Torrelles, Jordi

Jordi B. Torrelles, PhD
Assistant Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases, Deparment of Internal Medicine, Center for Microbial Interface Biology. 
1016 BRT
460 W. 12th Avenue
Columbus, OH 43210
Phone: (614) 292-0777
jordi.torrelles@osumc.edu

Jordi B. Torrelles, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine. Dr. Torrelles joined the faculty in 2008. He is past recipient of the James V.  Warren Award as recognition of outstanding and excellence in research performed in the Department of Internal Medicine at The Ohio State University and also the Parker B. Francis Fellowship in pulmonary research.

Special Interests
A major area of Dr. Torrelles’ interest is the study of the human alveolar microenvironment and how this may affect the outcome of lung diseases. Dr. Torrelles’ laboratory is focused on understanding how the structure of the cell envelope of the Mycobacterium tuberculosis bacillus is affected upon deposition in the alveolar space before entry into the macrophage. It is known that alveolar myeloid and epithelial cells directly contribute to the abundant secretion of a variety of enzymatic activities into the lung surfactant. The primary function of these enzymatic activities is believed to maintain homeostasis (health); however, we do not know how these enzymatic activities will affect the cell envelope of M. tuberculosis and its adaptation within the host. A better understanding of the environment that M. tuberculosis finds itself in upon deposition and the bacterium’s modification of its cell envelope structure and metabolism will ultimately allow us to examine the metabolic pathways that M. tuberculosis relies upon for survival in this critical lung microenvironment.

These studies should provide us with new relevant information about the real constitution of the M. tuberculosis cell envelope surface within the host. The identification and characterization of in vivo ‘de novo’ signature motifs (metabolites) produced under alveolar immune pressure will create a new library of M. tuberculosis components that will be targeted and has implications for TB diagnostics, therapies and vaccines. In addition, the knowledge gained from these studies can be more broadly applied to other significant lung diseases.

Since one person in the world dies every 18 seconds from TB, Dr. Torrelles’ personal goal is to put all of his efforts into working with the scientific community to eradicate this lung disease.

Education
Doctor of Philosophy “magna cum laude” (Microbiology/Biochemistry). Autonomous University of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. (Research studies performed at Colorado State University). 2003

Master of Science in Microbiology (Clinical Microbiology). “Germans Trias i Pujol” University Hospital, Autonomous University of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. (Research studies performed at Colorado State University). 2000

Bachelor of Science in Biology (Microbiology).  Autonomous University of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. 1996

Postdoctoral Training
The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH. 2003-2008

Recent Peer-Reviewed Publications
Rhoades E, Hsu F-F, Torrelles JB, Turk J, Chatterjee D, and Russell DG (2003). Characterization of mycobacterial glycolipids released within host macrophages. Molecular Microbiology, 48, 875-888.

Zhang N*, Torrelles JB*, McNeil MR, Escuyer VE, Brennan PJ, Khoo K-H, and Chatterjee D (2003). The Emb proteins of mycobacteria direct arabinosylation of lipoarabinomannan and arabinogalactan via an N-terminal recognition region and a C-terminal synthetic region. Molecular Microbiology, 50, 69-76. (*Equal Authorship)

Torrelles JB*, Khoo K-H*, Sieling PA, Modlin RL, Zhang N, Marques AM, Rithner CD, Brennan PJ, and Chatterjee D (2004). Truncated structural variants of lipoarabinomannan in Mycobacterium leprae and an ethambutol drug-resistant strains of Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Detailed characterization of the arabinan and mannan structural motifs. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 279, 41227-41239. (*Equal Authorship)

Berg S, Starbuck J, Torrelles JB, Vissa VD, Crick DC, Chatterjee D, Brennan PJ (2005). Roles of conserved proline and glycosyltransferase motifs of EmbC in biosynthesis of lipoarabinomannan. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 280, 5651-5663.

Sieling PA, Torrelles JB, Stenger S, Chung W, Burdick AE, Rea TH, Brennan PJ, Belisle JT, Porcelli SA, and Modlin RL (2005) The human CD1-restricted T cell repertoire is limited to cross-reactive antigens: Implications for host responses against immunologically related pathogens. Journal of Immunology, 174, 2637-2644.

Kang PB, Azad AK, Torrelles JB, Kaufman TM, Beharka A, Tibesar E, Desjardin LE, Schlesinger LS (2005). The human macrophage mannose receptor directs Mycobacterium tuberculosis lipoarabinomannan-mediated phagosome biogenesis. Journal of Experimental Medicine, 202, 987-999.

McCarthy TR*, Torrelles JB*, Macfarlane AS, Katawczik M, Kutzbach B, Desjardin LE, Clegg S, Goldberg JB, Schlesinger LS (2005). Overexpression of Mycobacterium tuberculosis manB, a phosphomannomutase that increases phosphatidylinositol mannoside biosynthesis in Mycobacterium smegmatis and mycobacterial association with human macrophages. Molecular Microbiology 58, 774-790. (*Equal Authorship)

Hall-Stoodley L, Watts G, Crowther JE, Balapogal A, Torrelles JB, Robison-Cox J, Bargatze RF, Harmsen AG, Crouch EC, and Schlesinger LS (2006). Mycobacterium tuberculosis binding to human surfactant proteins A and D, fibronectin and small airway epithelial cells under shear. Infection and Immunity, 74, 3587-3596.

Torrelles JB, Azad AK, and Schlesinger LS (2006). Fine discrimination in the recognition of individual species of phosphatidyl-myo-inositol mannosides from Mycobacterium tuberculosis by C-type lectin pattern recognition receptors. Journal of Immunology, 177, 1805-1816.

Lee A, Wu SW, Scherman MS, Torrelles JB, Chatterjee D, McNeil MR and Khoo K-H (2006). Sequencing of oligoarabinosyl units released from mycobacterial arabinogalactan and lipoarabinomannan by endogenous arabinanase: Identification of distinctive and novel structural motifs. Biochemistry, 45, 15817-15828.

Torrelles JB, Knaup R, Kolareth A, Slepushkina T, Kaufman TM, Kang P, Hill  PJ, Brennan PJ, Chatterjee D, Belisle JT, Musser JM, and Schlesinger LS (2008). Identification of Mycobacterium tuberculosis clinical isolates with altered phagocytosis by human macrophages due to a truncated lipoarabinomannan. Journal of Biological Chemistry 283: 31417 - 31428.

Azad AK, Torrelles JB, and Schlesinger LS. (2008). Mutation in DC-SIGN cytoplasmic triacidic cluster motif attenuates the receptor in both phagocytosis and endocytosis of mannose-containing ligands by human myeloid cells. Journal of Leukocyte Biology 84: 1594-1603.