Reto Gassmann
Cell Division Mechanisms
Group leader
Reto Gassmann studied biochemistry and molecular biology at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich. After completing his MSc degree in 2001, he joined the group of Bill Earnshaw at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Cell Biology in Edinburgh for PhD research on chromosome segregation during cell division. In 2005, he moved to California to become a postdoctoral fellow in the group of Arshad Desai at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research in La Jolla, where he continued to work on the molecular mechanisms of cell division. In 2012, he joined IBMC as a principal investigator. His group is interested in the mechanisms that regulate cytoplasmic dynein, a microtubule-based motor with multiple essential functions in dividing and non-dividing cells.
Selected Publications
Rocha H., Simões P.A., Budrewicz J., Lara-Gonzalez P., Carvalho A.X., Dumont J., Desai A., Gassmann R.,
Gassmann R.,
Celestino R., Gama J.B., Castro-Rodrigues A.F., Barbosa D.J., Rocha H., D’Amico E.A., Musacchio A., Carvalho A.X., Morais-Cabral J.H., Gassmann R.,
Barbosa D.J., Teixeira V., Duro J., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
Kops G.J.P.L., Gassmann R.,
Celestino R., Henen M.A., Gama J.B., Carvalho C., McCabe M., Barbosa D.J., Born A., Nichols P.J., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R., Vögeli B.,
Pereira C., Reis R.M., Gama J.B., Celestino R., Cheerambathur D.K., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
Simões P.A., Celestino R., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
Rocha H., Maia A.F., Gassmann R.,
Barbosa D.J., Duro J., Prevo B., Cheerambathur D.K., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
Gama J.B., Pereira C., Simões P.A., Celestino R., Reis R.M., Barbosa D.J., Pires H.R., Carvalho C., Amorim J., Carvalho A.X., Cheerambathur D.K., Gassmann R.,
Holland A.J., Reis R.M., Niessen S., Pereira C., Andres D.A., Spielmann H.P., Cleveland D.W., Desai A., Gassmann R.,
Cheerambathur D.K., Gassmann R., Cook B., Oegema K., Desai A.,
Varma D., Wan X., Cheerambathur D., Gassmann R., Suzuki A., Lawrimore J., Desai A., Salmon E.D.,
Gassmann R., Rechtsteiner A., Yuen K.W., Muroyama A., Egelhofer T., Gaydos L., Barron F., Maddox P., Essex A., Monen J., Ercan S., Lieb J.D., Oegema K., Strome S., Desai A.,
Stevens D., Gassmann R., Oegema K., Desai A.,
Liu W., Tanasa B., Tyurina O.V., Zhou T.Y., Gassmann R., Liu W.T., Ohgi K.A., Benner C., Garcia-Bassets I., Aggarwal A.K., Desai A., Dorrestein P.C., Glass C.K., Rosenfeld M.G.,
Gassmann R., Holland A.J., Varma D., Wan X., Çivril F., Cleveland D.W., Oegema K., Salmon E.D., Desai A.,
Gerstein M.B., Lu Z.J., Van Nostrand E.L., Cheng C., Arshinoff B.I., Liu T., Yip K.Y., Robilotto R., Rechtsteiner A., Ikegami K., Alves P., Chateigner A., Perry M., Morris M., Auerbach R.K., Feng X., Leng J., Vielle A., Niu W., Rhrissorrakrai K., Agarwal A., Alexander R.P., Barber G., Brdlik C.M., Brennan J., Brouillet J.J., Carr A., Cheung M.S., Clawson H., Contrino S., Dannenberg L.O., Dernburg A.F., Desai A., Dick L., Dosé A.C., Du J., Egelhofer T., Ercan S., Euskirchen G., Ewing B., Feingold E.A., Gassmann R., Good