Boris Kantor | Scholars@Duke

Boris Kantor
Associate Research Professor of Neurobiology

Kantor Lab, the Duke University Viral Vector Core, facilitates the use of virus-mediated tools for gene transfer by investigators across diverse fields of study such as systems neuroscience, stem cell biology, metabolism, aging, cancer biology and others. Services are open to researchers within the Duke University Medical Center, Duke University, as well as outside investigators, worldwide.

Current Appointments & Affiliations

Associate Research Professor of Neurobiology, Neurobiology, Basic Science Departments 2019
Faculty Network Member of the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, University Institutes and Centers 2019

Contact Information

Box 3209, Durham, NC 27710
Bryan Research Building, 311 Research Drive Room 213, Durham, NC 27710
boris.kantor@duke.edu (919) 681-1068

Background
Education, Training, & Certifications
- Postdoctoral Fellowship, Gene Therapy Center, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill 2005 - 2009
- Ph.D., The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel) 2005
- M.Sc., The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (Israel) 1998
- Ph.D., Grodno State Medical University (Republic of Belarus) 1995
Previous Appointments & Affiliations
- Assistant Research Professor in the Department of Neurobiology, Neurobiology, Basic Science Departments 2016 - 2019
Research
Selected Grants
- Untangling the diversity in the genetic architecture of late-onset Alzheimer's disease using single cell multi-omics awarded by National Institutes of Health 2022 - 2025
- A novel gene-therapy strategy for Parkinson's disease (PD): Epigenome editing mediated-regulation of SNCA expression awarded by Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research 2022 - 2024
- Seelos SRA-PD Model Vectors Generation for CRO SLS004 awarded by Seelos Therapeutics 2022 - 2024
- Seelos SRA 009- Amplification and preparation of Adeno-associated vectors (AAVs) for production awarded by Seelos Therapeutics 2022 - 2023
- Production of Adeno-Associated Vectors (AAVs) for Kallyope awarded by Kallyope, Inc 2019 - 2023
- Production of lentiviral vectors (LVs) awarded by Falcon Therapeutics 2018 - 2019
- Production of Adeno-Associated Vectors (AAVs) awarded by Kallyope, Inc 2018
External Relationships
- CLAIRIgene
- Seelos Therapeutics
Publications & Artistic Works
Selected Publications
- Academic Articles
  - Rittiner, Joseph, Mohanapriya Cumaran, Sahil Malhotra, and Boris Kantor. “Therapeutic modulation of gene expression in the disease state: Treatment strategies and approaches for the development of next-generation of the epigenetic drugs.” Front Bioeng Biotechnol 10 (2022): 1035543. https://doi.org/10.3389/fbioe.2022.1035543.
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  - Dong, Wendy, and Boris Kantor. “Lentiviral Vectors for Delivery of Gene-Editing Systems Based on CRISPR/Cas: Current State and Perspectives.” Viruses 13, no. 7 (July 1, 2021). https://doi.org/10.3390/v13071288.
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  - Hunanyan, Arsen S., Boris Kantor, Ram S. Puranam, Courtney Elliott, Angela McCall, Justin Dhindsa, Promila Pagadala, et al. “Adeno-Associated Virus-Mediated Gene Therapy in the Mashlool, Atp1a3Mashl/+, Mouse Model of Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood.” Hum Gene Ther 32, no. 7–8 (April 2021): 405–19. https://doi.org/10.1089/hum.2020.191.
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  - MacDougall, Gabriella, Logan Y. Brown, Boris Kantor, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “The Path to Progress Preclinical Studies of Age-Related Neurodegenerative Diseases: A Perspective on Rodent and hiPSC-Derived Models.” Mol Ther 29, no. 3 (March 3, 2021): 949–72. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ymthe.2021.01.001.
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  - Yang, Anna, Boris Kantor, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “APOE: The New Frontier in the Development of a Therapeutic Target towards Precision Medicine in Late-Onset Alzheimer's.” Int J Mol Sci 22, no. 3 (January 27, 2021). https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22031244.
