Dr. Simone Brixius-Anderko earned a diploma in molecular biology and a Ph.D. in biochemistry at Saarland University (Germany) in the laboratory of Prof. Rita Bernhardt. In collaboration with an industrial partner, she developed a sustainable biotechnological process to generate pharmaceutical steroids exploiting human cytochrome P450 enzymes (P450s). As postdoctoral fellow in the Bernhardt lab she then studied the impact of prostate cancer drugs on P450-mediated steroid production. Since her interested in P450 structure/function relationship grew she transitioned to the laboratory of Prof. Emily Scott at the University of Michigan (College of Pharmacy) to receive training in X-ray protein crystallography. She was particularly interested in cortisol-producing P450 CYP11B1 and aldosterone-producing CYP11B2, since they are important drug targets for Cushing’s disease and aldosterone-derived hypertension, respectively. Funded by a postdoctoral fellowship of the American Heart Association, she could solve several structures of CYP11B2 in complex with ligands and redox partner proteins to find new treatment approaches for hypertension. In her independent career at Pitt Pharmacy, Dr. Brixius-Anderko studies P450-mediated fatty acid metabolism in lung cancer progression to find new treatment approaches. She is a passionate mentor and deeply enjoys training the next generation of scientists.
2. 2nd place postdoctoral poster award, Drug Metabolism and Disposition Division of ASPET at national Experimental Biology meeting (virtual) (2021)
3. Leading Edge New Faculty Fellow (2021)
4. Top Trainee Advocacy Awardee, Hypertension Scientific Session, American Heart Association (virtual conference) (2020)
5. Kristen L. McGlone Award for Excellence in Research, University of Michigan, College of Pharmacy, Ann Arbor, MI (2020)
6. ASPET Travel Award, Experimental Biology Annual Meeting, San Diego, CA (Cancelled due to COVID-19) (2020)
7. 1st place postdoctoral poster award, Drug Metabolism and Disposition Division of ASPET at national Experimental Biology meeting, Orlando, FL (2019)
8. 2nd place poster award, Southeast Michigan Postdoctoral Symposium, Ann Arbor, MI (2018)
9. Travel award, GradUS Global grant (Saarland University, Germany) to the Biotrans conference in Vienna (Austria) (2015)
10. Christiane Nuesslein-Volhard Fellowship (2013-2015)
11. For Women in Science Award, awarded by L´Oréal, UNESCO and the Christiane Nuesslein-Volhard foundation (2013)
12. StudienStiftungSaar (Saarbruecken, Germany) Scholarship for biotechnological research (2011)
1. San Martin, R., Moffitt, A., Loveless, T., Brixius-Anderko, S.* (2022) Recruiting Women Faculty through Inclusive, Family-Friendly Practices. Trends in Biochemical Sciences, invited manuscript, accepted (*Corresponding author)
2. Loomis C.L., Brixius-Anderko, S., Scott, E.E. (2022) Redox Partner Adrenodoxin Alters Cytochrome P450 11B1 Ligand Binding and Inhibition. Journal of Inorganic Biochemistry ICCP450 Special Issue, 235 (2022), PMID: 35952394
3. Brixius-Anderko, S., Scott, E.E. (2021) Aldosterone synthase structure with Cushing Disease drug LCI699 highlights avenues for selective CYP11B drug design. Hypertension, 78(3):751-759, PMID: 34247511
4. Brixius-Anderko, S., Scott, E.E. (2021) Structural and functional insights into aldosterone synthase interaction with its redox partner protein adrenodoxin. Journal of Biological Chemistry, Jan-Jun 2021;296:100794. PMID: 34015331
5. Wróbel, T.M., Rogova, O., Anderson, K.L., Yadav, R., Brixius-Anderko, S., Scott, E.E., Olsen, L., Jørgensen, F.S., Björkling, F. (2020) Discovery of novel non-steroidal cytochrome P450 17A1 inhibitors as potential prostate cancer agents. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 21:4868-4879, PMID: 32660148
6. Koenig, L., Szczesny, S., Brixius-Anderko, S., Milhim, M., Hannemann, F., Bernhardt, R. (2020) Mixed-culture fermentation for enhanced C21 hydroxylation of glucocorticoids. Journal of Biotechnology, 314-315:14-24, PMID: 32246945
7. Koenig, L., Brixius-Anderko, S., Tavouli, D., Milhim, M., Hannemann, F., Bernhardt, R. (2019) Identification and circumvention of bottlenecks in CYP21A2-mediated premedrol production using recombinant Escherichia coli. Biotechnology and Bioengineering, 117(4):901-911, PMID: 31814109
8. Malikova, J., Zingg, T., Fingerhut, R., Sluka, S., Groessl, M., Brixius-Anderko, S., Bernhardt, R., McDougall, J., Pandey, A.V., Flück, C. (2019) HIV drug efavirenz inhibits 21-hydroxylase activity with possible clinical implications. Hormone Research in Pediatrics, 91(4):262-270, PMID: 31256164
9. Brixius-Anderko, S., Scott, E.E. (2018) Structure of human cortisol-producing cytochrome P450 11B1 bound to the breast cancer drug fadrozole provides insights for drug design. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 294, 453-460, PMID: 30425102
Highlighted article in ASBMB Today (04/2019), Recommended reads JBC
10. Malikova, J.*, Brixius-Anderko, S.*, Udhane, S., Parween, S., Dick, B., Bernhardt, R., and Pandey, A. V. (2017) CYP17A1 inhibitor abiraterone, an anti-prostate cancer drug, also inhibits the 21-hydroxylase activity of CYP21A2. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 174:192-200. PMID: 28893623 (*shared first authorship)
11. Brixius-Anderko, S., Hannemann, F., Ringle, M., Khatri, Y., and Bernhardt, R. (2016) An indole deficient Escherichia coli strain improves screening of cytochromes P450 for biotechnological applications. Biotechnology and Applied Biochemistry 64(3):315-326. PMID: 26913738.
