Konstantin Ichtchenko, PhD

Dr. Ichtchenko is an Assistant Professor at the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, New York University Grossman School of Medicine. His scientific interests are centered on understanding the molecular mechanisms controlling exocytosis and endocytosis at nerve termini and designing molecular tools that enable the individual steps and components mediating these events to be dissected. He has a broad background in molecular biology, biochemistry, and neurochemistry. Past accomplishments relevant to his current work include the discovery of neuroligins, a novel class of post-synaptic molecules crucial for synapse formation - work performed during his postdoctoral studies in the laboratory of Dr. Thomas Südhof at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. His work in Südhof’s lab also resulted in a publication related to the expression of recombinant alpha-latrotoxin (black widow spider neurotoxin) and its derivatives and the use of recombinant derivatives to elucidate the mechanism of this neurotoxin action. During his tenure in the laboratory of Drs. Joseph Goldstein and Michael Brown, also at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, he got a credit for the work on expression and studying the crystal structure of LDL receptor at endosomal pH, the classic example of the cell-surface receptor involved in lipid metabolism.

Dr. Ichtchenko current research concentrates on the mechanism of clostridial neurotoxin’s action at the neuromuscular junction and CNS. This creates translational opportunities for therapeutic and biodefense applications, including an NIH-funded program to develop post-symptomatic therapies against botulinum neurotoxins. The same approach is also used to create molecular vehicles that can deliver diverse therapeutic cargo to the neuronal cytosol. The innovative approach to treating botulism offers high potential for treating other infectious and neurodegenerative diseases involving intra-neuronal pathogenesis.