CV Sascha Brunke

 

Sascha Brunke started his studies of Biology at the Free University Berlin in 1998. His interest in pathogenic fungi started with his diploma thesis, completed at the Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, where he worked with the skin pathogen Malassezia furfur. His PhD thesis on the pigment synthesis of pathogenic fungi was funded by a personal research grant of the Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes, and during this time from 2005-2010 he started his work with Candida species.

After moving to the Hans Knöll Institute in Jena, one of the foremost fungal research institutes in Europe, his scientific focus changed to the evolutionary adaptations of fungal pathogens to their human hosts, especially the aspects of metal homeostasis and their survival in macrophages. This included a 2011-2015 project at the Center for Sepsis Control and Care of the University Hospital Jena, after which he continued to work as a team leader for "Nutrition and Evolutionary Adaptations" and deputy head of the department MPM at the Hand Knöll Institute.

For his contributions to the research on pathogenic fungi, Sascha Brunke was awarded the scientific sponsorship award 2019 by the German-speaking Mycological Society (DMykG), the sponsorship award 2016 of the German Society for Hygiene and Microbiology (DGHM), and a number of awards for publications and presentations. He is active as an editor for the journals Frontiers in Microbiology, Journal of Fungi, and Scientific Reports.

Selected Publications:

  1. Kämmer P, McNamara S, Wolf T, Conrad T, Allert S, Gerwien F, Hünniger K, Kurzai O, Guthke R, Hube B, Linde J, Brunke S (2020) Survival Strategies of Pathogenic Candida Species in Human Blood Show Independent and Specific Adaptations. mBio 11:e02435-20.
  2. Fischer D, Gessner G, Fill TP, Barnett R, Tron K, Dornblut K, Kloss F, Stallforth P, Hube B, Heinemann SH, Hertweck C, Scherlach K, Brunke S (2019) Disruption of Membrane Integrity by the Bacterium-Derived Antifungal Jagaricin. Antimicrob Agents Chemother 63:e00707-19.
  3. Bacher P, Hohnstein T, Beerbaum E, Röcker M, Blango MG, Kaufmann S, Röhmel J, Eschenhagen P, Grehn C, Seidel K, Rickerts V, Lozza L, Stervbo U, Nienen M, Babel N, Milleck J, Assenmacher M, Cornely OA, Ziegler M, Wisplinghoff H, Heine G, Worm M, Siegmund B, Maul J, Creutz P, Tabeling C, Ruwwe-Glösenkamp C, Sander LE, Knosalla C, Brunke S, Hube B, Kniemeyer O, Brakhage AA, Schwarz C, Scheffold A (2019) Human Anti-fungal Th17 Immunity and Pathology Rely on Cross-Reactivity against Candida albicans . Cell 176:1340-1355.e15.
  4. Skrahina V, Brock M, Hube B, Brunke S (2017) Candida albicans Hap43 Domains Are Required under Iron Starvation but Not Excess. Front Microbiol. 8:2388.
  5. Gerwien F, Safyan A, Wisgott S, Hille F, Kaemmer P, Linde J, Brunke S, Kasper L, Hube B (2016) A Novel Hybrid Iron Regulation Network Combines Features from Pathogenic and Nonpathogenic Yeasts. mBio 7:e01782-16.
  6. Böttcher B, Pöllath C, Staib P, Hube B, Brunke S (2016) Candida species Rewired Hyphae Developmental Programs for Chlamydospore Formation. Front Microbiol 7:1697.
  7. Wartenberg A, Linde J, Martin R, Schreiner M, Horn F, Jacobsen ID, Jenull S, Wolf T, Kuchler K, Guthke R, Kurzai O, Forche A, d'Enfert C, Brunke S, Hube B (2014) Microevolution of Candida albicans in macrophages restores filamentation in a nonfilamentous mutant. PLoS Genet 10:e1004824.
  8. Brunke S, Seider K, Fischer D, Jacobsen ID, Kasper L, Jablonowski N, Wartenberg A, Bader O, Enache-Angoulvant A, Schaller M, d'Enfert C, Hube B (2014) One small step for a yeast - microevolution within macrophages renders Candida glabrata hypervirulent due to a single point mutation. PLoS Pathog 10:e1004478.
  9. Seider K, Brunke S, Schild L, Jablonowski N, Wilson D, Majer O, Barz D, Haas A, Kuchler K, Schaller M, Hube B (2011) The facultative intracellular pathogen Candida glabrata subverts macrophage cytokine production and phagolysosome maturation. J Immunol 187(6):3072-3086.
  10. Butler G, Rasmussen MD, Lin MF, Santos MA, Sakthikumar S, Munro CA, Rheinbay E, Grabherr M, Forche A, Reedy JL, Agrafioti I, Arnaud MB, Bates S, Brown AJ, Brunke S, Costanzo MC, Fitzpatrick DA, de Groot PW, Harris D, Hoyer LL, Hube B, Klis FM, Kodira C, Lennard N, Logue ME, Martin R, Neiman AM, Nikolaou E, Quail MA, Quinn J, Santos MC, Schmitzberger FF, Sherlock G, Shah P, Silverstein KA, Skrzypek MS, Soll D, Staggs R, Stansfield I, Stumpf MP, Sudbery PE, Srikantha T, Zeng Q, Berman J, Berriman M, Heitman J, Gow NA, Lorenz MC, Birren BW, Kellis M, Cuomo CA (2009) Evolution of pathogenicity and sexual reproduction in eight Candida genomes. Nature. 459:657-662.