P.J., Green P., Gullier F., Gutwein M., Guyer M.S., Habegger L., Han T., Henikoff J.G., Henz S.R., Hinrichs A., Holster H., Hyman T., Iniguez A.L., Janette J., Jensen M., Kato M., Kent W.J., Kephart E., Khivansara V., Khurana E., Kim J.K., Kolasinska-Zwierz P., Lai E.C., Latorre I., Leahey A., Lewis S., Lloyd P., Lochovsky L., Lowdon R.F., Lubling Y., Lyne R., MacCoss M., Mackowiak S.D., Mangone M., McKay S., Mecenas D., Merrihew G., Miller D.M., Muroyama A., Murray J.I., Ooi S.L., Pham H., Phippen T., Preston E.A., Rajewsky N., Rätsch G., Rosenbaum H., Rozowsky J., Rutherford K., Ruzanov P., Sarov M., Sasidharan R., Sboner A., Scheid P., Segal E., Shin H., Shou C., Slack F.J., Slightam C, Smith R, Spencer WC, Stinson EO, Taing S, Takasaki T, Vafeados D, Voronina K, Wang G, Washington NL, Whittle CM, Wu B, Yan KK, Zeller G, Zha Z, Zhong M, Zhou X, Ahringer J, Strome S, Gunsalus KC, Micklem G, Liu XS, Reinke V, Kim SK, Hillier LW, Henikoff S, Piano F, Snyder M, Stein L, Lieb JD, Waterston RH,
Gassmann R., Essex A., Hu J.S., Maddox P.S., Motegi F., Sugimoto A., O'Rourke S.M., Bowerman B., McLeod I., Yates J.R., Oegema K., Cheeseman I.M., Desai A.,
Yue Z., Carvalho A., Xu Z., Yuan X., Cardinale S., Ribeiro S., Lai F., Ogawa H., Gudmundsdottir E., Gassmann R., Morrison C.G., Ruchaud S., Earnshaw W.C.,
Nakano M., Cardinale S., Noskov V.N., Gassmann R., Vagnarelli P., Kandels-Lewis S., Larionov V., Earnshaw W.C., Masumoto H.,
Gassmann R., Henzing A.J., Earnshaw W.C.,
Gassmann R., Carvalho A., Henzing A.J., Ruchaud S., Hudson D.F., Honda R., Nigg E.A., Gerloff D.L., Earnshaw W.C.,
Hudson D.F., Vagnarelli P., Gassmann R., Earnshaw W.C.,
Nuclear-enriched protein phosphatase 4 ensures outer kinetochore assembly prior to nuclear dissolution. Journal of Cell Biology222(3):, 2023. [Journal: Article] [CI: 1] [IF: 7,8 (*)]
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.202208154 SCOPUS: 85147234335.
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.202208154 SCOPUS: 85147234335.
Gassmann R.,
Dynein at the kinetochore. Journal of Cell Science136(5):, 2023. [Journal: Review] [CI: 2] [IF: 4 (*)]
DOI: 10.1242/jcs.220269 SCOPUS: 85149427755.
DOI: 10.1242/jcs.220269 SCOPUS: 85149427755.
Celestino R., Gama J.B., Castro-Rodrigues A.F., Barbosa D.J., Rocha H., D’Amico E.A., Musacchio A., Carvalho A.X., Morais-Cabral J.H., Gassmann R.,
JIP3 interacts with dynein and kinesin-1 to regulate bidirectional organelle transport. Journal of Cell Biology221(8):, 2022. [Journal: Article] [CI: 11] [IF: 7,8]
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.202110057 SCOPUS: 85134435160.
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.202110057 SCOPUS: 85134435160.
Barbosa D.J., Teixeira V., Duro J., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
Dynein-dynactin segregate meiotic chromosomes in C. elegans spermatocytes. Development148(3):, 2021. [Journal: Article] [CI: 3] [IF: 6,9]
DOI: 10.1242/dev.197780 SCOPUS: 85102094952.
DOI: 10.1242/dev.197780 SCOPUS: 85102094952.
Kops G.J.P.L., Gassmann R.,
Crowning the Kinetochore: The Fibrous Corona in Chromosome Segregation. Trends in Cell Biology30(8):653-667, 2020. [Journal: Review] [CI: 33] [IF: 20,8]
DOI: 10.1016/j.tcb.2020.04.006 SCOPUS: 85084228116.