12. Schiffer, L., Müller, A.-R., Hobler, A., Brixius-Anderko, S., Zapp, J., Hannemann, F., and Bernhardt, R. (2016) Biotransformation of the mineralocorticoid receptor antagonists spironolactone and canrenone by human CYP11B1 and CYP11B2: Characterization of the products and their influence on mineralocorticoid receptor transactivation, Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 163:68-76. PMID: 27125452.
13. Schiffer, L., Brixius-Anderko, S., Hannemann, F., Zapp, J., Neunzig, J., Thevis, M., and Bernhardt, R. (2016) Metabolism of oral-turinabol by human steroid hormone- synthesizing cytochromes P450. Drug Metabolism and Disposition 44(2):227-37. PMID: 26658226.
14. Brixius-Anderko, S., Schiffer, L., Hannemann, F., Janocha, B., and Bernhardt, R. (2015) A
CYP21A2 based whole-cell system in Escherichia coli for the biotechnological production of Premedrol. Microbial Cell Factories 14:135. PMCID: PMC4572648
15. Schiffer, L., Anderko, S., Hobler A., Hannemann F., Kagawa N., and Bernhardt, R. (2015) A recombinant CYP11B1 dependent Escherichia coli biocatalyst for selective cortisol production and optimization towards a preparative scale. Microbial Cell Factories 14:25. PMCID: PMC4347555.
16. Schiffer, L., Anderko, S., Hannemann, F., Eiden-Plach, A., and Bernhardt, R. (2014) The CYP11B subfamily. The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 151:38-51. PMID: 25465475.
2. Talk at the International Conference on Cytochrome P450 in Washington DC (2022) Targeting Aldosterone Biosynthesis for the Treatment of Resistant Hypertension (invited talk)
3. Seminar Talk at ASPET Focus on Pharmacology Meeting: Current Advances in Drug Metabolism Virtual Series Part 3 (2022) Targeting Cytochrome P450 enzymes to Treat Human Disease (invited talk)
4. Seminar Talk at the Molecular Biophysics and Structural Biology Graduate Program, University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh (2022) Targeting Aldosterone Biosynthesis for the Treatment of Resistant Hypertension (invited talk)
5. Virtual Seminar Talk at the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy (2021) (invited talk)
6. Virtual Seminar Talk at the Department of Pharmacology, St. Louis University (2021) (invited talk)
7. Virtual Seminar Talk at the Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Wayne State University (2021) (invited talk)
8. Virtual Seminar Talk at the School of Pharmacy, University of Connecticut (2021) (invited talk)
9. Virtual Seminar Talk at the Department of Biochemistry, Chapman University (2020) (invited talk)
10. Experimental Biology (virtual), ASPET Datablitz (2021) Structural and Functional Insights into Aldosterone Biosynthesis (selected abstract talk)
11. Seminar Talk at the Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor (2020) Understanding Aldosterone Biosynthesis for Enhanced Treatment of Hypertension
12. Seminar Talk at the Institute of Metabolism and Systems Research (IMSR), University of Birmingham (UK) (2020) Understanding Aldosterone Biosynthesis for Enhanced Treatment of Hypertension (invited talk)
13. Hypertension Scientific Session, American Heart Association (virtual) moderated poster sessions (2020) Aldosterone synthase structure with Cushing’s disease drug osilodrostat provides clues for treatment of primary aldosteronism (selected poster talk)
14. Structural Biology Seminar Series, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor MI (2020) Understanding Aldosterone Biosynthesis for Enhanced Treatment of Hypertension
15. Experimental Biology, ASPET Drug Metabolism and Disposition Young Investigators Platform Session, Orlando, FL (2019) Structural Insights into Cytochromes P450 11B1 and 11B2 for Enhanced Treatment of Hypertension and Cushing’s disease (selected abstract talk)
16. Structural Biology Seminar Series, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor MI (2018) Understanding Cortisol and Aldosterone Synthesis for Enhanced Treatment of Cushing’s Disease and Hypertension
17. Southeast Michigan Postdoctoral Symposium, Ann Arbor, MI (2018) Structural differences in cytochrome P450 11B enzymes key for drugs controlling blood pressure and immune responses (selected abstract talk)
18. Sanofi-Aventis Theses Day Paris/Vitry (France) (2016) A biotechnological production of premedrol
19. Christiane Nuesslein-Volhard Foundation annual meeting, Tuebingen, Germany (2013) Development of a whole-cell system for a biotechnological application of cytochromes P450
20. Sanofi-Aventis Theses Day, Nice, France (2013) Development of a whole-cell system for a biotechnological application of CYP21A2
