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CURRICULUM VITAE

Robert Lochhead PhD
Associate Professor
Department of Microbiology and Immunology

OFFICE ADDRESS:
Basic Science Building
8701 Watertown Plank Rd
Milwaukee, WI 53226

EDUCATION:
09/01/1993 - 05/31/2000 Economics (BA), Brigham Young University, Provo, UT
09/01/2004 - 05/31/2007 Biology (BS), University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT
09/01/2007 - 08/01/2014 Microbiology & Immunology (PhD), University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT

POSTGRADUATE TRAINING AND FELLOWSHIP APPOINTMENTS:
08/01/2014 - 07/30/2016 Rheumatology Training at Massachusetts General Hospital (T32), Medicine, Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA
08/01/2014 - 06/30/2018 Postdoctoral Fellow, Medicine, Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA
08/01/2017 - 07/01/2018 Tosteson and Fund for Medical Discovery Clinical Research Fellow, Medicine, Rheumatology, Allergy, and Immunology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA

FACULTY APPOINTMENTS:
09/01/2016 - 12/31/2016 Adjunct Professor, Biology, Simmons College, Boston, MA
07/01/2018 - 06/30/2024 Assistant Professor, Microbiology and Immunology, The Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI
07/01/2024 - Present Associate Professor, Microbiology & Immunology, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Road, BSB2750, Milwaukee, WI 53226

EDUCATIONAL ADMINISTRATIVE APPOINTMENTS:
07/01/2024 - Present Director of Immunology Education and Training, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Road, Milwaukee, WI 53226

AWARDS AND HONORS:
01/01/2024 Graduate School Teaching Award, Medical College of Wisconsin

MEMBERSHIPS IN HONORARY AND PROFESSIONAL SOCIETIES:
01/01/2012 - Present American Association of Immunologists (Member)
01/01/2015 - Present American College of Rheumatology (Member)

EDITORSHIPS/EDITORIAL BOARDS/JOURNAL REVIEWS:
Editorship
01/01/2021 - 04/01/2021 PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases
Editorial Board
11/01/2024 - Present Immunohorizons
Journal Review
01/01/2023 - Present Frontiers in Immunology
Ad-Hoc Reviewer
11/01/2014 - Present Emerging Infectious Diseases
01/01/2015 - Present PLoS One
01/01/2015 - Present Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine
01/01/2015 - Present Cellular & Molecular Biology Letters
10/01/2018 - Present Journal of Infectious Diseases
01/01/2022 - Present Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
02/01/2022 - Present iScience
09/01/2024 - Present Nature Communications

NATIONAL ELECTED/APPOINTED LEADERSHIP AND COMMITTEE POSITIONS:
07/01/2019 - 01/31/2019 Member, Subcommittee on Lyme disease pathogenesis, Tick-borne diseases Working Group, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
05/12/2022 - 05/16/2022 Session Chair, Immune Regulation Block Symposium, American Association of Immunologists
01/01/2023 - Present Chair, Immune Regulation, Abstract Programming Committee, American Association of Immunologists
01/01/2023 - Present Member, Abstract Review Committee, American Association of Immunologists
10/01/2024 - 10/05/2024 Ad hoc reviewer, Immunity and Host Defense (IHD) Study Section, National Institutes of Health

INTERNATIONAL ELECTED/APPOINTED LEADERSHIP AND COMMITTEE POSITIONS:
01/01/2016 - 02/01/2016 Chair, Gordon Research Seminar on the Biology of Spirochetes, Gordon Research Conference

RESEARCH GRANTS/AWARDS/CONTRACTS/PROJECTS:
Active
Peer Review
Title:
Borrelia burgdorferi Peptidoglycan Alters Host Immune Responses and Induces Autoimmunity
Source:
Department of Defense
Role & Effort:
Principal Investigator
PI:
Robert Lochhead
Dates:
08/01/2022 - 07/31/2025
Direct Funds:
$300,000
  
Prior
Peer Review
Title:
Pathogenic and Diagnostic Implications of MicroRNAs in Lyme Disease
Source:
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Role & Effort:
Principal Investigator
PI:
Robert Lochhead
Dates:
08/01/2016 - 07/30/2017
Direct Funds:
$58,368
  
