Prof. Alexander Westermann
Über
Alexander Westermann studierte Molekulare Biowissenschaften an der Universität Heidelberg (Deutschland) und verbrachte 2009 als Gastwissenschaftler an der UC Berkeley (Kalifornien, USA). Seine Promotion und anschließende Postdoc-Zeit absolvierte er im Labor von Prof. Jörg Vogel am Institut für Molekulare Infektionsbiologie (IMIB) in Würzburg. Weitere internationale Gastaufenthalte in den Laboren von Prof. Andreas Bäumler (UC Davis, USA) und Prof. David Holden (Imperial College London, UK) folgten in den Jahren 2017 und 2018. Alexander Westermann war seit März 2018 Juniorprofessor am IMIB und gleichzeitig Leiter der Forschungsgruppe Wirt-Pathogen-Mikrobiota-Interaktionen (HOPI) am HIRI. Im Juli 2023 folgte er dem Ruf auf eine W2-Professur am Biozentrum der JMU.
2024
Improved RNA stability estimation through Bayesian modeling reveals most Salmonella transcripts have subminute half-lives
Jenniches L, Michaux C, Popella L, Reichardt S, Vogel J, Westermann AJ, Barquist L (2024)
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 121 (14): e2308814121DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2308814121
An expanded transcriptome atlas for Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron reveals a small RNA that modulates tetracycline sensitivity
Ryan D, Bornet E, Prezza G, Alampalli SV, Franco de Carvalho T, Felchle H, Ebbecke T, Hayward RJ, Deutschbauer AM, Barquist L, Westermann AJ (2024)
Nature Microbiology 9 (4): 1130-1144DOI: 10.1038/s41564-024-01642-9
CRISPR-based screening of small RNA modulators of bile susceptibility in Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron
Prezza G, Liao C, Reichardt S, Beisel CL, Westermann AJ (2024)
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 121 (6): 1096DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2311323121
Non-professional efferocytosis of Salmonella-infected intestinal epithelial cells in the neonatal host
Zhang K, Repnik U, Diab N, Friske D, Pütz A, Bachmann AZ, Gubbi NMKP, Hensel M, Förstner KU, Westermann AJ, Dupont A, Hornef MW (2024)
The Journal of Experimental Medicine 221 (3)DOI: 10.1084/jem.20231237
CRISPR Interference-Based Functional Small RNA Genomics
Prezza G, Westermann AJ (2024)
Methods in Molecular Biology 2741: 101-116DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3565-0_6
2023
A primary cell-based in vitro model of the human small intestine reveals host olfactomedin 4 induction in response to Salmonella Typhimurium infection
Däullary T, Imdahl F, Dietrich O, Hepp L, Krammer T, Fey C, Neuhaus W, Metzger M, Vogel J, Westermann AJ, Saliba AE, Zdzieblo D (2023)
Gut Microbes 15 (1): 2186109DOI: 10.1080/19490976.2023.2186109
RNA recording in single bacterial cells using reprogrammed tracrRNAs
Jiao C, Reckstadt C, König F, Homberger C, Yu J, Vogel J, Westermann AJ, Sharma CM, Beisel CL (2023)
Nature Biotechnology 41 (8): 1107-1116DOI: 10.1038/s41587-022-01604-8
2022
TFEB induces mitochondrial itaconate synthesis to suppress bacterial growth in macrophages
Schuster EM, Epple MW, Glaser KM, Mihlan M, Lucht K, Zimmermann JA, Bremser A, Polyzou A, Obier N, Cabezas-Wallscheid N, …, Westermann AJ, Rambold AS (2022)
Nature Metabolism 4 (7): 856-866DOI: 10.1038/s42255-022-00605-w
The ambivalent role of Bacteroides in enteric infections
Bornet E, Westermann AJ (2022)
Trends in Microbiology 30 (2): 104-108DOI: 10.1016/j.tim.2021.11.009
Comparative genomics provides structural and functional insights into Bacteroides RNA biology
Prezza G, Ryan D, Mädler G, Reichardt S, Barquist L, Westermann AJ (2022)
Molecular Microbiology 117 (1): 67-85DOI: 10.1111/mmi.14793
2021
SPI2 T3SS effectors facilitate enterocyte apical to basolateral transmigration of Salmonella-containing vacuoles in vivo
Fulde M, van Vorst K, Zhang K, Westermann AJ, Busche T, Huei YC, Welitschanski K, Froh I, Pägelow D, Plendl J, …, Repnik U, Hornef MW (2021)
