology Organization The European Molecular Biology Organization (EMBO) is a professional, non-profit organization of more than 2,100 life scientists. Its goal is to promote research in life science and enable international exchange between scientists. It co-funds cour ...
(2010) and the
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...
(2015), and she is the chair of the board for the Netherlands Society for Microscopy. She is also on the editorial board for various publications such as
eLife ''eLife'' is a not-for-profit, peer-reviewed, open access, scientific journal, science publisher for the Biomedicine, biomedical and life sciences. It was established at the end of 2012 by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Max Planck Society, ...
,
Journal of Cell Science The ''Journal of Cell Science'' (formerly the ''Quarterly Journal of Microscopical Science'') is a peer-reviewed scientific journal in the field of cell biology. The journal is published by The Company of Biologists. The journal is partnered with P ...
, BMC Cell Biology,
The Journal of Biological Chemistry The ''Journal of Biological Chemistry'' (''JBC'') is a weekly peer-reviewed scientific journal that was established in 1905., jbc.org Since 1925, it is published by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. It covers research i ...
, Traffic, and BioArchitecture. Listed are some of her awards: * 2001 – VIDI award, ALW Vernieuwingsimpuls * 2007 – VICI award, ALW Vernieuwingsimpuls * 2014 – Synergy grant, European Research Council * 2018 –
Spinoza Prize The Spinoza Prize () is an annual award of 1.5 million euro prize money, to be spent on new research given by the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The award is the highest scientific award in the Netherlands. It is named after the philosopher Baruc ...
,
Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research The Dutch Research Council (NWO, Dutch: Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek) is the national research council of the Netherlands. NWO funds thousands of top researchers at universities and institutes and steers the course o ...


References


External links


Profile at Utrecht University

Profile on NARCIS
{{DEFAULTSORT:Akhmanova, Anna 1967 births Living people 21st-century Russian biologists Cell biologists Dutch molecular biologists Members of the European Molecular Biology Organization Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Molecular biologists Moscow State University alumni Scientists from Moscow Radboud University Nijmegen alumni Soviet emigrants to the Netherlands Spinoza Prize winners Academic staff of Utrecht University Women molecular biologists