DOI: 10.1016/j.tcb.2020.04.006 SCOPUS: 85084228116.
Celestino R., Henen M.A., Gama J.B., Carvalho C., McCabe M., Barbosa D.J., Born A., Nichols P.J., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R., Vögeli B.,
A transient helix in the disordered region of dynein light intermediate chain links the motor to structurally diverse adaptors for cargo transport. PLoS Biology17(1):, 2019. [Journal: Article] [CI: 24] [IF: 7,1]
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3000100 SCOPUS: 85060185140.
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3000100 SCOPUS: 85060185140.
Pereira C., Reis R.M., Gama J.B., Celestino R., Cheerambathur D.K., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
Self-Assembly of the RZZ Complex into Filaments Drives Kinetochore Expansion in the Absence of Microtubule Attachment. Current Biology28(21):3408-3421.e8, 2018. [Journal: Article] [CI: 41] [IF: 9,2]
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2018.08.056 SCOPUS: 85055739143.
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2018.08.056 SCOPUS: 85055739143.
Simões P.A., Celestino R., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
NudE regulates dynein at kinetochores but is dispensable for other dynein functions in the C. elegans early embryo. Journal of Cell Science131(1):, 2018. [Journal: Article] [CI: 18] [IF: 4,5]
DOI: 10.1242/jcs.212159 SCOPUS: 85042557731.
DOI: 10.1242/jcs.212159 SCOPUS: 85042557731.
Rocha H., Maia A.F., Gassmann R.,
Data Descriptor: A genome-scale RNAi screen for genetic interactors of the dynein co-factor nud-2 in Caenorhabditis elegans. Scientific Data5:, 2018. [Journal: Article] [CI: 1] [IF: 5,9]
DOI: 10.1038/sdata.2018.47 SCOPUS: 85044305058.
DOI: 10.1038/sdata.2018.47 SCOPUS: 85044305058.
Barbosa D.J., Duro J., Prevo B., Cheerambathur D.K., Carvalho A.X., Gassmann R.,
Dynactin binding to tyrosinated microtubules promotes centrosome centration in C. elegans by enhancing dynein-mediated organelle transport. PLoS Genetics13(7):, 2017. [Journal: Article] [CI: 25] [IF: 5,5]
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1006941 SCOPUS: 85026624927.
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1006941 SCOPUS: 85026624927.
Gama J.B., Pereira C., Simões P.A., Celestino R., Reis R.M., Barbosa D.J., Pires H.R., Carvalho C., Amorim J., Carvalho A.X., Cheerambathur D.K., Gassmann R.,
Molecular mechanism of dynein recruitment to kinetochores by the Rod-Zw10-Zwilch complex and Spindly. Journal of Cell Biology216(4):943-960, 2017. [Journal: Article] [CI: 81] [IF: 8,8]
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.201610108 SCOPUS: 85021847678.
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.201610108 SCOPUS: 85021847678.
Holland A.J., Reis R.M., Niessen S., Pereira C., Andres D.A., Spielmann H.P., Cleveland D.W., Desai A., Gassmann R.,
Preventing farnesylation of the dynein adaptor Spindly contributes to the mitotic defects caused by farnesyltransferase inhibitors. Molecular Biology of the Cell26(10):1845-1856, 2015. [Journal: Article] [CI: 30] [IF: 4]
DOI: 10.1091/mbc.E14-11-1560 SCOPUS: 84929440905.
DOI: 10.1091/mbc.E14-11-1560 SCOPUS: 84929440905.
Cheerambathur D.K., Gassmann R., Cook B., Oegema K., Desai A.,
Crosstalk between microtubule attachment complexes ensures accurate chromosome segregation. Science342(6163):1239-1242, 2013. [Journal: Article] [CI: 74] [IF: 31,5]
DOI: 10.1126/science.1246232 SCOPUS: 84889245451.
DOI: 10.1126/science.1246232 SCOPUS: 84889245451.
