Research Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
Contact Information
Email:Biosketch
Ake Elhammer, PhD, is the founder and current CEO of AureoGen Biosciences, Inc. He received his undergraduate and biochemistry Ph.D. degrees at the University of Stockholm, Sweden. Following this, he completed postdoctoral training, sponsored by a NIH Fogarty Fellowship, at the Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, MO, before accepting an associate professor position at the Karolinska Institute. Dr. Elhammer took a position as Research Scientist at KABI Gen, a small biotech company in Stockholm, Sweden, working on the development of recombinant Factor VIII, in 1986. In 1987, he moved to the Upjohn Company in Kalamazoo, which subsequently merged into Pharmacia and Upjohn and later Pharmacia, where he worked as a Research Scientist and Senior Research Scientist in drug discovery, several therapeutic areas, and most notably on antibiotics. Following Pharmacia's merger with Pfizer in 2003, Dr. Elhammer founded and became the CEO of AureoGen Biosciences, Inc. AureoGen is a preclinical drug discovery and development company that is focused on the discovery and development of novel antibiotics, Gram positive, Gram negative as well as anti-fungals. AureoGen has been awarded funding from the State of Michigan and WMU BRCC, as well as a number of federal grants from the NIH and the NIST.
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Education and Training
- Postdoctoral Fellowship 1986, Hematology and Oncology, School of Medicine, Washington University in St Louis
- PhD 1981, Biochemistry, Stockholms universitet
- BS 1973, Chemistry and Biology, University of Stockholm
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Research
- drug discovery
- Antibiotic-Resistant Pathogens
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Publications
Alqaisi A.Q.I., Mbekeani A.J., Llorens M.B., Elhammer A.P., Denny P. Erratum: The antifungal Aureobasidin A and an analogue are active against the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii but do not inhibit sphingolipid biosynthesis - Corrigendum (Parasitology (2018) 145 2 (148-155)) Parasitology. 2018;145:156.
Alqaisi A.Q.I., Mbekeani A.J., Llorens M.B., Elhammer A.P., Denny P.W. The antifungal Aureobasidin A and an analogue are active against the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii but do not inhibit sphingolipid biosynthesis Parasitology. 2018;145(2):148-155.
ALQAISI A., MBEKEANI A., LLORENS M., ELHAMMER A., DENNY P. The antifungal Aureobasidin A and an analogue are active against the protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii but do not inhibit sphingolipid biosynthesis – Corrigendum Parasitology. 2017:1.
Wuts P.G.M., Simons L., Metzger B.P., Sterling R.C., Slightom J.L., Elhammer A.P. Generation of Broad-Spectrum Antifungal Drug Candidates from the Natural Product Compound Aureobasidin A ACS Medicinal Chemistry Letters. 2015;6(6):645-649.
Aeed P.A., Young C.L., Nagiec M.M., Elhammer A.P. Inhibition of inositol phosphorylceramide synthase by the cyclic peptide aureobasidin A Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy. 2009;53(2):496-504.
Slightom J., Metzger B., Luu H., Elhammer A. Cloning and molecular characterization of the gene encoding the Aureobasidin A biosynthesis complex in Aureobasidium pullulans BP-1938 Gene. 2009;431(1-2):67-79.
Tenno M., Saeki A., Elhammer A., Kurosaka A. Function of conserved aromatic residues in the Gal/GalNAc- glycosyltransferase motif of UDP-GalNAc:polypeptide N- acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 1 FEBS Journal. 2007;274(23):6037-6045.
Aeed P., Sperry A., Young C., Nagiec M., Elhammer A. Effect of membrane perturbants on the activity and phase distribution of inositol phosphorylceramide synthase; development of a novel assay Biochemistry. 2004;43(26):8483-8493.
Gerken T.A., Zhang J., Levine J., Elhammer A. Mucin core O-glycosylation is modulated by neighboring residue glycosylation status: Kinetic modeling of the site-specific glycosylation of the apo-porcine submaxillary mucin tandem repeat by UDP-GalNAc:polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferases T1 and T2 Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2002;277(51):49850-49862.
Hendershot L.L., Aeed P.A., Kézdy F.J., Elhammer A.P. An efficient assay for dolichyl phosphate-mannose: Protein O-mannosyltransferase Analytical Biochemistry. 2002;307(2):273-279.
Tenno M., Kézdy F., Elhammer A., Kurosaka A. Function of the lectin domain of polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 1 Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 2002;298(5):755-759.
Tenno M., Saeki A., Kézdy F.J., Elhammer A.P., Kurosaka A. The lectin domain of UDP-GALNAC: Polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 1 is involved in O-glycosylation of a polypeptide with multiple acceptor sites Journal of Biological Chemistry. 2002;277(49):47088-47096.
Tenno M., Toba S., Kézdy F., Elhammer A., Kurosaka A. Identification of two cysteine residues involved in the binding of UDP-GalNAc to UDP-GalNAc:polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase 1 (GalNAc-T1) European Journal of Biochemistry. 2002;269(17):4308-4316.
