The Elsässer Lab at Karolinska Institutet

at SciLifeLab Stockholm

Our laboratory develops new synthetic and chemical biology methods to perform ‘biochemistry in the living cell’. The aim is to understand protein function in a mechanistic and quantitative manner, in the context of the living cell. To perform specific and quantitative biochemical assays in the living cell, two key challenges have to be addressed: first, how can we make accurate and quantitative measurements in the cellular environment? Second, how can we introduce specific perturbations controlled in space and time? To this end, we are developing tools to engineer proteins in living cells based on genetic code expansion and unnatural amino acid mutagenesis. We aim, for example, to control and probe chromatin proteins using light-activated and bioorthogonal chemistries. These methods, combined with quantitative, high-throughput, proteomic and genomic read-outs, allow us to dissect the complex mechanisms governing cellular processed involved in DNA metabolism, gene regulation, cellular signaling. Having a long-standing interest in chromatin biology, we currently focus on mechanism of chromatin dynamics, histone modifications and epigenetic inheritance. We are studying the function of Polycomb group proteins and their histone marks in setting and maintaining developmental gene expression programs. We are also interested in the molecular underpinnings of pluripotency and mechanism that initiate lineage commitment in early embryonic development. Lastly, we have a separate research program in understanding the role of small proteins and peptides in cells, again relying on our synthetic biology toolbox to elucidate their function in the cellular context.

SHORT NEWS

Our bioRxiv paper now published in Cell Reports Methods!
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Apply to a RED Postdoc Fellowship (by Dec 27th 2023) to join us at SciLifeLab
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Watch Simon’s Seminar on Genetic Code Expansion on YouTube – thanks to GCE4All!
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Welcome new students Darina Kiriliuk, Dovydas Januska, Rebecca Sotiroff, Remo Bode, Suzanne van der Vliet
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Congratulations Dörte Schlesinger on her stellar defence, and welcome new PhD student Laura Steponaviciute
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Yu-Hsuan Tsai and Simon Elsässer edit new book on non-canonical amino acids
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Collaboration with Alexander Meissner lab published in Nature Cell Biology
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Simon Elsässer receives ERC Consolidator Grant
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Collaboration with Sebastian Bultmann lab published in Nucleic Acid Research
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Welcome Master students Christina Horstmann, Laura Seponaviciute, Janice Linne, Michael Lorenz Baggio, Malva Doroshenko, Milan Dordević
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Collaboration with Claus Stoorgard Sørensen lab published in Science
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MINUTE-ChIP analysis pipeline by Carmen Navarro on bioRxiv
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Congratulations to new Drs. Lea van Husen and Jing Lyu!
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Welcome Computational Biologist Szabolcs Hetey to the Team
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Elsässer lab and Epigenica AB receive second ERC Proof of Concept Grant
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Rui Shao‘s paper now out in Molecular Systems Biology
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Jing Lyu‘s G4 mapping preprint now accepted at NAR

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Birthe and Johannes publish new ncaAA, picolylazide-lysine, in Frontiers in Chemistry
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We were able to purchase our own mass spectrometer generous support from IngaBritt och Arne Lundbergs Forskningsstiftelse
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Congratulations Anna Spinner for winning a Bayer Foundation Fellowship
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Lea’s and Anna’s paper on engineered hiPSC is out in ChemBioChem
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Welcome master students Eva Soto, Bruno Urién, Xinhe Xing, Florian Ortis
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Epigenica AB founded as part of ERC Proof-of-Concept Grant
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Congratulations Dörte Schlesinger on winning the SciLifeLab “Communicate Your Science” competition
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Read Rui Shao‘s preprint here: how to measure RNA Polymerase speed?
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Congratulations Dörte Schlesinger on her Review Article in FEBS J

Simon Elsässer – Ragnar Söderberg Fellow in Medicine from Ragnar Söderbergs stiftelse on Vimeo.

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Congratulations Lorenzo Lafranchi, Dörte Schlesinger on their paper in JACS
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Congratulations Carmen Navarro, Jing, Anna, Rozina on their paper in Nature Communications
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Elsässer lab and Swedish business developers receive an ERC Proof-of-Concept Grant
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Simon Elsässer is selected for SSF Future Research Leader 7 Program
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Congratulations Jing Lyu, Angelo Salazar, Lea van Husen for passing their half-time reviews this spring with flying colors
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Welcome thesis students Linus Brinkenstråhle, Hanna Schwämmle, Michael Schrempf, Adrià Gassó
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Welcome computational PhD student Yuying Cheng
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Simon Elsässer is appointed as Wallenberg Academy Fellow
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Lab retreat with team building and strategic sessions at Solvik
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Welcome visiting students Maximilian Hornisch (Munich), Jana Braunger (Heidelberg) and Mrinal Panday (KTH)
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Dörte Schlesinger attends the MBL Physiology Course 2019
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Simon Elsässer takes up visiting fellowship at Wissenschaftskolleg zu Berlin

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Histones win the Lasker Award: Congratulation to David Allis and Michael Grunstein
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Welcome summer students Ruth Lappalainen and Laura Neises
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Dörte Schlesinger wins Boehringer Ingelheim Fonds PhD Fellowship
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Welcome master and project students Turid Everitt, Alexandra Morscher, Johannes Heimgärtner, Javier Gomez, Sofia Kalaidopoulou, Minh Nguyen Trung
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Rui Shao is accepted to The Swedish Bioinformatics Advisory Program
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Björn Högberg, Ana Texeira, Simon Elsässer receive collaborative Wallenberg Project Grant
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Welcome summer and master students Rumeysa Ermis, Franziska Liss, Matthias Block, Kyle Kimler, Marianne Simon, Justine Brun
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Computer Scientist Carmen Navarro Luzon joins the lab
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Elsässer lab receives Wallenberg Bioinformatics support grant
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Dörte Schlesinger joins the lab
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Rozina Caridha joins the lab
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Lorenzo Lafranchi and Angelo Salazar join the lab
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Elsässer lab receives a two collaborative doctoral education grants from KI
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Elsässer lab receives a Cancerfonden grant
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Simon Elsässer is named a Ragnar Soderberg Fellow in Medicine 2016
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Elsässer lab receives a grant from the
The Ming Wai Lau Centre for Reparative Medicine
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Rui Shao joins lab on CSC PhD student scholarhip.
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Philip Yung joins the lab on Croucher Foundation Fellowship
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Elsässer lab receives an ERC Starting Grant!!
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Welcome summer student Laura Neises
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Welcome new students Helena Ishak, Alexander Kühn and Mareike Bach
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Thanks for a contribution by the Clas Groschinsky Foundation
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Meet Simon at the Bridging Worlds Through Science conference
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Congratulations to Maria Pires passing her MSc defense
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Welcome new Students Banushree Kumar and Annika Faucon
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Congratulations to Evan Alsaleem passing his MSc defense
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Welcome new students Lea van Husen, Daniel Horn, Taotao Xiang
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Anna-Maria Katsori wins Swedish Childhood Cancer Foundation Postdoc Fellowship
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Simon Elsässer receives grant from The Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education for establishing an international collaboration for Alzheimer’s research
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Simon Elsässer has been appointed to the Global Young Academy
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Elsässerlab receives grant from Åke Wibergs Foundation