Matt Havrda

Education

  • University of Maine, 2006, Ph.D.

Biography

Dr. Havrda is a biologist interested in characterizing the molecular basis of brain disorders, especially Parkinson’s disease and its various pathological manifestations. He received his Ph.D. from the Graduate School of Biomedical Science and Engineering at the University of Maine and currently serves as Associate Dean for Research and Scholarship and Associate Professor in Biomedical Sciences at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Havrda received prestigious young investigator awards, including the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award from the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke, a Dartmouth SYNERGY Scholar Award for Clinical and Translational Research, and a Target Validation Award from the Michael J. Fox Foundation. Since that time, Dr. Havrda’s laboratory has focused on understanding interactions between environmental exposures and the innate immune system during the progression of Parkinson’s disease, using in cellular and animal models, as well as in biofluids and post-mortem tissues obtained from patients with Parkinson’s disease. Dr. Havrda’s research is currently supported by the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and is anticipated to provide new platforms from which to detect, monitor, and treat neurological disorders.

Publications

  • Anderson, F.L., von Herrmann, K.M., Andrew, A.S., Kura Y.I., Young A.L., Scherzer C.R., Hickey W.F., Lee S.L., Havrda M.C. (2021) Plasma-borne indicators of inflammasome activity in Parkinson’s disease patients. npj Parkinsons Dis. 7, 2 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41531-020-00147-6: PMID: 33398042
  • Pike SC, Havrda M, Gilli F, Zhang Z, Salas LA. (2024) Immunological shifts during early-stage Parkinson’s disease identified with DNA methylation data on longitudinally collected blood samples. NPJ Parkinsons Dis. Jan 11;10(1):21. doi: 10.1038/s41531-023-00626-6. PubMed PMID: 38212355; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10784484.
  • Anderson FL, von Herrmann KM, Young AL, Havrda MC. (2021) Bbc3 Loss Enhances Survival and Protein Clearance in Neurons Exposed to the Organophosphate Pesticide Chlorpyrifos. In press, Toxicological Sciences, https://doi.org/10.1093/toxsci/kfab090
  • Angeline S Andrew, Faith Anderson; Stephen Lee; Katharine von Herrmann; Havrda MC (2021). Lifestyle factors and Parkinson’s disease risk in a rural New England case-control study, Parkinson’s Disease, doi: 10.1155/2021/5541760, PMID: 34306610
  • von Herrmann KM, Anderson FL, Martinez EM, Young AL, Havrda MC (2020). Slc6a3-dependent expression of a CAPS-associated Nlrp3 allele results in progressive behavioral abnormalities and neuroinflammation in aging mice. J Neuroinflammation. Jul 17;17(1):213. doi: 10.1186/s12974-020-01866-6: PMID: 32680528
  • von Herrmann KM, Salas LA, Martinez EM, Young AL, Howard JM, Feldman MS, Christensen BC, Wilkins OM, Lee SL, Hickey WF, Havrda MC. (2018) NLRP3 expression in mesencephalic neurons and characterization of a rare NLRP3 polymorphism associated with decreased risk of Parkinson’s disease. npj Parkinsons Dis. 4:24. Epub 2018/08/23. doi: 10.1038/s41531-018-0061-5. PMCID: PMC6093937.
  • Martinez EM, Young AL, Patankar YR, Berwin BL, Wang L, von Herrmann KM, Weier JM, Havrda MC. (2017) Editor’s Highlight: Nlrp3 Is Required for Inflammatory Changes and Nigral Cell Loss Resulting from Chronic Intragastric Rotenone Exposure in Mice. Toxicol Sci. Sep 1;159(1):64-75. PMID:28903492
  • Anderson FL, Biggs KE, Rankin BE, Havrda MC. (2023) NLRP3 inflammasome in neurodegenerative disease. Transl Res. 2023 Feb;252:21-33. doi: 10.1016/j.trsl.2022.08.006. Epub 2022 Aug 8. Review. PubMed PMID: 35952982; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC10614656.
  • Anderson FL, Coffey MM, Berwin BL, Havrda MC., (2018) Inflammasomes: An Emerging Mechanism Translating Environmental Toxicant Exposure into Neuroinflammation in Parkinson’s Disease. Toxicol Sci. 2018 Nov 1;166(1):3-15. doi: 10.1093/toxsci/kfy219. PMID: 30203060