Aeed P.A., Geng J.G., Asa D., Raycroft L., Ma L., Elhammer A.P. Partial characterization of the N-linked oligosaccharide structures on P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1) Cell Research. 2001;11(1):28-36.
Li L., Short H.J., Qian K.X., Elhammer A.P., Geng J.G. Characterization of glycoprotein ligands for P-selectin on a human small cell lung cancer cell line NCI-H345 Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 2001;288(3):637-644.
Elhammer A.P., Kézdy F.J., Kurosaka A. The acceptor specificity of UDP-GalNAc:polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferases Glycoconjugate Journal. 1999;16(2):171-180.
Meurer J., Colca J., Burton P., Elhammer A. Properties of native and in vitro glycosylated forms of the glucagon- like peptide-1 receptor antagonist exendin(9-39) Metabolism: Clinical and Experimental. 1999;48(6):716-724.
Aeed P.A., Geng J.G., Asa D., Raycroft L., Ma L., Elhammer A.P. Characterization of the O-linked oligosaccharide structures on P-selectin glycoprotein ligand-1 (PSGL-1) Glycoconjugate Journal. 1998;15(10):975-985.
Geng J.G., Raub T.J., Baker C.A., Sawada G.A., Ma L., Elhammer A.P. Expression of a P-selectin ligand in zona pellucida of porcine oocytes and P-selectin on acrosomal membrane of porcine sperm cells. Potential implications for their involvement in sperm-egg interactions Journal of Cell Biology. 1997;137(3):743-754.
Baker C.A., Poorman R.A., Kézdy F.J., Staples D.J., Smith C.W., Elhammer A.P. A scintillation proximity assay for UDP-GalNAc: Polypeptide, N- acetylgalactosaminyltransferase Analytical Biochemistry. 1996;239(1):20-24.
Geng J., Raub T.J., Baker C.A., Sawada G.A., Ma L., Elhammer A.P. P-selectin on acrosomal membrane of spermatocytes and a p-selectin sialoglycoprotein ligand in zona pellucida of oocytes are involved in porcine spermegg binding FASEB Journal. 1996;10(3)
Meurer J., Drong R., Homa F., Slightom J., Elhammer A. Organization of a human UDP-GalNAc:Polypeptide, N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase gene and a related processed pseudogene Glycobiology. 1996;6(2):231-241.
Ravcroft L., Asa D., Ma L., Aeed P.A., Elhammer A.P., Geng J.G. Biosynthetic regulation of the dual specificity of the common human leukocyte ligand for P- And e-selectins FASEB Journal. 1996;10(3)
Smith M., Siedlak S., Richey P., Nagaraj R., Elhammer A., Perry G. Quantitative solubilization and analysis of insoluble paired helical filaments from Alzheimer disease Brain Research. 1996;717(1-2):99-108.
Asa D., Raycroft L., Ma L., Aeed P.A., Kaytes P.S., Elhammer A.P., Geng J.G. The P-selectin glycoprotein ligand functions as a common human leukocyte ligand for P- and E-selectins Journal of Biological Chemistry. 1995;270(19):11662-11670.
Homa F.L., Baker C., Thomsen D.R., Elhammer Å.P. Conversion of a bovine UDP-GalNAc:polypeptide, N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase, to a soluble, secreted enzyme, and expression in Sf9 cells Protein Expression and Purification. 1995;6(2):141-148.
Meurer J.A., Naylor J.M., Baker C., Thomsen D.R., Homa F.L., Elhammer A.P. cDNA cloning, expression, and chromosomal localization of a human UDP-galNAc: Polypeptide, N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase Journal of Biochemistry. 1995;118(3):568-574.
Aeed P., Elhammer A. Glycosylation of Recombinant Prorenin in Insect Cells: The Insect Cell Line Sf9 Does Not Express the Mannose 6-Phosphate Recognition Signal Biochemistry. 1994;33(29):8793-8797.
Aeed P., Guido D., Mathews W., Leone J., Elhammer A. Characterization of the oligosaccharide structures on a recombinant tissue-type plasminogen activator analog synthesized in chinese hamster ovary cells Fibrinolysis and Proteolysis. 1994;8(1):31-41.
Elhammer A.P., Poorman R.A., Brown E., Maggiora L.L., Hoogerheide J.G., Kézdy F.J. The specificity of UDP-GalNAc:Polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase as inferred from a database of in Vivo substrates and from the in vitro glycosylation of proteins and peptides Journal of Biological Chemistry. 1993;268(14):10029-10038.
Hollander T., Aeed P., Elhammer A. Characterization of the oligosaccharide structures on bee venom phospholipase A<inf>2</inf> Carbohydrate Research. 1993;247(C):291-297.
Homa F.L., Hollander T., Lehman D.J., Thomsen D.R., Elhammer A.P. Isolation and expression of a cDNA clone encoding a bovine UDP-GalNAc:Polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase Journal of Biological Chemistry. 1993;268(17):12609-12616.
Lehman D., Roof L., Brideau R., Aeed P., Thomsen D., Elhammer A., Wathen M., Homa F. Comparison of soluble and secreted forms of human parainfluenza virus type 3 glycoproteins expressed from mammalian and insect cells as subunit vaccines Journal of General Virology. 1993;74(3):459-469.
