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Lawrence Steinman

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Lawrence Steinman
Born
Los Angeles, California
NationalityAmerican
Occupation(s)Neurologist, neuroimmunologist and academic
Academic background
EducationBachelor of Arts in Physics
Doctor of Medicine
Alma materDartmouth College
Harvard Medical School
Academic work
InstitutionsStanford University

Lawrence Steinman is an American neurologist, neuroimmunologist and an academic. He is a Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences and Pediatrics at Stanford University.[1]

Steinman's research has focused on how the immune system attacks the brain, specifically in cases of multiple sclerosis (MS), motor neuron disease (ALS), and neuromyelitis optica (NMO).[2] He discovered the target for the first approved MS therapy using a monoclonal antibody and his work has elucidated how the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) triggers MS. His laboratory at Stanford published research leading to the first approved monoclonal antibody therapy for MS, Natalizumab (Tysabri), and clarified the molecular basis for how EBV triggers MS.[3] He has received awards, including the John Dystel Prize,[4] the Charcot Prize for Lifetime Achievement in MS,[5] and the Cerami Prize for creating a new field of research and contributing to disease prevention and treatment.[6] He has also twice been awarded the Senator Jacob Javits Neuroscience Investigator Award by the National Institute of Neurological Diseases and Stroke.[7]

Steinman is an elected member of the US National Academy of Sciences,[8] and the US National Academy of Medicine.[9]

Early life

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Steinman was born in Los Angeles and grew up in Culver City, California. His mother, born in Brooklyn, was the daughter of immigrants from the Pale of Settlement, while his father immigrated from the Zhitomir area in Ukraine around 1921. After World War II, where his father served in combat in the Philippines, his parents settled in Los Angeles, raising their four children near his father's pharmacy, where he worked part-time during high school. Working in the neighborhood pharmacy helped spark his interest in medicine. His sister's battle with poliomyelitis in 1951 influenced his focus on inflammatory brain diseases. He gained early lab experience at the Salk Institute working alongside Jacob Bronowski, Jonas Salk, Seymour Benzer and Stephen Kuffler to research the genetic control of immune responses to viruses.[10]

Education

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Following the launch of Sputnik, the U.S. invested heavily in science education, providing Steinman with opportunities in math and physics, including a summer program at Oregon State University sponsored by the National Science Foundation.[11] He attended Dartmouth College, graduating in Physics, and then pursued his MD at Harvard Medical School. He furthered his training as a post-doctoral fellow in chemical immunology at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel.[12]

Career

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Steinman joined Stanford University Hospital as a resident in pediatric and adult neurology before joining the faculty in 1980.[13] In the biotech industry, he co-founded Neurocrine Biosciences in 1990.[14] From 2018 to 2022, he chaired the Research Advisory Committee on Gulf War Illness for the US Veteran's Administration. His contributions include chairing the Interdepartmental Program in Immunology at Stanford for 10 years and co-founding companies, including Bayhill Therapeutics (Tolerion),[15] Nuon Therapeutics, Transparency Life Sciences,[16] Pasithea Therapeutics, and Atreca.[17] He holds several patents in immunology and therapies that target MS, Huntington's disease, ALS, and Type 1 diabetes.[18]

Research

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Steinman has focused his research on the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis and related neuroinflammatory diseases, as well as the development of antigen-specific tolerance therapies for autoimmune conditions such as type 1 diabetes and neuromyelitis optica. His laboratory also investigates the role of amyloid structures in diseases like MS, Huntington and Alzheimer.[19]

Multiple sclerosis therapeutics

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Steinman was a senior author of the 1992 Nature article that identified α4 integrin's crucial role in brain inflammation, emphasizing its role in lymphocyte homing to the MS-affected brain.[20] Using microarray analysis, he identified distinct transcriptional profiles between acute and chronic MS lesions, pinpointing key inflammatory cytokines and differentially expressed genes.[21] He continued this analysis of MS brain tissue to identify critical proteins,[22] sugars and lipids[23][24] involved in acute and chronic pathology in MS brain. These studies on MS brain lesions identified guardian molecules that protect MS brain from injury.[25][26] Furthermore, he was the global chief investigator on two Phase 3 clinical trials with glycoengineered monoclonal antibodies targeting B cells.[27]

Immunological mechanisms and therapeutic strategies

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Steinman has conducted various studies on immunology to develop novel therapeutic strategies. While conducting research on the roles of lipids and proteins in MS lesions, he uncovered protective fatty acids and phospholipids,[24] and highlighted αB crystallin as a prevalent transcript with potential as a therapeutic target with guardian properties.[25] His work led to several clinical trials, including an investigation into antigen-specific tolerance for MS, where an engineered DNA plasmid encoding myelin basic protein showed promising results in a phase 2 trial.[28] He also demonstrated that T-cell receptors are highly restricted in targeting specific protein segments presented by major histocompatibility complex molecules.[29][30]

Steinman's research into the higher prevalence of autoimmune diseases in females revealed the roles of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) and sex hormones in regulating immune responses.[31] His studies on amyloid fibrils showed that fibrils, such as those derived from β-amyloid and αB crystallin, can suppress inflammation and autoimmune responses.[32]

