Alex Wu

Post-doc

617-432-2927

Education
2001-2005 B.S. Bioengineering University of Washington
2010-2016 Ph.D. Molecular and Cell Biology University of California, Berkeley (supervisor, Kathleen Collins)
2016-Present Postdoctoral fellow Harvard Medical School (supervisor, Johannes Walter)
Awards and Honors
2005 Mary Gates Research Training Fellowship
2012 NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
2015 University of California Cancer Research Coordinating Committee Predoctoral Fellowship
2018-2020 American Cancer Society Postdoctoral Fellowship
2021-Present NIH (NIGMS) K99 Pathway to Independence Award
Publications

Vrtis, K. B., Dewar, J. M., Chistol, G., Wu, R. A., Graham, T. G., Walter, J. C. (2021). Single-strand DNA breaks cause replisome disassembly. Mol Cell. 81(6): 1309-1318.

Wu, R.A., Pellman, D.S., Walter, J.C. (2021). The Ubiquitin Ligase TRAIP: Double-Edged Sword at the Replisome. Trends Cell Biol31(2): 75-85.

Wang, A.S., Chen, L.C., Wu, R.A., Hao, Y., McSwiggen, D.T., Heckert, A.B., Richardson, C.D., Gowin, B.G., Kazane, K.R., Vu, J.T., Wyman, S.K., Shin, J.J., Darzacq, X., Walter, J.C., Corn, J.E. (2020). The Histone Chaperone FACT Induces Cas9 Multi-Turnover Behavior and Modifies Genome Manipulation in Human Cells. Mol Cell79(2): 221-233.e5.

Deng, L., Wu, R.A. , Sonneville, R., Kochenova, O.V., Labib, K., Pellman, D., Walter, J.C (2019). Mitotic CDK Promotes Replisome Disassembly, Fork Breakage, and Complex DNA Rearrangements. Mol Cell73(5): 915-929.

Wu, R.A. , Semlow, D.R., Kamimae-Lanning, A.N., Kochenova, O.V., Chistol, G., Hodskinson, M.R., Amunugama, R., Sparks, J.L., Wang, M., Deng, L., Mimoso, C.A., Low, E., Patel, K.J., Walter, J.C. (2019). TRAIP is a master regulator of DNA interstrand crosslink repair. Nature. doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1002-0.

Larsen N.B., Gao A.O., Sparks J.L., Gallina I., Wu R.A. , Mann M., Räschle M., Walter J.C., Duxin J.P. (2019). Replication-Coupled DNA-Protein Crosslink Repair by SPRTN and the Proteasome in Xenopus Egg Extracts. Mol Cell73: 1-15.

Amunugama, R., Willcox, S., Wu, R.A., Abdullah, U.B., El-Sagheer, A.H., Brown, T., McHugh, P.J., Griffith, J.D., Walter, J.C. (2018). Replication fork reversal during DNA interstrand crosslink repair requires CMG unloading. Cell Rep23(2): 3419-3428.

Nguyen, T.H.D., Tam, J., Wu, R.A., Gerber, B.J., Toso, D., Nogales, E., Collins, K. (2018). Cryo-EM structure of substrate-bound human telomerase holoenzyme. Nature557(7704): 190-195.

Wu, R.A., Tam, J., Collins, K. (2017). DNA-binding determinants and cellular thresholds for human telomerase repeat addition processivity. EMBO J36(13): 1908-1927.

Wu, R.A., Upton, H.E., Vogan, J.M., Collins, K. (2017). Telomerase mechanism of telomere synthesis. Annu Rev Biochem86: 439-460.

Chiba, K., Vogan, J.M., Wu, R.A., Gill, M.S., Zhang, X., Collins, K., Hockemeyer, D. (2017). Endogenous telomerase reverse transcriptase N-terminal tagging affects human telomerase function at telomeres in vivo. Mol Cell Biol37(3): pii: e00541-16.

Wu, R.A., Dagdas, Y.S., Yilmaz, S.T., Yildiz, A., Collins, K. (2015). Single-molecule imaging of telomerase reverse transcriptase in human telomerase holoenzyme and minimal RNP complexes. eLife4: e08363.

Wu, R.A., Collins, K. (2014). Sequence specificity of human telomerase. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA111(31): 11234-11235.

Wu, R.A., Collins, K. (2014). Human telomerase specialization for repeat synthesis by unique handling of primer-template duplex. EMBO J. 33(8): 921-935

Trobridge, G.D., Beard, B.C., Wu, R.A., Ironside, C., Malik, P., Kiem, H.P. (2012). Stem cell selection in vivo using foamy vectors cures canine pyruvate kinase deficiency. PLoS One7(9): e45173.

Trobridge, G.D., Wu, R.A., Hansen, M., Ironside, C., Watts, K.L., Olsen, P., Beard, B.C., Kiem, H.P. (2010). Cocal-pseudotyped lentiviral vectors resist inactivation by human serum and efficiently transduce primate hematopoietic repopulating cells. Mol Ther. 18(4): 725-733.

Kiem, H.P., Wu, R.A., Sun, G., von Laer, D., Rossi, J.J., Trobridge, G.D. (2010). Foamy combinatorial anti-HIV vectors with MGMTP140K potently inhibit HIV-1 and SHIV replication and mediate selection in vivo. Gene Ther. 17(1): 37-49.

Trobridge, G.D., Wu R.A., Beard, B.C., Chiu, S.Y., Munoz, N.M., von Laer, D., Rossi, J.J., Kiem, H.P. (2009). Protection of stem cell-derived lymphocytes in a primate AIDS gene therapy model after in vivo selection. PLoS One4(11): e7693.