Aeed P.A., Guido D.M., Mathews W.R., Elhammer A.P. Characterization of the Oligosaccharide Structures on Recombinant Human Prorenin Expressed in Chinese Hamster Ovary Cells Biochemistry. 1992;31(30):6951-6961.
Wathen M., Aeed P., Elhammer A. Characterization of Oligosaccharide Structures on a Chimeric Respiratory Syncytial Virus Protein Expressed in Insect Cell Line Sf9 Biochemistry. 1991;30(11):2863-2868.
Thomsen D., Post L., Elhammer Å. Structure of O‐glycosidically linked oligosaccharides synthesized by the insect cell line Sf9 Journal of Cellular Biochemistry. 1990;43(1):67-79.
Ganning A.E., Olsson M.J., Elhammer A., Dallner G. The influence of di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate on protein turnover in rat liver Toxicology Letters. 1989;48(2):185-192.
Steiner H., Pohl G., Gunne H., Hellers M., Elhammer A., Hansson L. Human tissue-type plasminogen activator synthesized by using a baculovirus vector in insect cells compared with human plasminogen activator produced in mouse cells Gene. 1988;73(2):449-457.
Ganning A.E., Brunk U., Edlund C., Elhammer A., Dallner G. Effects of prolonged administration of phthalate ester on the liver Environmental Health Perspectives. 1987;73:251-258.
Lehrman M.A., Schneider W.J., Brown M.S., Davis C.G., Elhammer A., Russell D.W., Goldstein J.L. The Lebanese allele at the low density lipoprotein receptor locus. Nonsense mutation produces truncated receptor that is retained in endoplasmic reticulum Journal of Biological Chemistry. 1987;262(1):401-410.
Davis C.G., Elhammer A., Russell D.W., Schneider W.J., Kornfeld S., Brown M.S., Goldstein J.L. Deletion of clustered O-linked carbohydrates does not impair function of low density lipoprotein receptor in transfected fibroblasts Journal of Biological Chemistry. 1986;261(6):2828-2838.
Elhammer A., Kornfeld S. Purification and characterization of UDP-N-acetylgalactosamine: Polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase from bovine colostrum and murine lymphoma BW5147 cells Journal of Biological Chemistry. 1986;261(12):5249-5255.
Edlund C., Ganning A.E., Elhammer A. Effect of plasticizers on the polyprene distribution in the liver ACTA CHEM. SCAND.. 1985;39(4 B):315-317.
Ganning A.E., Elhammer A., Brunk U., Dallner G. Effect of prolonged phthalate ester administration on rat liver ACTA CHEM. SCAND.. 1985;39(4 B):319-322.
Elhammer A., Kornfeld S. Two enzymes involved in the synthesis of O-linked oligosaccharides are localized on membranes of different densities in mouse lymphoma BW5147 cells Journal of Cell Biology. 1984;99(1 I):327-331.
Elhammer A., Kornfeld S. UDP-galnac:polypeptide N-acetylgalactosaminyltransferase (galnac T) and UDP-GAL:N-acetylgalactosamineβ1-3, galactosyltransferase (gal T) are localized in separate compartments in mouse lymphoma BW5147.3 cells Federation Proceedings. 1984;43(6)
Elhammer A., Peterson E., Dallner G. Distribution and transport of apo- and holocytochrome b<inf>5</inf> in the endoplasmic reticulum of rat liver BBA - Biomembranes. 1983;730(1):76-84.
Dallner G., Elhammer A., Edlund C., Tollbom O. Synthesis of membrane glycoproteins. Tokai Journal of Experimental and Clinical Medicine. 1982;7 Suppl:73-77.
Edlund C., Elhammer A., Dallner G. Distribution of newly synthesized DT-diaphorase in rat liver Bioscience Reports. 1982;2(11):861-865.
Elhammer A., Peterson E., Dallner G. Distribution and glycosylation of rat liver cytochrome b5. Acta chemica Scandinavica. Series B: Organic chemistry and biochemistry. 1980;34(2):153-154.
Dallner G., Elhammer A., Valtersson C. Biosynthesis and assembly of the endoplasmic reticulum Biochemical Society Transactions. 1979;7(2):297-301.
Eriksson L., Elhammer A., Torndal U. The study of biogenetic pathways using a perfusion technique containing perfluorochemicals British Journal of Experimental Pathology. 1979;60(2):193-200.
Elhammer A., Dallner G., Omura T. Glycosylation of rat liver cytochrome b<inf>5</inf> on the ribosomal level Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 1978;84(3):572-580.
Svensson H., Elhammer A., Autuori F., Dallner G. Biogenesis of microsomal membrane glycoproteins in rat liver IV. Characteristics of a cytoplasmic lipoprotein having properties of a membrane precursor BBA - Biomembranes. 1976;455(2):383-398.
Elhammer Å., Svensson H., Autuori F., Dallner G. Biogenesis of microsomal membrane glycoproteins in rat liver: III. release of glycoproteins from the golgi fraction and their transfer to microsomal membranes Journal of Cell Biology. 1975;67(3):715-724.