About

Anders Sejr Hansen, PhD, is a Career Development Professor in the MIT Department of Biological Engineering, focusing on the dynamics of 3D genome structure and function. His lab develops new methods to resolve 3D genome structure at high spatiotemporal resolution to understand how DNA looping and 3D folding regulate gene expression in health and disease. His research involves creating super-resolution and single-molecule imaging techniques to track proteins, DNA looping, and transcription in real-time inside living cells, alongside developing 3D genomics methods for ultra-high resolution mapping of genome structure. Hansen also develops computational models drawing from image processing, machine learning, Bayesian inference, and polymer modeling, integrating these with genomics, biochemistry, genome editing, and stem cell differentiation to understand the regulation of genome organization and its impact on gene expression. His work aims to elucidate the molecular and biophysical mechanisms governing 3D genome organization, how this organization controls gene expression, and how its dysregulation can lead to disease. Hansen's background includes an undergraduate and Master’s degree in Chemistry from Oxford University, a PhD in Chemistry and Chemical Biology from Harvard University, and postdoctoral work at UC Berkeley. He joined MIT as an Assistant Professor of Biological Engineering in early 2020. His contributions have been recognized with several awards, including the NIH K99 Pathway to Independence award, NIH Director’s New Innovator award, Pew-Stewart Scholar for Cancer Research, NSF CAREER award, and NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award.

Research topics

• Biology
• Genetics
• Cell biology
• Computational biology

Selected publications

• Enhancer–promoter interactions and transcription are largely maintained upon acute loss of CTCF, cohesin, WAPL or YY1

  Nature Genetics · 2022 · 413 citations

  • Biology
  • Genetics
  • Cell biology

  It remains unclear why acute depletion of CTCF (CCCTC-binding factor) and cohesin only marginally affects expression of most genes despite substantially perturbing three-dimensional (3D) genome folding at the level of domains and structural loops. To address this conundrum, we used high-resolution Micro-C and nascent transcript profiling in mouse embryonic stem cells. We find that enhancer-promoter (E-P) interactions are largely insensitive to acute (3-h) depletion of CTCF, cohesin or WAPL. YY1 has been proposed as a structural regulator of E-P loops, but acute YY1 depletion also had minimal effects on E-P loops, transcription and 3D genome folding. Strikingly, live-cell, single-molecule imaging revealed that cohesin depletion reduced transcription factor (TF) binding to chromatin. Thus, although CTCF, cohesin, WAPL or YY1 is not required for the short-term maintenance of most E-P interactions and gene expression, our results suggest that cohesin may facilitate TFs to search for and bind their targets more efficiently.

  DOI

• Resolving the 3D Landscape of Transcription-Linked Mammalian Chromatin Folding

  Molecular Cell · 2020 · 673 citations

  • Biology
  • Computational biology
  • Genetics
  DOI

Recent grants

• Molecular mechanisms regulating chromatin looping in time and space

  NIH · $94k · 2019–2020

• Molecular mechanisms regulating chromatin looping in time and space

  NIH · $747k · 2019–2024

• Protein Regulators of 3D Genome Architecture: Dynamics, Mechanism and Function

  NSF · $760k · 2021–2024

• DYNAMIC BOTTOM-UP DISSECTION OF CHROMATIN LOOPING AND GENE REGULATION

  NIH · $2.3M · 2020–2025

Frequent coauthors

• Robert Tjian

  California Institute for Regenerative Medicine

  151 shared

• Xavier Darzacq

  Berkeley College

  127 shared

• Claudia Cattoglio

  Howard Hughes Medical Institute

  90 shared

• Maxime Woringer

  61 shared

• Tsung-Han S. Hsieh

  California Institute for Regenerative Medicine

  46 shared

• Luke D. Lavis

  Janelia Research Campus

  45 shared

• Domenic N. Narducci

  Broad Institute

  43 shared

• Viraat Y. Goel

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  39 shared

Labs

• Hansen LabPI

Education

• Ph.D., Biological Engineering

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  2005

• M.S., Biological Engineering

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  2001

• B.S., Biological Engineering

  Massachusetts Institute of Technology

  1999

Awards & honors

• NIH K99 Pathway to Independence (2019)
• NIH Director’s New Innovator Award (2020)
• Pew-Stewart Scholar for Cancer Research (2021)
• NSF CAREER Award (2024)
• NIH Director’s Transformative Research Award (2024)

Similar researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology

• Rudolf Jaenischh-295
• Robert A. Weinbergh-291
• Susumu Tonegawah-237
• James J. Collinsh-232
• Phillip A. Sharph-227