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Henry N. Higgs, Ph.D.

Title(s):
Professor of Biochemistry

Department(s):
Biochemistry

Education:
Lafayette College, BA 1987U. Washington, PHD 1996

Programs:
Molecular and Cellular Biology Graduate Programs

Contact Information:

Dartmouth Medical School
HB 7200
Hanover NH 03755

Professional Interests:

Microvilli cover the surface of circulating blood lymphocytes. Lymphocytes use these finger-like projections to segregate adhesion receptors, as certain receptors localize to microvilli while others are excluded from them. Adhesion receptor segregation is crucial because cells use these receptors sequentially when moving from the bloodsteam to specific tissues. Little is known about the architecture of microvilli, nor about their relationship to similar structures from other cells. My lab will identify protein components crucial to microvillar structure, test how mutation of these proteins affect microvillar structure and function, and characterize how these proteins function biochemically and biophysically.

Selected Publications:
 

Korobova F, Ramabhadran V, Higgs HN
An actin-dependent step in mitochondrial fission mediated by the ER-associated formin INF2.
Science 2013 Jan 25; 339(6118):464-7
PMID: 23349293

Thompson ME, Heimsath EG, Gauvin TJ, Higgs HN, Kull FJ
FMNL3 FH2-actin structure gives insight into formin-mediated actin nucleation and elongation.
Nat Struct Mol Biol 2013 Jan; 20(1):111-8
PMID: 23222643

Ramabhadran V, Gurel PS, Higgs HN
Mutations to the formin homology 2 domain of INF2 protein have unexpected effects on actin polymerization and severing.
J Biol Chem 2012 Oct 5; 287(41):34234-45
PMID: 22879592

Heimsath EG Jr, Higgs HN
The C terminus of formin FMNL3 accelerates actin polymerization and contains a WH2 domain-like sequence that binds both monomers and filament barbed ends.
J Biol Chem 2012 Jan 27; 287(5):3087-98
PMID: 22094460

Ramabhadran V, Korobova F, Rahme GJ, Higgs HN
Splice variant-specific cellular function of the formin INF2 in maintenance of Golgi architecture.
Mol Biol Cell 2011 Dec; 22(24):4822-33
PMID: 21998196

Chang CC, Miyazaki A, Dong R, Kheirollah A, Yu C, Geng Y, Higgs HN, Chang TY
Purification of recombinant acyl-coenzyme A:cholesterol acyltransferase 1 (ACAT1) from H293 cells and binding studies between the enzyme and substrates using difference intrinsic fluorescence spectroscopy.
Biochemistry 2010 Nov 23; 49(46):9957-63
PMID: 20964445

Gauvin TJ, Fukui J, Peterson JR, Higgs HN
Isoform-selective chemical inhibition of mDia-mediated actin assembly.
Biochemistry 2009 Oct 13; 48(40):9327-9
PMID: 19764708

Chhabra ES, Ramabhadran V, Gerber SA, Higgs HN
INF2 is an endoplasmic reticulum-associated formin protein.
J Cell Sci 2009 May 1; 122(Pt 9):1430-40
PMID: 19366733

Nicholson-Dykstra SM, Higgs HN
Arp2 depletion inhibits sheet-like protrusions but not linear protrusions of fibroblasts and lymphocytes.
Cell Motil Cytoskeleton 2008 Nov; 65(11):904-22
PMID: 18720401

Chhabra ES, Higgs HN
The many faces of actin: matching assembly factors with cellular structures.
Nat Cell Biol 2007 Oct; 9(10):1110-21
PMID: 17909522