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  - Gu, Jeffrey, Julio Barrera, Young Yun, Susan K. Murphy, Thomas G. Beach, Randy L. Woltjer, Geidy E. Serrano, Boris Kantor, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “Cell-Type Specific Changes in DNA Methylation of SNCA Intron 1 in Synucleinopathy Brains.” Front Neurosci 15 (2021): 652226. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2021.652226.
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  - Brown, Logan Y., Wendy Dong, and Boris Kantor. “An Improved Protocol for the Production of Lentiviral Vectors.” Star Protoc 1, no. 3 (December 18, 2020): 100152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xpro.2020.100152.
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  - Chen, Vivian, Malik Moncalvo, Dominic Tringali, Lidia Tagliafierro, Ahila Shriskanda, Ekaterina Ilich, Wendy Dong, Boris Kantor, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “The mechanistic role of alpha-synuclein in the nucleus: impaired nuclear function caused by familial Parkinson's disease SNCA mutations.” Hum Mol Genet 29, no. 18 (November 4, 2020): 3107–21. https://doi.org/10.1093/hmg/ddaa183.
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  - Angrist, Misha, Anna Yang, Boris Kantor, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “Good problems to have? Policy and societal implications of a disease-modifying therapy for presymptomatic late-onset Alzheimer's disease.” Life Sci Soc Policy 16, no. 1 (October 12, 2020): 11. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40504-020-00106-2.
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  - Uchitel, Julie, Boris Kantor, Edward C. Smith, and Mohamad A. Mikati. “Viral-Mediated Gene Replacement Therapy in the Developing Central Nervous System: Current Status and Future Directions.” Pediatr Neurol 110 (September 2020): 5–19. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2020.04.010.
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  - Rittiner, Joseph Edward, Malik Moncalvo, Ornit Chiba-Falek, and Boris Kantor. “Gene-Editing Technologies Paired With Viral Vectors for Translational Research Into Neurodegenerative Diseases.” Front Mol Neurosci 13 (2020): 148. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnmol.2020.00148.
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  - Tagliafierro, Lidia, Ekaterina Ilich, Malik Moncalvo, Jeffrey Gu, Ahila Sriskanda, Carole Grenier, Susan K. Murphy, Ornit Chiba-Falek, and Boris Kantor. “Lentiviral Vector Platform for the Efficient Delivery of Epigenome-editing Tools into Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-derived Disease Models.” J Vis Exp, no. 145 (March 29, 2019). https://doi.org/10.3791/59241.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Lidia Tagliafierro, Jeffrey Gu, Madison E. Zamora, Ekaterina Ilich, Carole Grenier, Zhiqing Y. Huang, Susan Murphy, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “Downregulation of SNCA Expression by Targeted Editing of DNA Methylation: A Potential Strategy for Precision Therapy in PD.” Mol Ther 26, no. 11 (November 7, 2018): 2638–49. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ymthe.2018.08.019.
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  - Vijayraghavan, Sriram, and Boris Kantor. “A Protocol for the Production of Integrase-deficient Lentiviral Vectors for CRISPR/Cas9-mediated Gene Knockout in Dividing Cells.” J Vis Exp, no. 130 (December 12, 2017). https://doi.org/10.3791/56915.
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  - Manuel, Allison M., Michael D. Walla, Adam Faccenda, Stephanie L. Martin, Ross M. Tanis, Gerardo G. Piroli, Julie Adam, et al. “Succination of Protein Disulfide Isomerase Links Mitochondrial Stress and Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress in the Adipocyte During Diabetes.” Antioxid Redox Signal 27, no. 16 (December 1, 2017): 1281–96. https://doi.org/10.1089/ars.2016.6853.
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  - Ortinski, Pavel I., Bernadette O’Donovan, Xiaoyu Dong, and Boris Kantor. “Integrase-Deficient Lentiviral Vector as an All-in-One Platform for Highly Efficient CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Gene Editing.” Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 5 (June 16, 2017): 153–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.omtm.2017.04.002.
