Tornike Mamuladze

Program: Immunology

Current advisor: Jonathan Kipnis, PhD

Undergraduate university: Tbilisi State Medical University, 2018

Enrollment year: 2021

Research summary
Investigating type 2 immunity in the brain borders

My research is focused on exploring the intricate interactions between the brain and its surroundings, with a particular focus on the role of meningeal mast cells in neurological health and disease. My research aims to unravel how these immune cells regulate cerebrospinal fluid dynamics and contribute to the brain’s defense mechanisms.

Graduate publications
Smyth LCD, Xu D, Okar SV, Dykstra T, Rustenhoven J, Papadopoulos Z, Bhasiin K, Kim MW, Drieu A, Mamuladze T, Blackburn S, Gu X, Gaitán MI, Nair G, Storck SE, Du S, White MA, Bayguinov P, Smirnov I, Dikranian K, Reich DS, Kipnis J. 2024 Identification of direct connections between the dura and the brain. Nature, 627(8002):165-73. PMCID: PMC11254388

Mamuladze T, Kipnis J. 2023 Type 2 immunity in the brain and brain borders. Cell Mol Immunol, 20(11):1290-99

Mamuladze T, Kim BS. 2022 The Sensation of Itch: From Biological Discovery to Medical Treatment. J Invest Dermatol, 142(1)::21-22. PMCID:

Mazzitelli JA, Smyth LCD, Cross KA, Dykstra T, Sun J, Du S, Mamuladze T, Smirnov I, Rustenhoven J, Kipnis J. 2022 Cerebrospinal fluid regulates skull bone marrow niches via direct access through dural channels. Nat Neurosci, 25(5):555-60. PMCID: PMC9081158

Drieu A, Du S, Storck SE, Rustenhoven J, Papadopoulos Z, Dykstra T, Zhong F, Kim K, Blackburn S, Mamuladze T, Harari O, Karch CM, Bateman RJ, Perrin R, Farlow M, Chhatwal J; Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network; Hu S, Randolph GJ, Smirnov I, Kipnis J. 2022 Parenchymal border macrophages regulate the flow dynamics of the cerebrospinal fluid. Nature, 611(7936):585-593. PMCID: PMC9899827

Cugurra A, Mamuladze T, Rustenhoven J, Dykstra T, Beroshvili G, Greenberg ZJ, Baker W, Papadopoulos Z, Drieu A, Blackburn S, Kanamori M, Brioschi S, Herz J, Schuettpelz LG, Colonna M, Smirnov I, Kipnis J. 2021 Skull and vertebral bone marrow are myeloid cell reservoirs for the meninges and CNS parenchyma. Science, 373(6553):eabf7844. PMCID: PMC8863069