Romanian Academy
Robi Tacutu, Ph.D.
Group: Systems Biology of Aging
Department: Bioinformatics & Structural BiochemistryGroup leader
Research interests: Biology/genetics of ageing, longevity and age-related diseases;
Prediction of single/multi longevity regulators;
Biomarker profiling for healthcare;
Bioinformatics;
Genomics, epigenomics, transcriptomics;
Systems biology;
Network biology;
Computational biology;
Synthetic biology (gene circuit design)
Currently working on
Robi's group is currently studying the relationships between OMIC changes and genetic interventions, pertaining to the field of ageing research. In more detail, the group is using bioinformatic, network biology and machine learning techniques, to investigate genomic, transcriptomic, epigenomic and proteomic data. Applying these methods to learn from the changes that occur with age and from the differences between long- and short-lived mutants, the group aims to develop better ways to predict multi-genetic interventions that can prolong lifespan. Currently the group is focusing on validating its methods for the model organism C. elegans.
Biography
A thorough, analytical and curiosity-driven scientist, with a multidisciplinary background in biology and computer science, Robi received his BSc in computer science from the University Politehnica Bucharest, and his MSc in biochemistry and molecular biology from the University of Bucharest. He has a long-term commitment and interest in the field of biogerontology (since 2005) and received his PhD in 2013 from the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, in the lab of Prof. Vadim Fraifeld. His thesis was on an ageing-related topic: studying the relationships between aging and age-related diseases with the use of bioinformatics and network biology approaches, and developing computational methods to predict novel genetic determinants of longevity.
Robi continued his research as a postdoc (2011-2015) at the University of Liverpool, in the Integrative Genomics of Ageing Group, led by Dr. Joao Pedro de Magalhaes. Here, he had a role in developing and curating the Human Ageing Genomic Resources collection of databases relevant to ageing research, and was later awarded a EU FP7 Marie Curie fellowship for developing and interrogating an integrated model of ageing to identify causal relationships between hormonal changes and gene expression changes.
Since 2016, Robi leads the Systems Biology of Aging Group (a group of more than 15 people) at the Institute of Biochemistry and focuses on using computational methods in conjunction with large screening datasets to understand the genetic, cellular, and molecular mechanisms behind ageing, longevity and age-related diseases.
Robi has expertise in Biology of Ageing, Bioinformatics, Systems Biology, Network Biology, and Synthetic Biology.
Robi continued his research as a postdoc (2011-2015) at the University of Liverpool, in the Integrative Genomics of Ageing Group, led by Dr. Joao Pedro de Magalhaes. Here, he had a role in developing and curating the Human Ageing Genomic Resources collection of databases relevant to ageing research, and was later awarded a EU FP7 Marie Curie fellowship for developing and interrogating an integrated model of ageing to identify causal relationships between hormonal changes and gene expression changes.
Since 2016, Robi leads the Systems Biology of Aging Group (a group of more than 15 people) at the Institute of Biochemistry and focuses on using computational methods in conjunction with large screening datasets to understand the genetic, cellular, and molecular mechanisms behind ageing, longevity and age-related diseases.
Robi has expertise in Biology of Ageing, Bioinformatics, Systems Biology, Network Biology, and Synthetic Biology.
Papers
- . Human Ageing Genomic Resources: new and updated databases. Nucleic acids research, 2018, 46(D1): D1083-D1090IF=11.15
- . Wide-scale comparative analysis of longevity genes and interventions. Aging cell, 2017, 16(6): 1267-1275IF=7.63
- . A network pharmacology approach reveals new candidate caloric restriction mimetics in C. elegans. Aging cell, 2016, 15(2): 256-66IF=6.71
- . Systematic analysis of the gerontome reveals links between aging and age-related diseases. Human molecular genetics, 2016, 25(21): 4804-4818IF=5.34
- . Tissue repair genes: the TiRe database and its implication for skin wound healing. Oncotarget, 2016, 7(16): 21145-55IF=5.17
- . MitoAge: a database for comparative analysis of mitochondrial DNA, with a special focus on animal longevity. Nucleic acids research, 2016, 44(D1): D1262-5IF=10.16
- . The Digital Ageing Atlas: integrating the diversity of age-related changes into a unified resource. Nucleic acids research, 2015, 43(Database issue): D873-8IF=9.20
- . Transcriptome analysis in calorie-restricted rats implicates epigenetic and post-translational mechanisms in neuroprotection and aging. Genome biology, 2015, 16: 285IF=11.31
- . Human Ageing Genomic Resources: integrated databases and tools for the biology and genetics of ageing. Nucleic acids research, 2013, 41(Database issue): D1027-33IF=8.81
- . LongevityMap: a database of human genetic variants associated with longevity. Trends in genetics : TIG, 2013, 29(10): 559-60IF=11.60
- . Gadd45 proteins: relevance to aging, longevity and age-related pathologies. Ageing research reviews, 2012, 11(1): 51-66IF=5.95
- . Prediction of C. elegans longevity genes by human and worm longevity networks. PloS one, 2012, 7(10): e48282IF=3.73
- . Molecular links between cellular senescence, longevity and age-related diseases - a systems biology perspective. Aging, 2011, 3(12): 1178-91IF=5.13
- . Is rate of skin wound healing associated with aging or longevity phenotype?. Biogerontology, 2011, 12(6): 591-7IF=3.34
- . MicroRNA-regulated protein-protein interaction networks: how could they help in searching for pro-longevity targets?. Rejuvenation research, 2010, 13(2-3): 373-7IF=4.22
- . The NetAge database: a compendium of networks for longevity, age-related diseases and associated processes. Biogerontology, 2010, 11(4): 513-22IF=3.41
- . The signaling hubs at the crossroad of longevity and age-related disease networks. The international journal of biochemistry & cell biology, 2009, 41(3): 516-20IF=4.89
- . Common gene signature of cancer and longevity. Mechanisms of ageing and development, 2009, 130(1-2): 33-9IF=4.18
Grants
Gerontomics: Multi-omics prediction system for prioritization of gerontological interventions
2016-2021
Acronym: Gerontomics
Project director: Robi Tacutu
Starting 02.09.2016, the Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian Academy is implementing the project “Multi-omics prediction system for prioritization of gerontological interventions”, co-funded through European Fund for Regional Development, in accordance with the funding contract signed by the Ministry of National Education and Scientific Research. The total funding for the project is 8.524.757,50 lei, of which 8.502.557,50 lei represent non-reimbursable funding. The project’s duration is 48 months.
Microsoft Azure Research
2017-2018
Acronym: ML for Aging Research
Project director: Robi Tacutu
The Systems Biology of Aging team is grateful for the "Microsoft Azure for Research" sponsorship awarded to our group. We have received cloud computing resources worth the equivalent of 20,000$ credits, and this has greatly helped us to speed up some of our research projects.
Impact of Early life MetaBolic and psychosocial strEss on susceptibility to mental Disorders; from converging epigenetic signatures to novel targets for therapeutic intervention
2019-2022
Acronym: EMBED
Project director: Robi Tacutu
Starting 01.06.2019, the Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian Academy is implementing the EMBED project, funded by UEFISCDI (contract 103, from 01.06.2019), through the ERA-NET COFUND-NEURON III grant call. The project aims to assess the shared molecular links between pre- and post-natal, metabolic and psychosocial stress, and the risks of depression later in life, and its duration will be 36 months.