Varma D., Wan X., Cheerambathur D., Gassmann R., Suzuki A., Lawrimore J., Desai A., Salmon E.D.,
Spindle assembly checkpoint proteins are positioned close to core microtubule attachment sites at kinetochores. Journal of Cell Biology202(5):735-746, 2013. [Journal: Article] [CI: 55] [IF: 9,7]
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.201304197 SCOPUS: 84884170422.
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.201304197 SCOPUS: 84884170422.
Gassmann R., Rechtsteiner A., Yuen K.W., Muroyama A., Egelhofer T., Gaydos L., Barron F., Maddox P., Essex A., Monen J., Ercan S., Lieb J.D., Oegema K., Strome S., Desai A.,
An inverse relationship to germline transcription defines centromeric chromatin in C. elegans. Nature484(7395):534-537, 2012. [Journal: Article] [CI: 116] [IF: 38,6]
DOI: 10.1038/nature10973 SCOPUS: 84860253153.
DOI: 10.1038/nature10973 SCOPUS: 84860253153.
Stevens D., Gassmann R., Oegema K., Desai A.,
Uncoordinated loss of chromatid cohesion is a common outcome of extended metaphase arrest. PLoS ONE6(8):, 2011. [Journal: Article] [CI: 67] [IF: 4,1]
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0022969 SCOPUS: 79960988207.
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0022969 SCOPUS: 79960988207.
Liu W., Tanasa B., Tyurina O.V., Zhou T.Y., Gassmann R., Liu W.T., Ohgi K.A., Benner C., Garcia-Bassets I., Aggarwal A.K., Desai A., Dorrestein P.C., Glass C.K., Rosenfeld M.G.,
PHF8 mediates histone H4 lysine 20 demethylation events involved in cell cycle progression. Nature466(7305):508-512, 2010. [Journal: Article] [CI: 326] [IF: 36,1]
DOI: 10.1038/nature09272 SCOPUS: 77954954200.
DOI: 10.1038/nature09272 SCOPUS: 77954954200.
Gassmann R., Holland A.J., Varma D., Wan X., Çivril F., Cleveland D.W., Oegema K., Salmon E.D., Desai A.,
Removal of Spindly from microtubule-attached kinetochores controls spindle checkpoint silencing in human cells. Genes and Development24(9):957-971, 2010. [Journal: Article] [CI: 149] [IF: 12,9]
DOI: 10.1101/gad.1886810 SCOPUS: 77951875761.
DOI: 10.1101/gad.1886810 SCOPUS: 77951875761.
Gerstein M.B., Lu Z.J., Van Nostrand E.L., Cheng C., Arshinoff B.I., Liu T., Yip K.Y., Robilotto R., Rechtsteiner A., Ikegami K., Alves P., Chateigner A., Perry M., Morris M., Auerbach R.K., Feng X., Leng J., Vielle A., Niu W., Rhrissorrakrai K., Agarwal A., Alexander R.P., Barber G., Brdlik C.M., Brennan J., Brouillet J.J., Carr A., Cheung M.S., Clawson H., Contrino S., Dannenberg L.O., Dernburg A.F., Desai A., Dick L., Dosé A.C., Du J., Egelhofer T., Ercan S., Euskirchen G., Ewing B., Feingold E.A., Gassmann R., Good P.J., Green P., Gullier F., Gutwein M., Guyer M.S., Habegger L., Han T., Henikoff J.G., Henz S.R., Hinrichs A., Holster H., Hyman T., Iniguez A.L., Janette J., Jensen M., Kato M., Kent W.J., Kephart E., Khivansara V., Khurana E., Kim J.K., Kolasinska-Zwierz P., Lai E.C., Latorre I., Leahey A., Lewis S., Lloyd P., Lochovsky L., Lowdon R.F., Lubling Y., Lyne R., MacCoss M., Mackowiak S.D., Mangone M., McKay S., Mecenas D., Merrihew G., Miller D.M., Muroyama A., Murray J.I., Ooi S.L., Pham H., Phippen T., Preston E.A., Rajewsky N., Rätsch G., Rosenbaum H., Rozowsky J., Rutherford K., Ruzanov P., Sarov M., Sasidharan R., Sboner A., Scheid P., Segal E., Shin H., Shou C., Slack F.J., Slightam C, Smith R, Spencer WC, Stinson EO, Taing S, Takasaki T, Vafeados D, Voronina K, Wang G, Washington NL, Whittle CM, Wu B, Yan KK, Zeller G, Zha Z, Zhong M, Zhou X, Ahringer J, Strome S, Gunsalus KC, Micklem G, Liu XS, Reinke V, Kim SK, Hillier LW, Henikoff S, Piano F, Snyder M, Stein L, Lieb JD, Waterston RH,
Integrative analysis of the Caenorhabditis elegans genome by the modENCODE project. Science330(6012):1775-1787, 2010. [Journal: Article] [CI: 748] [IF: 31,4]
DOI: 10.1126/science.1196914 SCOPUS: 78650410139.
