John Boothroyd

Administrative Appointments

• Associate Vice-Provost for Graduate Education, Stanford University (2008 - present)
• Senior Associate Dean for Research and Training, Stanford University School of Medicine (2002 - 2005)
• Chair, Dept. Microbiology and Immunology, Stanford University School of Medicine (1999 - 2002)
• Chair, Burroughs Wellcome Fund Advisory Panel on Molecular Parasitology (1999 - 2001)
• Chair, Gordon Conference on Parasitism (1999 - 1999)
View All 6administrative appointments of John Boothroyd

Honors and Awards

• Leuckart Medal, German Society for Parasitology (2008)
• Fellow, American Academy of Microbiology (2007)
• Senior Scholar in Global Infectious Diseases, Ellison Medical Foundation (2002-2006)
• Dunlevie Family University Fellow in Undergraduate Education, Stanford University (2002)
• Merit Award, NIH (1994-2004)

Professional Education

Postdoctoral Advisees

Kerry Buchholz, Carolina Caffaro, Anita Koshy, Michael Reese, Jessica Tyler, Gusti Zeiner

Graduate & Fellowship Program Affiliations

• Immunology
• Microbiology and Immunology

Web Site Links

• Boothroyd Lab Home Page

Research Interests

Studies on the cell and molecular biology of parasitic protozoa are critically important for two reasons; first, these organisms are major pathogens of humans and anaimals and, second, they have proven to be a source of some remarkable phenomena that have challenged much of the dogma thought to be universal in eukaryotic biology. We have been studying two of these single-celled eukaryotes, Trypanosoma brucei and Toxoplasma gondii. Each has its own features that make it interesting to the scientist and both are major pathogens, trypanosomes being the cause of sleeping sickness in Africa and Toxoplasma being a major opporunistic pathogen of AIDS patients. As of, 1998, however, we have focused our entire effort on Toxoplasma because of its growing importance and our results developing this system for modern genetic analysis (we now have a full genetic "toolbox" for this intracellular parasite including a genetic map, efficient genetic transformation and gene knock-out).

The major areas where the lab is currently working are:

(i) Intracellular parasitism: how does this parasite attach, invade and reproduce within virtually any nucleated cell.
(ii) Protein trafficking; how are proteins destined for novel organelles specifically targeted.
(iii) Developmental biology; what genes are crucial for asexual development from the actively dividing to the latent form of the parasite and what are the cis- and trans-elements that control that expression.
(iv) Host-pathogen interaction: what changes occur in the host cell in response to infection?
(v) Pathogenesis: what properties make certain strains more virulent than others?

Publications

• A helical membrane-binding domain targets the Toxoplasma ROP2 family to the parasitophorous vacuole. Reese ML, Boothroyd JC. Traffic. 2009; 10 (10): 1458-70
• Kiss and spit: the dual roles of Toxoplasma rhoptries. Boothroyd JC, Dubremetz JF. Nat Rev Microbiol. 2008; 6 (1): 79-88
• Toxoplasma co-opts host gene expression by injection of a polymorphic kinase homologue. Saeij JP, Coller S, Boyle JP, Jerome ME, White MW, Boothroyd JC. Nature. 2007; 445 (7125): 324-7
• Just one cross appears capable of dramatically altering the population biology of a eukaryotic pathogen like Toxoplasma gondii. Boyle JP, Rajasekar B, Saeij JP, Ajioka JW, Berriman M, Paulsen I, Roos DS, Sibley LD, White MW, Boothroyd JC. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2006; 103 (27): 10514-9
• Identification of the moving junction complex of Toxoplasma gondii: a collaboration between distinct secretory organelles. Alexander DL, Mital J, Ward GE, Bradley P, Boothroyd JC. PLoS Pathog. 2005; 1 (2): e17