Thomas Weimbs

Biography

Dr. Weimbs received his doctoral degree from the Department of Biochemistry of the University of Cologne, Germany, in 1993. He conducted postdoctoral research at the Department of Anatomy, University of California at San Francisco until 1999. In the same year, he joined the Department of Cell Biology in the Lerner Research Institute of the Cleveland Clinic as an Assistant Professor where he established his research laboratory focusing on investigating membrane trafficking and epithelial cell polarity as well as molecular mechanisms underlying polycystic kidney disease. In 2005, Dr. Weimbs was recruited to the Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology and moved his laboratory to UCSB. Dr. Weimbs is full Professor in MCDB, currently serving as the department vice chair, a member of UCSB’s Interdisciplinary Program in Quantitative Biosciences (IPQB), UCSB’s Center for Stem Cell Biology and Engineering, and UCSB's Center for Aging and Longevity Studies (CALS). Dr. Weimbs is also the founder, President and Chief Scientific Officer of Santa Barbara Nutrients, Inc.

Research

Research in the Weimbs Laboratory is centered around two related areas of investigation:

1. Autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is considered the most common life-threatening, monogenic inherited disease. ADPKD affects over 600,000 people in the US alone, is a leading cause of kidney failure, and also leads to significant cardiovascular complications. Currently, no treatment exists for this disease, and most patients require renal transplantation or life-long dialysis for survival. Research in the Weimbs Laboratory is aimed at understanding the molecular mechanisms that lead to renal cyst growth and disease progression, and to identify and test new strategies for therapy.
2. SNAREs and epithelial cell polarity: Most human cell types are "polarized", i.e. they exhibit asymmetry, which is essential to their function. This includes epithelial cells that make up most major human organs such as the kidney, liver, lungs, GI tract, exocrine glands etc. Carcinogenesis is accompanied by the progressive loss of epithelial cell polarity. Current research in the Weimbs lab is aimed at investigating novel signaling functions of so-called SNARE proteins which are essential for the establishment and maintenance of cell polarity.

Selected Publications

Messing M, Torres JA, Holznecht N, Weimbs T. Trigger Warning: How Modern Diet, Lifestyle, and Environment Pull the Trigger on Autosomal Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease Progression. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2231> Nutrients. 2024 ;16(19).

Torres JA, Holznecht N, Asplund DA, Kroes BC, Amarlkhagva T, Haeffner MM, Sharpe EH, Koestner S, Strubl S, Schimmel MF, Kruger S, Agrawal S, Aceves BA, Thangaraju M, Weimbs T. β-hydroxybutyrate recapitulates the beneficial effects of ketogenic metabolic therapy in polycystic kidney disease. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2211> iScience. 2024 ;27(9):110773.

Athinarayanan SJ, Roberts CGP, Vangala C, Shetty GK, McKenzie AL, Weimbs T, Volek JS. The case for a ketogenic diet in the management of kidney disease. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2176> BMJ Open Diabetes Res Care. 2024 ;12(2):e004101.

Torres JA, Holznecht N, Asplund DA, Amarlkhagva T, Kroes B, Rebello J, Agrawal S, Weimbs T. A Combination of ß-Hydroxybutyrate and Citrate Ameliorates Disease Progression in a Rat Model of Polycystic Kidney Disease. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2136> Am J Physiol Renal Physiol. 2024 ;326:F352-F368.

Weimbs T, Saville J, Kalantar-Zadeh K. Ketogenic Metabolic Therapy for Chronic Kidney Disease <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2126>. Clinical Kidney Journal. 2024 ;17:sfad273.

2023

Cukoski S, Lindemann CHeinrich, Arjune S, Todorova P, Brecht T, Kühn A, Oehm S, Strubl S, Becker I, Kämmerer U, Torres JAlexander, Meyer F, Schömig T, Hokamp NGroße, Siedek F, Gottschalk I, Benzing T, Schmidt J, Antczak P, Weimbs T, Grundmann F, Müller R-U. Feasibility and impact of ketogenic dietary interventions in polycystic kidney disease: KETO-ADPKD-a randomized controlled trial. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2116> Cell Rep Med. 2023 ;4:101283.

Pellegrini H, Sharpe EH, Liu G, Nishiuchi E, Doerr N, Kipp KR, Chin T, Schimmel MF, Weimbs T. Cleavage fragments of the C-terminal tail of polycystin-1 are regulated by oxidative stress and induce mitochondrial dysfunction. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2051> J Biol Chem. 2023 ;299:105158.

2022

Oehm S, Steinke K, Schmidt J, Arjune S, Todorova P, Lindemann C, Wöstmann F, Meyer F, Siedek F, Weimbs T, Müller R-U, Grundmann F. RESET-PKD: A pilot trial on short-term ketogenic interventions in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/2011> Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2022 .

Akbari M, West JD, Doerr N, Kipp KR, Marhamati N, Vuong S, Wang Y, Rinschen MM, Talbot JJ, Wessely O, Weimbs T. Restoration of atypical protein kinase C ζ function in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease ameliorates disease progression. <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/1956> Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022 ;119(30):e2121267119.

Bruen DM, Kingaard JJ, Munits M, Paimanta CS, Torres JA, Saville J, Weimbs T. Ren.Nu, a Dietary Program for Individuals with Autosomal-Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease Implementing a Sustainable, Plant-Focused, Kidney-Safe, Ketogenic Approach with Avoidance of Renal Stressors <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/1886>. Kidney and Dialysis. 2022 ;2:183-203.

Tonum K, Srimai N, Chabang N, Fongsupa S, Tuchinda P, Torres JA, Weimbs T, Soodvilai S. Pharmacological Effects of Panduratin A on Renal Cyst Development in In Vitro and In Vivo Models of Polycystic Kidney Disease <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/1896>. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2022 ;23:4328-4343.

2021

Strubl S, Oehm S, Torres JA, Grundmann F, Haratani J, Decker M, Vuong S, Bhandal AK, Methot N, Haynie-Cion R, Meyer F, Siedek F, Korst U, Müller RU, Weimbs T. Ketogenic Dietary Interventions in Autosomal-Dominant Polycystic Kidney Disease (ADPKD)– A Retrospective Case Series Study: First insights into Feasibility, Safety and Effects <https://labs.mcdb.ucsb.edu/weimbs/thomas/publications/1776>. Clinical Kidney Journal. 2021 ;15:1079-1092.