pillai@helix.mgh.harvard.edu

Shiv Subramanian Pillai, MD, PhD (HST '84)

HST Faculty

Professor of Medicine and Health Sciences and Technology, Harvard Medical School
Member, MGH Cancer Center

Contact Information

617-726-5619

Degrees

MD, Christian Medical College Vellore, India 1976
PhD in Biochemistry, Calcutta University, India 1990

Selected Awards/Societies

Vasvik Award for Biological Sciences and Technology, Vasvik Foundation India 1979
Science Academy Medal, Indian National Science Academy 1980
Arthritis Foundation Investigator Award 1988
Member, Cellular Immunology Study Section, Arthritis Foundation 1993-96
Member, Cellular and Molecular Immunology-B Study Section, NIH 2002-06
Chair, Cellular and Molecular Immunology-B Study Section, NIH 2010-12
Irving M London Teaching Award 2001
Faculty of 1000 2001-present
Consulting Editor, Journal of Clinical Investigation 2001-present
Associate Editor, Journal of Immunology 2007-present

Research Interests

Our main interests are the genetic and enzymatic regulation of B cell development, and the role of B cell signaling in autoimmunity and lymphomagenesis. Currently we focus on two enzymes- a sialic acid acetylesterase that negatively regulates B cell signaling and is frequently mutated in patients with autoimmunity, and a sialic acid acetyltransferase that is a positive regulator of B cell activation and is a target for the treatment of autoimmune disorders. We are also interested in B cell subsets, the regulation of the humoral immune response and in identifying the cells of origin of B lymphoid malignancies.

Reference Publications

Surolia I, Pirnie SP, Chellappa V, Taylor KN, Cariappa A, Moya J, Liu H, Bell DW, Driscoll DR, Diederichs S, Haider K, Netravali I, Le S, Elia R, Dow E, Lee A, Freudenberg J, De Jager PL, Chretien Y, Varki A, Macdonald ME, Gillis T, Behrens TW, Bloch D, Collier D, Korzenik J, Podolsky DK, Hafler D, Murali M, Sands B, Stone JH, Gregersen PK, Pillai S. Functionally defective germline variants of sialic acid acetylesterase in autoimmunity. Nature. 2010 Jul 8;466(7303):243-7.
Pillai S, Cariappa A. The follicular versus marginal zone B lymphocyte cell fate decision. Nat Rev Immunol. 2009 Nov;9(11):767-77.
Cariappa A, Takematsu H, Liu H, Diaz S, Haider K, Boboila C, Kalloo G, Connole M, Shi HN, Varki N, Varki A, Pillai S. B cell antigen receptor signal strength and peripheral B cell development are regulated by a 9-O-acetyl sialic acid esterase. J Exp Med. 2009 Jan 16;206(1):125-38.

Courses Taught

HST 175/176 - FA 2013 - Cellular and Molecular Immunology

Cellular and Molecular Immunology

People

Faculty

pillai@helix.mgh.harvard.edu

Courses Taught