E-mail: tiwari@health.sdu.dk
Department:
Institute of Molecular Medicine (IMM)
Biography:
Prof. Tiwari’s academic journey spans six countries—India, Sweden, Germany, Switzerland, the USA, and the UK—reflecting his pursuit of excellence at premier institutions worldwide. He earned his MSc in Molecular & Human Genetics at BHU, a Center of Excellence in Life Sciences in India, graduating with outstanding grades. For his doctoral studies, he joined Prof. Rolf Ohlsson’s Developmental Biology lab at Uppsala University, Sweden, where he completed his thesis with distinction in just three years, making multiple high-impact contributions. His postdoctoral work with Prof. Stephen Baylin at Johns Hopkins University, a globally renowned expert in epigenetics, and Prof. Dirk Schübeler at the Friedrich Miescher Institute (FMI) in Basel, an eminent leader in functional genomics, further solidifying his training as a pioneering scientist. He started his lab in Germany in 2012 as a Group leader and in 2018, he joined Queen’s University in the UK as a Senior Associate Professor before joining SDU as a full Professor at IMM.
2003-2006Zoologiska Foundation PhD Student,Dept of Development and Genetics, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden2000-2002MSc (Master of Science),Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Varanasi, India |
From 2023Professor and Head of Research, Institute of Molecular Medicine (IMM), Universityof Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark2018- 2023Senior Associate Professor, The Wellcome-Wolfson Institute for Experimental Medicine, Queen’s University, Belfast, United Kingdom2012-2018Group Leader, Institute of Molecular Biology, Mainz, Germany2008-2011Marie-Curie and EMBO Postdoctoral Fellow, Friedrich Miescher Institute (FMI) for Biomedical Research, Basel, Switzerland2006-2008Johns Hopkins Postdoctoral Fellow, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, USA |
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Tiwari lab is interested in illuminating fundamental gene regulatory programs driving neural fate decisions, revealing how their disruption contributes to neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs) and offering new avenues for understanding brain function and pathology. These advances are built on strong multidisciplinary research combining epigenetics, transcription factor (TF) biology, genomics and computational biology in models of brain development. Their early work demonstrated that a MAP kinase JNK directly reprograms the epigenetic landscape to drive neurogenesis (Nature Genetics 2012). Additionally, they uncovered how TFs shape the DNA methylome at distal regulatory regions to guide neurogenesis (Nature 2011). Tiwari lab subsequently revealed pivotal roles for Topoisomerases 2α and 2β, previously considered structural proteins, in transcriptional control of neural fates (PNAS 2012; Nature Communications 2013). They also showed how dynamic epigenetic modulation of distal gene regulatory landscapes orchestrates neurogenesis and neuroplasticity (Genome Research 2015). In further studies, they discovered the pioneer TF role for NeuroD1 which drives neurogenesis by remodeling chromatin and transcription factor landscapes (EMBO J, 2016, rated “Exceptional”). They also delineated how Pax6 gene regulatory program ensures unidirectionality in neurogenesis (Cell Discovery 2016). They subsequently discovered FBXO32 that plays a critical role in neuronal migration (Nature Communications, 2017). Their subsequent work demonstrated that spatiotemporally defined expression of distinct TFs induces neuronal- and glial- fate-determining enhancers at distict stages of brain development (Cell Stem Cell 2018). In another study, they discovered a novel chromatin reader, PHF21B that governs epigenetic control of neural stem cell differentiation and explained how SNPs in this gene predispose risk for depression (Genes & Dev 2020). Building upon their earlier findings, they showed how NeuroD1 cooperates with Tcf12 to drive neuronal migration (Development 2022). They next identified an autism-risk gene ZNF827 that regulates directionality of migrating neurons during brain development (Nature Cell Biology 2022). Later, they showed how altered cortical cell type composition may underlie cognitive decline associated with diabetes (Diabetologia 2023). Recently, they decoded gene regulatory mechanisms underlying cortical folding and its implications for NDDs (Science Advances 2024). Lastly, by measuring gene expression and DNA methylation from explanted SEEG electrodes matched with electrophysiological and radiological data, they enabled a high-resolution multimodal reconstruction of epileptic brain, paving the way for a deeper understanding of epileptic seizures and guiding diagnostics and therapy (JCI Insight 2024). |