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  - Titus, Mark A., Brian Zeithaml, Boris Kantor, Xiangping Li, Karin Haack, Dominic T. Moore, Elizabeth M. Wilson, James L. Mohler, and Tal Kafri. “Dominant-negative androgen receptor inhibition of intracrine androgen-dependent growth of castration-recurrent prostate cancer.” Plos One 7, no. 1 (2012): e30192. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0030192.
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  - Johnson, Jarrod S., Martina Gentzsch, Liqun Zhang, Carla M. P. Ribeiro, Boris Kantor, Tal Kafri, Raymond J. Pickles, and R Jude Samulski. “AAV exploits subcellular stress associated with inflammation, endoplasmic reticulum expansion, and misfolded proteins in models of cystic fibrosis.” Plos Pathog 7, no. 5 (May 2011): e1002053. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1002053.
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  - Kantor, B., M. Bayer, H. Ma, J. Samulski, C. Li, T. McCown, and T. Kafri. “Notable reduction in illegitimate integration mediated by a PPT-deleted, nonintegrating lentiviral vector.” Molecular Therapy 19, no. 3 (January 1, 2011): 547–56. https://doi.org/10.1038/mt.2010.277.
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  - Monahan, P. E., C. D. Lothrop, J. Sun, M. L. Hirsch, T. Kafri, B. Kantor, R. Sarkar, D. M. Tillson, J. R. Elia, and R. J. Samulski. “Proteasome inhibitors enhance gene delivery by AAV virus vectors expressing large genomes in hemophilia mouse and dog models: A strategy for broad clinical application.” Molecular Therapy 18, no. 11 (January 1, 2010): 1907–16. https://doi.org/10.1038/mt.2010.170.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Hong Ma, Jennifer Webster-Cyriaque, Paul E. Monahan, and Tal Kafri. “Epigenetic activation of unintegrated HIV-1 genomes by gut-associated short chain fatty acids and its implications for HIV infection.” Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 106, no. 44 (November 3, 2009): 18786–91. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0905859106.
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  - Bayer, Matthew, Boris Kantor, Adam Cockrell, Hong Ma, Brian Zeithaml, Xiangping Li, Thomas McCown, and Tal Kafri. “A large U3 deletion causes increased in vivo expression from a nonintegrating lentiviral vector.” Mol Ther 16, no. 12 (December 2008): 1968–76. https://doi.org/10.1038/mt.2008.199.
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  - Razin, Aharon, and Boris Kantor. “DNA methylation in epigenetic control of gene expression.” Prog Mol Subcell Biol 38 (2005): 151–67. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-27310-7_6.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Yotam Kaufman, Kirill Makedonski, Aharon Razin, and Ruth Shemer. “Establishing the epigenetic status of the Prader-Willi/Angelman imprinting center in the gametes and embryo.” Hum Mol Genet 13, no. 22 (November 15, 2004): 2767–79. https://doi.org/10.1093/hmg/ddh290.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Kirill Makedonski, Yael Green-Finberg, Ruth Shemer, and Aharon Razin. “Control elements within the PWS/AS imprinting box and their function in the imprinting process.” Hum Mol Genet 13, no. 7 (April 1, 2004): 751–62. https://doi.org/10.1093/hmg/ddh085.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Kirill Makedonski, Ruth Shemer, and Aharon Razin. “Expression and localization of components of the histone deacetylases multiprotein repressory complexes in the mouse preimplantation embryo.” Gene Expr Patterns 3, no. 6 (December 2003): 697–702. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.modgep.2003.07.003.
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  - Green Finberg, Yael, Boris Kantor, Alon Y. Hershko, and Aharon Razin. “Characterization of the human Snrpn minimal promoter and cis elements within it.” Gene 304 (January 30, 2003): 201–6. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0378-1119(02)01212-x.
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  - Temkin, Vladislav, Boris Kantor, Vivian Weg, Mor-Li Hartman, and Francesca Levi-Schaffer. “Tryptase activates the mitogen-activated protein kinase/activator protein-1 pathway in human peripheral blood eosinophils, causing cytokine production and release.” J Immunol 169, no. 5 (September 1, 2002): 2662–69. https://doi.org/10.4049/jimmunol.169.5.2662.