Title:
Determination of MicroRNAs as Pathogenic Biomarkers of Treatment Outcome in Lyme Arthritis
Source:
Massachusetts General Hospital Fund for Medical Research
Role & Effort:
Principal Investigator
PI:
Robert Lochhead
Dates:
07/01/2017 - 06/30/2018
Direct Funds:
$75,000
  
Title:
MHC class II presentation of Borrelia burgdorferi and synovial tissue antigens in murine Lyme arthritis
Source:
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
Role & Effort:
Principal Investigator
PI:
Robert Lochhead
Dates:
01/01/2020 - 12/31/2021
Direct Funds:
$275,000
  
Title:
MHC class II immunopeptidomics analysis of the SARS-CoV-2 proteome
Source:
NIAID (R21)
Role & Effort:
Principal Investigator
PI:
Lochhead
Dates:
09/22/2021 - 09/30/2023
Direct Funds:
$275,000
  

INVITED LECTURES/WORKSHOPS/PRESENTATIONS:
National
Lochhead RB, Lyme arthritis: linking infection, inflammation, and autoimmunity, University of North Dakota School of Medicine Seminar Series, Virtual, 05/01/2021
Lochhead RB, Lyme arthritis: linking infection, inflammation and autoimmunity, NIAID symposium on Lyme disease, Virtual, 06/16/2021 - 06/18/2021
Lochhead RB, Using immunopeptidomics to study infection-induced autoimmunity in Lyme arthritis, Brigham Young University Department of Chemistry Seminar Series, Provo, Utah, 10/12/2021
Lochhead RB, Infection-induced autoimmunity in Lyme disease, East Carolina University Microbiology Seminar Series, Greenville, NC, 09/19/2022
Lochhead RB, Autoimmunity in Lyme arthritis: recent discoveries and current knowledge gaps, Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School Symposium on Lyme arthritis, Boston, MA, 10/27/2023
Robert Lochhead, Mouse models of Lyme-induced autoimmunity, University of Utah/Janis Weis Lyme disease symposium, Salt Lake City, Utah, 12/10/2024 - 12/11/2024
 
Regional
Lochhead, Robert B, Lyme disease and autoimmunity, 2023 Lyme and Tick-Borne Disease Summit, Syracuse, New York, 09/28/2023 - 09/29/2023
 

PEER REVIEWED WORKSHOPS/PRESENTATIONS:
International
Robert Lochhead, Ryan O'Connell, and Janis Weis, MicroRNAs are Critical Immune Regulators in Lyme Arthritis, 13th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and Other Tick-borne Diseases, Boston, Massachusetts, 08/18/2013 - 08/21/2013
Robert Lochhead, Nancy Kim, and Allen Steere, MicroRNAs as Clinical and Functional Biomarkers of Lyme Disease, 14th International Conference on Lyme Borreliosis and Other Tick-borne Diseases, Vienna, Austria, 09/27/2015 - 09/30/2015
Robert Lochhead, Sheila Arvikar, John Aversa, Klemen Strle, Allen Steere, Robust IFN signature and suppressed tissue repair gene expression in synovial tissue from patients with post-infectious, Borrelia burgdorferi-induced Lyme arthritis, 15th International Conference on Lyme borreliosis and other tick-borne diseases, Atlanta, GA, 09/11/2018 - 09/14/2018
Robert Lochhead, Hypercholesterolemic apoE- mice are susceptible to severe chronic Lyme arthritis, Gordon Research Conference on Lipoprotein Metabolism, Waterville Valley, New Hampshire, 06/01/2024 - 06/06/2024
 
National
Robert Lochhead, Klemen Strle, and Allen Steere, MicroRNA-155 and let-7a may potentiate auto-inflammatory and tumor-like proliferative dysregulation in post-infectious Lyme arthritis synovial tissue, American Association of Immunologists Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, 05/13/2017 - 05/16/2017
Robert Lochhead, David Ordonez, Sheila Arvikar, Allen Steere, Klemen Strle, IFN-gamma production in Lyme arthritis synovial tissue promotes differentiation of fibroblast-like synoviocytes into inflammatory effector cells, American College of Rheumatology Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL, 10/20/2018 - 10/23/2018
 

COMMITTEE SERVICE:
Medical College of Wisconsin
07/01/2021 - Present Member, Assessment and Oversight Committee, Medical College of Wisconsin
05/01/2022 - Present Co-Chair, Microbiology and Immunology Seminar Series, Microbiology and Immunology, Medical College of Wisconsin
 

