Matt Altman, MD, MPhil
Background Information
Dr. Altman received his Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics from Stanford University, his Master’s in Biochemistry from Cambridge University, and his Medical Degree from Harvard Medical School. He completed residency training in Internal Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and his fellowship in Allergy and Immunology at the University of Washington. Dr. Altman is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine at University of Washington and head of the Allergy section within the Division of Allergy and Infectious Diseases. He has had a joint appointment at Benaroya Research Institute in the Systems Immunology Division since 2015.
Area of Research
Genome transcriptional profiling and genome sequencing technologies are powerful approaches to identify novel biomarkers and mechanisms of immune mediated diseases. These technologies generate huge amounts of biological information and require sophisticated computational tools to understand molecular pathways of the immune system in health and disease. Dr. Altman’s translational research interests focus on the use of whole genome transcriptional profiling and multi-omics approaches, and leverage big-data computational biology to understand the molecular mechanisms underpinning severe asthma and other immunologic diseases. Much of his work focuses on molecular profiling of human respiratory samples collected during flares of disease, such as asthma exacerbations, respiratory infections, and allergic reactions. Furthermore, his work seeks to both develop and understand personalized approaches to the use of immune based therapeutics in these diseases. He collaborates with several large NIAID funded consortiums including the Inner City Asthma Consortium, the Immune Tolerance Network, the Immunophenotyping Assessment in a COVID-19 Cohort, and the Allergic Diseases Cooperative Research Centers.
Featured Publications
Altman MC, Gill MA, Whalen E, Babineau DC, Shao B, Liu AH, Jepson B, Gruchalla RS, O'Connor GT, Pongracic JA, Kercsmar CM, Khurana Hershey GK, Zoratti EM, Johnson CC, Teach SJ, Kattan M, Bacharier LB, Beigelman A, Sigelman SM, Presnell S, Gern JE, Gergen PJ, Wheatley LM, Togias A, Busse WW, Jackson DJ. Transcriptome networks identify mechanisms of viral and nonviral asthma exacerbations in children. Nat Immunol. 2019 May;20(5):637-651.
Altman MC, Reeves SR, Parker AR, Whalen E, Misura KMS, Comeau M, James RG, Hallstrand TS, Ziegler SF, Debley JS. Type I interferon response by RSV-infected pediatric asthmatic bronchial epithelial cells is inversely correlated with pulmonary function. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2018 Aug;142(2):451-459.
Altman MC, Whalen E, Togias A, O’Connor GT, Bacharier LB, Bloomberg GR, Kattan M, Wood RA, Presnell S, Le Beau P, Jaffee K, Visness CM, Busse WW, Gern JE. Allergen induced activation of NK cell genes represents an early life immune response in development of allergic asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2018 Dec;142(6):1856-1866.
Altman MC, Lai Y, Nolin JD, Long S, Chen CC, Piliponsky AM, Altemeier WA, Larmore M, Frevert CW, Mulligan MS, Ziegler SF, Debley JS, Peters MC, Hallstrand TS. Airway epithelium-shifted mast cell infiltration regulates asthmatic inflammation via IL-33 signaling. J Clin Invest. 2019 Nov 1;129(11):4979-4991.
Ober C, McKennan C, Magnaye KM, Altman MC, Washington C, Stanhope C, Naughton KA, Rosasco M, Bacharier LB, Billheimer D, Gold DR, Gress L, Hartert T, Havstad S, Martinez FD, Ownby D, Nicolae DL, Levin AM Gern JE. Expression Quantitative Trait Locus (eQTL) Fine Mapping of the 17q12-21 Asthma Locus in African American Children: a Cross-Sectional Study. Lancet Respir Med. 2020 May;8(5):482-492.
Altman MC, Beigelman A, Ciaccio C, Gern JE, Heymann PW, Jackson DJ, Kennedy JL, Kloepfer K, Lemanske RF Jr, McWilliams LM, Muehling L, Nance C, Peebles RS Jr. Evolving Concepts in how Viruses Impact Asthma. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2020 May;145(5):1332-1344.
Alsina L, Israelsson E, Altman MC, Dang KK, Ghandil P, Israel L, von Bernuth H, Baldwin N, Qin H, Jin Z, Banchereau R, Anguiano E, Ionan A, Abel L, Puel A, Picard C, Pascual V, Casanova JL, Chaussabel D. A narrow repertoire of transcriptional modules responsive to pyogenic bacteria is impaired in patients carrying loss-of-function mutations in MYD88 or IRAK4. Nat Immunol. 2014 Dec;15(12):1134-42.
Altman MC, Naimi DR. Omalizumab for chronic urticaria. N Engl J Med. 2013 Jun 27;368(26):2528-30.
Jackson DJ, Busse WW, Bacharier LB, Kattan M, O’Connor GT, Wood RA, Visness CM, Durham SR, Larson D, Esnault S, Ober C, Gergen PJ, Becker P, Togais A, Gern JE, Altman MC. Association of Respiratory Allergy, Asthma and Expression of the SARS-CoV-2 Receptor, ACE2. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2020 Jul;146(1):203-206.e3.
Larson D, Patel P, Salapatek AM, Couroux P, Whitehouse D, Pina A, Johnson J, Sever M, Sanda S, Poyser J, Allio T, Scadding G, Qin T, Shamji M, Kwok W, James E, French D,Lelic A, Larche M, Altman MC, Togias A, Durham SR. Nasal Allergen Challenge and Environmental Exposure Chamber Challenge: A Randomized Trial Comparing Clinical and Biological Responses to Cat Allergen. J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2020 Mar 10.