Gut Microbes 13 (1): 1973836DOI: 10.1080/19490976.2021.1973836
MAPS integrates regulation of actin-targeting effector SteC into the virulence control network of Salmonella small RNA PinT
Correia Santos S, Bischler T, Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2021)
Cell Reports 34 (5): 108722DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.108722
Cross-species RNA-seq for deciphering host–microbe interactions
Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2021)
Nature Reviews Genetics 22 (6): 361–378DOI: 10.1038/s41576-021-00326-y
2020
An RNA-centric view on gut Bacteroidetes
Ryan D, Prezza G, Westermann AJ (2020)
Biological Chemistry 402 (1): 55-72DOI: 10.1515/hsz-2020-0230
A global data-driven census of Salmonella small proteins and their potential functions in bacterial virulence
Venturini E, Svensson SL, Maaß S, Gelhausen R, Eggenhofer F, Li L, Cain AK, Parkhill J, Becher D, Backofen R, …, Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2020)
microLife 1 (1): 597DOI: 10.1093/femsml/uqaa002
Triple RNA-Seq Reveals Synergy in a Human Virus-Fungus Co-infection Model
Seelbinder B, Wallstabe J, Marischen L, Weiss E, Wurster S, Page L, Löffler C, Bussemer L, Schmitt A, Wolf T, …, Schäuble S, Loeffler J (2020)
Cell Reports 33 (7): 108389DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.108389
Amidochelocardin Overcomes Resistance Mechanisms Exerted on Tetracyclines and Natural Chelocardin
Hennessen F, Miethke M, Zaburannyi N, Loose M, Lukežic T, Bernecker S, Hüttel S, Jansen R, Schmiedel J, Fritzenwanker M, …, Herrmann J, Müller R (2020)
Antibiotics 9 (9): 619DOI: 10.3390/antibiotics9090619
A high-resolution transcriptome map identifies small RNA regulation of metabolism in the gut microbe Bacteroides thetaiotaomicron
Ryan D, Jenniches L, Reichardt S, Barquist L, Westermann AJ (2020)
Nature Communications 11 (1): 3557DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-17348-5
Dual RNA-seq of Orientia tsutsugamushi informs on host-pathogen interactions for this neglected intracellular human pathogen
Mika-Gospodorz B, Giengkam S, Westermann AJ, Wongsantichon J, Kion-Crosby W, Chuenklin S, Wang LC, Sunyakumthorn P, Sobota RM, Subbian S, …, Barquist L, Salje J (2020)
Nature Communications 11: 3363DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-17094-8
Improved bacterial RNA-seq by Cas9-based depletion of ribosomal RNA reads
Prezza G, Heckel T, Dietrich S, Homberger C, Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2020)
RNA 26 (8): 1069-1078DOI: 10.1261/rna.075945.120
An Advanced Human Intestinal Coculture Model Reveals Compartmentalized Host and Pathogen Strategies during Salmonella Infection
Schulte LN, Schweinlin M, Westermann AJ, Janga H, Santos SC, Appenzeller S, Walles H, Vogel J, Metzger M (2020)
mBio 11 (1): e03348-19DOI: 10.1128/mBio.03348-19
2019
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Brain Endothelial Cells as a Cellular Model to Study Neisseria meningitidis Infection
Martins Gomes SF, Westermann AJ, Sauerwein T, Hertlein T, Förstner KU, Ohlsen K, Metzger M, Shusta EV, Kim BJ, Appelt-Menzel A, Schubert-Unkmeir A (2019)
Frontiers in Microbiology 10: 1181DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2019.01181
The Major RNA-Binding Protein ProQ Impacts Virulence Gene Expression in Salmonella enterica Serovar Typhimurium
Westermann AJ, Venturini E, Sellin ME, Förstner KU, Hardt W, Vogel J (2019)
mBio 10 (1): e02504-18DOI: 10.1128/mBio.02504-18
2018
Toward Cell Type-Specific In Vivo Dual RNA-Seq
Frönicke L, Bronner DN, Byndloss MX, McLaughlin B, Bäumler AJ, Westermann AJ (2018)
Methods In Enzymology 612: 505-522DOI: 10.1016/bs.mie.2018.08.013
Regulatory RNAs in Virulence and Host-Microbe Interactions
Westermann AJ (2018)
Microbiology Spectrum 6 (4): 305-337DOI: 10.1128/microbiolspec.RWR-0002-2017
MetaMap: an atlas of metatranscriptomic reads in human disease-related RNA-seq data