MCW TEACHING ACTIVITIES:
Medical Student Education
01/01/2020 - 05/31/2023 Instructor, Infectious Agents and Host Immunity
09/01/2023 - Present Hematology and Immunology Fusion instructor
09/01/2023 - Present Musculoskeletal and Skin Fusion instructor
 
Graduate Student Education
01/01/2020 - Present Lecturer for IMI
01/01/2020 - Present Lecturer for FBS IV
09/01/2021 - Present Director: Advanced Topics in Immunology
01/01/2023 - Present Course Director for Advanced Immunology
 

MCW STUDENTS, FACULTY, RESIDENTS AND CLINICAL/RESEARCH FELLOWS MENTORED:
Medical Students
01/01/2021 - 12/31/2021 Tyler Compton, Honors in Research, Medical College of Wisconsin
06/01/2024 - 09/01/2024 Jacob Dickman, Medical Student Summer Research Program, Medical College of Wisconsin
09/01/2024 - Present Jacob Dickman, Honors in Research, Medical College of Wisconsin
06/01/2025 - 09/01/2025 Stephanie Ruzicka, Medical Student Summer Research Program, Medical College of Wisconsin
06/01/2025 - 09/01/2025 Ryan Krump, Medical Student Summer Research Program, Medical College of Wisconsin
 
Graduate Students
PhD Students Advised
06/01/2019 - 04/01/2024 Joseph Rouse, Research on the Pathogenesis of Lyme Arthritis, Medical College of Wisconsin, Awarded PhD
 