Awards and honors

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Selected articles

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  • Yednock, T. A., Cannon, C., Fritz, L. C., Sanchez-Madrid, F., Steinman, L., & Karin, N. (1992). Prevention of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by antibodies against α 4 β l integrin. Nature, 356(6364), 63-66.
  • Steinman, L. (2012). The discovery of natalizumab, a potent therapeutic for multiple sclerosis. The Journal of Cell Biology, 199(3), 413. doi: https://doi.org/10.1083/jcb.201207175
  • Lock, C., Hermans, G., Pedotti, R., Brendolan, A., Schadt, E., Garren, H., ... & Steinman, L. (2002). Gene-microarray analysis of multiple sclerosis lesions yields new targets validated in autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Nature Medicine, 8(5), 500-508.
  • Ousman, S. S., Tomooka, B. H., Van Noort, J. M., Wawrousek, E. F., O’Conner, K., Hafler, D. A., ... & Steinman, L. (2007). Protective and therapeutic role for αB-crystallin in autoimmune demyelination. Nature, 448(7152), 474-479.
  • Han, M. H., Hwang, S. I., Roy, D. B., Lundgren, D. H., Price, J. V., Ousman, S. S., ... & Steinman, L. (2008). Proteomic analysis of active multiple sclerosis lesions reveals therapeutic targets. Nature, 451(7182), 1076-1081.
  • Ho, P. P., Kanter, J. L., Johnson, A. M., Srinagesh, H. K., Chang, E. J., Purdy, T. M., ... & Robinson, W. H. (2012). Identification of naturally occurring fatty acids of the myelin sheath that resolve neuroinflammation. Science Translational Medicine, 4(137), 137ra73-137ra73.
  • Rothbard, J. B., Kurnellas, M. P., Ousman, S. S., Brownell, S., Rothbard, J. J., & Steinman, L. (2019). Small heat shock proteins, amyloid fibrils, and nicotine stimulate a common immune suppressive pathway with implications for future therapies. Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine, 9(7), a034223.
  • Steinman, L., Fox, E., Hartung, H. P., Alvarez, E., Qian, P., Wray, S., ... & Cree, B. A. (2022). Ublituximab versus teriflunomide in relapsing multiple sclerosis. New England Journal of Medicine, 387(8), 704-714. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2201904.
  • Lanz, T. V., Robinson, W. H., Ho, P. P., & Steinman, L. (2023). Roadmap for understanding mechanisms on how Epstein–Barr virus triggers multiple sclerosis and for translating these discoveries in clinical trials. Clinical & Translational Immunology, 12(2), e1438. doi: 10.1002/cti2.1438.
  • Chiot, A., Roemer, S. F., Ryner, L., Bogachuk, A., Emberley, K., Brownell, D., ... & Ajami, B. (2023). Elevated α5 integrin expression on myeloid cells in motor areas in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a therapeutic target. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 120(32), e2306731120.

References

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  1. ^ "Lawrence Steinman, MD".
  2. ^ a b c "DIRECTOR - Himalaya Therapeutics".
  3. ^ "Current Steinman Lab Members".
  4. ^ a b "John Dystel Prize".
  5. ^ a b "Prize for research on multiple sclerosis goes to Lawrence Steinman".
  6. ^ a b "The Anthony Cerami Award in Translational Medicine".
  7. ^ "Scientific Advisory Board - Arete Discoveries".
  8. ^ "Lawrence Steinman Stanford University School of Medicine".
  9. ^ "Scientific Advisory Board - Applied Therapeutics".
  10. ^ "Profile of Lawrence Steinman".
  11. ^ "Larry Steinman".
  12. ^ "Brief Bio".
  13. ^ "Dr. Lawrence Steinman MD".
  14. ^ "Lawrence Steinman, MD — Co-Chair".
  15. ^ "About Tolerion".
  16. ^ "Transparency Life Sciences Awarded $1.4 Million NCATS SBIR Grant To Conduct Innovative Trial Of Lisinopril In Multiple Sclerosis".
  17. ^ "Startups on the menu: Atreca".
  18. ^ "Lawrence Steinman, MD".
  19. ^ "About the PNAS Member Editor".
  20. ^ "Prevention of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis by antibodies against α4βl integrin".
  21. ^ "Gene-microarray analysis of multiple sclerosis lesions yields new targets validated in autoimmune encephalomyelitis".
  22. ^ "Immunology of Relapse and Remission in Multiple Sclerosis".
  23. ^ "Design of effective immunotherapy for human autoimmunity".
  24. ^ a b "Identification of Naturally Occurring Fatty Acids of the Myelin Sheath That Resolve Neuroinflammation".
  25. ^ a b "No quiet surrender: molecular guardians in multiple sclerosis brain".
  26. ^ "A molecular trio in relapse and remission in multiple sclerosis".
  27. ^ "Ublituximab versus Teriflunomide in Relapsing Multiple Sclerosis".
  28. ^ "Phase 2 trial of a DNA vaccine encoding myelin basic protein for multiple sclerosis".
  29. ^ "Limited heterogeneity of rearranged T-cell receptor Vα transcripts in brains of multiple sclerosis patients".
  30. ^ "Selection for T-cell receptor Vβ–Dβ–Jβ gene rearrangements with specificity for a myelin basic protein peptide in brain lesions of multiple sclerosis".
  31. ^ "Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)α and -γ regulate IFNγ and IL-17A production by human T cells in a sex-specific way".
  32. ^ "Small Heat Shock Proteins, Amyloid Fibrils, and Nicotine Stimulate a Common Immune Suppressive Pathway with Implications for Future Therapies".
  33. ^ "Lawrence Steinman honored for research on ties between EBV, MS".
  34. ^ "Lawrence Steinman".
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