Matthew Hannaford
Assistant Professor, Molecular Physiology & Biophysics
PRONOUNS he/him
- Ph.D., Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Dundee, UK
- B.Sc., Biology with honors, Bangor University, UK
- Postdoctoral Training, NIH, Bethesda, MD
Department of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics
Areas of expertise
cell division, cytoskeleton, cell polarity, cell cycle, molecular motors
BIO
Matthew Hannaford is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics at the Larner College of Medicine. His work centers on the overarching question: How are cells organized, and how do they change through the cell cycle? Matthew's research focuses on an intracellular structure called the centrosome, and how it is regulated through development, and dysregulated in disease. He contributes to teaching on graduate level physiology and cell biology courses.
Hannaford Lab - Centrosomes and Cell Polarity
The Hannaford lab uses live cell microscopy, biochemistry and Drosophila genetics to investigate the role and regulation of centrosomes in diverse cell types.
The centrosome is a crucial, membraneless organelle that orchestrates the assembly and organization of microtubules. During cell division, the centrosome forms the spindle apparatus that segregates chromosomes into daughter cells. Additionally, the centrosome participates in cellular organization and polarity by anchoring microtubules and directing their growth. Dysregulation of these processes has been linked to disease including cancer, microcephaly, ciliopathy and male sterility.
The goal of our research is to understand (1) the molecular mechanisms of how centrosomes are positioned within cells (2) how their microtubule nucleating activity is modulated through development and the cell cycle (3) how dysregulation of these processes contributes to human disease.
Publications
Bio
Matthew Hannaford is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics at the Larner College of Medicine. His work centers on the overarching question: How are cells organized, and how do they change through the cell cycle? Matthew's research focuses on an intracellular structure called the centrosome, and how it is regulated through development, and dysregulated in disease. He contributes to teaching on graduate level physiology and cell biology courses.
Hannaford Lab - Centrosomes and Cell Polarity
The Hannaford lab uses live cell microscopy, biochemistry and Drosophila genetics to investigate the role and regulation of centrosomes in diverse cell types.
The centrosome is a crucial, membraneless organelle that orchestrates the assembly and organization of microtubules. During cell division, the centrosome forms the spindle apparatus that segregates chromosomes into daughter cells. Additionally, the centrosome participates in cellular organization and polarity by anchoring microtubules and directing their growth. Dysregulation of these processes has been linked to disease including cancer, microcephaly, ciliopathy and male sterility.
The goal of our research is to understand (1) the molecular mechanisms of how centrosomes are positioned within cells (2) how their microtubule nucleating activity is modulated through development and the cell cycle (3) how dysregulation of these processes contributes to human disease.
Publications
Select Publications
- Hannaford MR, Ramat A, Loyer N, Januschke J. aPKC-mediated displacement and actomyosin-mediated retention polarize Miranda in Drosophila neuroblasts. Elife. 2018 Jan 24;7: e29939. doi: 10.7554/eLife.29939. PMID: 29364113; PMCID: PMC5783611.
- Clemente GD, Hannaford MR, Beati H, Kapp K, Januschke J, Griffis ER, Müller HJ. Requirement of the Dynein-Adaptor Spindly for Mitotic and Post-Mitotic Functions in Drosophila. J Dev Biol. 2018 Mar 30;6(2):9. doi: 10.3390/jdb6020009. PMID: 29615558; PMCID: PMC6027351.
- Hannaford M, Loyer N, Tonelli F, Zoltner M, Januschke J. A chemical-genetics approach to study the role of atypical Protein Kinase C in Drosophila. Development. 2019 Jan 29;146(2):dev170589. doi: 10.1242/dev.170589. PMID: 30635282; PMCID: PMC6361133.
- Hannaford MR, Liu R, Billington N, Swider ZT, Galletta BJ, Fagerstrom CJ, Combs C, Sellers JR, Rusan NM. Pericentrin interacts with Kinesin-1 to drive centriole motility. J Cell Biol. 2022 Sep 5;221(9):e202112097. doi: 10.1083/jcb.202112097. Epub 2022 Aug 5. PMID: 35929834; PMCID: PMC9361567.
- Ryniawec JM, Hannaford MR, Zibrat ME, Fagerstrom CJ, Galletta BJ, Aguirre SE, Guice BA, Dean SM, Rusan NM, Rogers GC. Cep104 is a component of the centriole distal tip complex that regulates centriole growth and contributes to Drosophila spermiogenesis. Curr Biol. 2023 Oct 9;33(19):4202-4216.e9. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.08.075. Epub 2023 Sep 19. PMID: 37729913; PMCID: PMC10591971.