BIBLIOGRAPHY
Refereed Journal Publications/Original Papers
1. Ma Y, Bramwell KK, Lochhead RB, Paquette JK, Zachary JF, Weis JH, Teuscher C, Weis JJ. Borrelia burgdorferi arthritis-associated locus Bbaa1 regulates Lyme arthritis and K/B×N serum transfer arthritis through intrinsic control of type I IFN production. J Immunol. 2014 Dec 15;193(12):6050-60. PMCID: PMC4258437
2. Sulka KB, Strle K, Crowley JT, Lochhead RB, Anthony R, Steere AC. Correlation of Lyme Disease-Associated IgG4 Autoantibodies With Synovial Pathology in Antibiotic-Refractory Lyme Arthritis. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2018 Nov;70(11):1835-1846. PMCID: PMC6203610
3. Lochhead RB, Strle K, Kim ND, Kohler MJ, Arvikar SL, Aversa JM, Steere AC. MicroRNA Expression Shows Inflammatory Dysregulation and Tumor-Like Proliferative Responses in Joints of Patients With Postinfectious Lyme Arthritis. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2017 May;69(5):1100-1110. PMCID: PMC5406251
4. Lochhead RB, Zachary JF, Dalla Rosa L, Ma Y, Weis JH, O'Connell RM, Weis JJ. Antagonistic Interplay between MicroRNA-155 and IL-10 during Lyme Carditis and Arthritis. PLoS One. 2015;10(8):e0135142. PMCID: PMC4529177
5. Lochhead RB, Ma Y, Zachary JF, Baltimore D, Zhao JL, Weis JH, O'Connell RM, Weis JJ. MicroRNA-146a provides feedback regulation of lyme arthritis but not carditis during infection with Borrelia burgdorferi. PLoS Pathog. 2014 Jun;10(6):e1004212. PMCID: PMC4072785
6. Lochhead RB, Sonderegger FL, Ma Y, Brewster JE, Cornwall D, Maylor-Hagen H, Miller JC, Zachary JF, Weis JH, Weis JJ. Endothelial cells and fibroblasts amplify the arthritogenic type I IFN response in murine Lyme disease and are major sources of chemokines in Borrelia burgdorferi-infected joint tissue. J Immunol. 2012 Sep 01;189(5):2488-501. PMCID: PMC3424307
7. Pontes MH, Babst M, Lochhead R, Oakeson K, Smith K, Dale C. Quorum sensing primes the oxidative stress response in the insect endosymbiont, Sodalis glossinidius. PLoS One. 2008;3(10):e3541. PMCID: PMC2568817
8. Lochhead RB, Arvikar SL, Aversa JM, Sadreyev RI, Strle K, Steere AC. Robust interferon signature and suppressed tissue repair gene expression in synovial tissue from patients with postinfectious, Borrelia burgdorferi-induced Lyme arthritis. Cell Microbiol. 2019 Feb;21(2):e12954. PMCID: PMC6724218
9. Lochhead RB, Ordoñez D, Arvikar SL, Aversa JM, Oh LS, Heyworth B, Sadreyev R, Steere AC, Strle K. Interferon-gamma production in Lyme arthritis synovial tissue promotes differentiation of fibroblast-like synoviocytes into immune effector cells. Cell Microbiol. 2019 Feb;21(2):e12992. PMCID: PMC6336510
10. Jutras BL, Lochhead RB, Kloos ZA, Biboy J, Strle K, Booth CJ, Govers SK, Gray J, Schumann P, Vollmer W, Bockenstedt LK, Steere AC, Jacobs-Wagner C. <i>Borrelia burgdorferi</i> peptidoglycan is a persistent antigen in patients with Lyme arthritis. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2019 Jul 02;116(27):13498-13507. PMCID: PMC6613144
11. Donta ST, States LJ, Adams WA, Bankhead T, Baumgarth N, Embers ME, Lochhead RB, Stevenson B. Report of the Pathogenesis and Pathophysiology of Lyme Disease Subcommittee of the HHS Tick Borne Disease Working Group. Front Med (Lausanne). 2021;8:643235. PMCID: PMC8215209
12. Lochhead RB, Strle K, Arvikar SL, Weis JJ, Steere AC. Lyme arthritis: linking infection, inflammation and autoimmunity. Nat Rev Rheumatol. 2021 Aug;17(8):449-461. PMCID: PMC9488587
13. Ordóñez D, Lochhead RB, Strle K, Pianta A, Arvikar S, Van Rhijn I, Stemmer-Rachamimov A, Steere AC. Cell-Mediated Cytotoxicity in Lyme Arthritis. Arthritis Rheumatol. 2023 May;75(5):782-793. PMCID: PMC10191881
14. Holub MN, Wahhab A, Rouse JR, Danner R, McClune MM, Dressler JM, Strle K, Jutras BL, Edelstein AI, Lochhead RB. Peptidoglycan in osteoarthritis synovial tissue is associated with joint inflammation. Res Sq. 2023 Apr 28. PMCID: PMC10168439
15. Holub MN, Wahhab A, Rouse JR, Danner R, Hackner LG, Duris CB, McClune ME, Dressler JM, Strle K, Jutras BL, Edelstein AI, Lochhead RB. Peptidoglycan in osteoarthritis synovial tissue is associated with joint inflammation Arthritis Research and Therapy. December 2024;26(1).
16. Kanjana K, Strle K, Lochhead RB, Pianta A, Mateyka LM, Wang Q, Arvikar SL, Kling DE, Deangelo CA, Curham L, Barbour AG, Costello CE, Moon JJ, Steere AC. Autoimmunity to synovial extracellular matrix proteins in patients with postinfectious Lyme arthritis. J Clin Invest. 2023 Sep 01;133(17). PMCID: PMC10471169
17. Danner R, Prochniak LM, Pereckas M, Rouse JR, Wahhab A, Hackner LG, Lochhead RB. Identification of Major Histocompatibility Complex Class II Epitopes From Lyme Autoantigen Apolipoprotein B-100 and Borrelia burgdorferi Mcp4 in Murine Lyme Arthritis. J Infect Dis. 2024 Aug 14;230(Supplement_1):S27-S39. PMCID: PMC11322890
18. Rouse JR, Danner R, Wahhab A, Pereckas M, Nguyen C, McClune ME, Steere AC, Strle K, Jutras BL, Lochhead RB. HLA-DR-Expressing Fibroblast-Like Synoviocytes Are Inducible Antigen Presenting Cells That Present Autoantigens in Lyme Arthritis. ACR Open Rheumatol. 2024 Oct;6(10):678-689. PMCID: PMC11471949
19. Holub MN, Wahhab A, Rouse JR, Danner R, Hackner LG, Duris CB, McClune ME, Dressler JM, Strle K, Jutras BL, Edelstein AI, Lochhead RB. Peptidoglycan in osteoarthritis synovial tissue is associated with joint inflammation. Arthritis Res Ther. 2024 Mar 27;26(1):77. PMCID: PMC10967045