Simon LM, Karg S, Westermann AJ, Engel M, Elbehery AH, Hense B, Heinig M, Deng L, Theis FJ (2018)
GigaScience 7 (6): giy070DOI: 10.1093/gigascience/giy070
Salmonella persisters undermine host immune defenses during antibiotic treatment
Stapels DA, Hill PW, Westermann AJ, Fisher RA, Thurston TL, Saliba AE, Blommestein I, Vogel J, Helaine S (2018)
Science 362 (6419): 1156-1160DOI: 10.1126/science.aat7148
CRP-cAMP mediates silencing of Salmonella virulence at the post-transcriptional level
El Mouali Y, Gaviria-Cantin T, Sánchez-Romero MA, Gibert M, Westermann AJ, Vogel J, Balsalobre C (2018)
PLOS Genetics 14 (6): e1007401DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1007401
Host-Pathogen Transcriptomics by Dual RNA-Seq
Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2018)
In: Arluison V., Valverde C. (eds) Bacterial Regulatory RNA, Methods in Molecular Biology 1737: 59-75DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-7634-8_4
2017
P5SM suicide exon for regulating gene expression
Hammond MC, Westermann AJ, Qin Q (2017)
Patent (US9637750B2)
Einzelzell-RNA-Sequenzierung beleuchtet den Infektionsprozess
Saliba AE, Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2017)
BIOspektrum 23 (5): 525-528DOI: 10.1007/s12268-017-0836-y
RNA target profiles direct the discovery of virulence functions for the cold-shock proteins CspC and CspE
Michaux C, Holmqvist E, Vasicek E, Sharan M, Barquist L, Westermann AJ, Gunn JS, Vogel J (2017)
PNAS 114 (26): 6824-6829DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1620772114
Resolving host-pathogen interactions by dual RNA-seq
Westermann AJ, Barquist L, Vogel J (2017)
PLOS Pathogens 13 (2): e1006033DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1006033
2016
An NK Cell Perforin Response Elicited via IL-18 Controls Mucosal Inflammation Kinetics during Salmonella Gut Infection
Müller AA, Dolowschiak T, Sellin ME, Felmy B, Verbree C, Gadient S, Westermann AJ, Vogel J, LeibundGut-Landmann S, Hardt W (2016)
PLOS Pathogens 12 (6): e1005723DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1005723
Single-cell RNA-seq ties macrophage polarization to growth rate of intracellular Salmonella
Saliba AE, Li L, Westermann AJ, Appenzeller S, Stapels DA, Schulte LN, Helaine S, Vogel J (2016)
Nature Microbiology 2: 16206DOI: 10.1038/nmicrobiol.2016.206
Molecular phenotyping of infection-associated small non-coding RNAs
Barquist L, Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2016)
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London B: Biological Sciences 371 (1707): 20160081DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2016.0081
Dual RNA-seq unveils noncoding RNA functions in host-pathogen interactions
Westermann AJ, Forstner KU, Amman F, Barquist L, Chao Y, Schulte LN, Muller L, Reinhardt R, Stadler PF, Vogel J (2016)
Nature 529 (7587): 496-501DOI: 10.1038/nature16547
2015
Dual 3'Seq using deepSuperSAGE uncovers transcriptomes of interacting Salmonella enterica Typhimurium and human host cells
Afonso-Grunz F, Hoffmeier K, Müller S, Westermann AJ, Rotter B, Vogel J, Winter P, Kahl G (2015)
BMC Genomics 16: 323DOI: 10.1186/s12864-015-1489-1
2014
Single-cell RNA-seq: advances and future challenges
Saliba AE, Westermann AJ, Gorski SA, Vogel J (2014)
Nucleic Acids Research 42 (14): 8845-60DOI: 10.1093/nar/gku555
2013
Differential activation and functional specialization of miR-146 and miR-155 in innate immune sensing
Schulte LN, Westermann AJ, Vogel J (2013)
Nucleic Acids Research 41 (1): 542-53DOI: 10.1093/nar/gks1030
2012
Transgene regulation in plants by alternative splicing of a suicide exon
Hickey SF, Sridhar M, Westermann AJ, Qin Q, Vijayendra P, Liou G, Hammond MC (2012)
Nucleic Acids Research 40 (10): 4701-10DOI: 10.1093/nar/gks032
Dual RNA-seq of pathogen and host
Westermann AJ, Gorski SA, Vogel J (2012)
Nature Reviews Microbiology 10 (9): 618-30DOI: 10.1038/nrmicro2852