DOI: 10.1126/science.1196914 SCOPUS: 78650410139.
Gassmann R., Essex A., Hu J.S., Maddox P.S., Motegi F., Sugimoto A., O'Rourke S.M., Bowerman B., McLeod I., Yates J.R., Oegema K., Cheeseman I.M., Desai A.,
A new mechanism controlling kinetochore-microtubule interactions revealed by comparison of two dynein-targeting components: SPDL-1 and the Rod/Zwilch/Zw10 complex. Genes and Development22(17):2385-2399, 2008. [Journal: Article] [CI: 132] [IF: 13,6]
DOI: 10.1101/gad.1687508 SCOPUS: 51149118049.
DOI: 10.1101/gad.1687508 SCOPUS: 51149118049.
Yue Z., Carvalho A., Xu Z., Yuan X., Cardinale S., Ribeiro S., Lai F., Ogawa H., Gudmundsdottir E., Gassmann R., Morrison C.G., Ruchaud S., Earnshaw W.C.,
Deconstructing Survivin: Comprehensive genetic analysis of Survivin function by conditional knockout in a vertebrate cell line. Journal of Cell Biology183(2):279-296, 2008. [Journal: Article] [CI: 81] [IF: 9,1]
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.200806118 SCOPUS: 55949106979.
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.200806118 SCOPUS: 55949106979.
Nakano M., Cardinale S., Noskov V.N., Gassmann R., Vagnarelli P., Kandels-Lewis S., Larionov V., Earnshaw W.C., Masumoto H.,
Inactivation of a Human Kinetochore by Specific Targeting of Chromatin Modifiers. Developmental Cell14(4):507-522, 2008. [Journal: Article] [CI: 209] [IF: 12,9]
DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2008.02.001 SCOPUS: 41849114919.
DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2008.02.001 SCOPUS: 41849114919.
Gassmann R., Henzing A.J., Earnshaw W.C.,
Novel components of human mitotic chromosomes identified by proteomic analysis of the chromosome scaffold fraction. Chromosoma113(7):385-397, 2005. [Journal: Article] [CI: 55] [IF: 3,3]
DOI: 10.1007/s00412-004-0326-0 SCOPUS: 13844266228.
DOI: 10.1007/s00412-004-0326-0 SCOPUS: 13844266228.
Gassmann R., Carvalho A., Henzing A.J., Ruchaud S., Hudson D.F., Honda R., Nigg E.A., Gerloff D.L., Earnshaw W.C.,
Borealin: A novel chromosomal passenger required for stability of the bipolar mitotic spindle. Journal of Cell Biology166(2):179-191, 2004. [Journal: Article] [CI: 360] [IF: 11,6]
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.200404001 SCOPUS: 3342887700.
DOI: 10.1083/jcb.200404001 SCOPUS: 3342887700.
Hudson D.F., Vagnarelli P., Gassmann R., Earnshaw W.C.,
Condensin is required for nonhistone protein assembly and structural integrity of vertebrate mitotic chromosomes. Developmental Cell5(2):323-336, 2003. [Journal: Article] [CI: 231] [IF: 14,8]
DOI: 10.1016/S1534-5807(03)00199-0 SCOPUS: 0041440100.
DOI: 10.1016/S1534-5807(03)00199-0 SCOPUS: 0041440100.