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  - Hershko, A. Y., Y. Finberg, B. Kantor, R. Shemer, and A. Razin. “The mouse Snrpn minimal promoter and its human orthologue: activity and imprinting.” Genes Cells 6, no. 11 (November 2001): 967–75. https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2443.2001.00474.x.
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- Book Sections
  - Kantor, B., and O. Chiba-Falek. “Lentiviral vectors as the delivery vehicles for transduction into iPSCs: Shortcomings and benefits.” In Methods in IPSC Technology, 79–100, 2021. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-323-85766-6.00005-X.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Rachel M. Bailey, Keon Wimberly, Sahana N. Kalburgi, and Steven J. Gray. “Methods for gene transfer to the central nervous system.,” 87:125–97, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-800149-3.00003-2.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Thomas McCown, Paola Leone, and Steven J. Gray. “Clinical applications involving CNS gene transfer.,” 87:71–124, 2014. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-800149-3.00002-0.
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- Conference Papers
  - Asmus, Natalie, and Boris Kantor. “CRISPR/Cas9 Inducible Systems for Neurodegenerative Disease.” In Molecular Therapy, 29:415–415, 2021.
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  - Chiba-Falek, Ornit, Ashley Kilgore, Gabriella MacDougall, Joseph Rittiner, and Boris Kantor. “Epigenome-Base Strategies for Efficient and Safe Editing of APOE epsilon 4 Allele: Implications for Alzheimer's Disease.” In Molecular Therapy, 29:200–200, 2021.
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  - Gupta, Ishika, Boris Kantor, Ornit Chiba-Falek, and Misha Angrist. “Policies and Pitfalls: What the Alzheimer's Community Can Learn from the Deployment of Disease-Modifying Therapies for Multiple Sclerosis Patients.” In Molecular Therapy, 29:278–278, 2021.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Wendy Dong, Joseph Rittiner, Jordan Poe, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “Downregulation of SNCA Expression as a Therapoetic Approach for Parkinson's Disease and Other Synucleinopathies: New Target Validation for Next-Generation Drug Discovery.” In Molecular Therapy, 29:265–66, 2021.
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  - Yang, Anna, Boris Kantor, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “The New Frontier in the Development of LOAD Therapies Targeting APOE.” In Molecular Therapy, 29:203–203, 2021.
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  - Asmus, Natalie, Malik Moncalvo, Wendy Dong, Ekaterina Ilich, Carmel Falek, Joseph Rittiner, Domenic Tringali, et al. “Epigenetic Downregulation of ApoE4 for Alzheimer's Disease.” In Molecular Therapy, 28:430–430, 2020.
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  - Chiba-Falek, Ornit, Domenic Tringali, Young Yun, Malik Molcavno, Angela Wei, Joseph Rittiner, Natalie Asmus, et al. “Allele Specific Knockdown of APOE e4 Expression: A Novel Platform for Precision Gene Therapy in Alzheimer's Disease.” In Molecular Therapy, 28:323–24, 2020.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Joseph Rittiner, Malik Moncalvo, Ekaterina Ilich, Wendy Dong, Natalie Asmus, Carmel Falek, et al. “Development of Lentiviral Platform for Allele-Specific Targeted Down-Regulation of APOEe4 Expression: Epigenetic Therapy for Precision Medicine in Alzheimer's Disease.” In Molecular Therapy, 28:431–32, 2020.
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  - Wei, Angela, Domenic Tringali, Natalie Asmus, Anna Yang, Boris Kantor, Misha Angrist, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “An Isogenic hiPSC-Derived Model System for Establishing Gene Therapy Approaches in Alzheimer's Disease.” In Molecular Therapy, 28:481–481, 2020.
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  - Yang, Anna, Ornit Chiba-Falek, Boris Kantor, Angela Wei, Natalie Asmus, and Misha Angrist. “Implications of Gene Therapy for Alzheimer's.” In Molecular Therapy, 28:322–23, 2020.
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  - Chiba-Falek, Ornit, Lidia Tagliafierro, Ekaterina Ilich, Ahila Sriskanda, and Boris Kantor. “The New Epigenome-Editing Approach for Targeting Dysregulated SNCA Expression: Novel Target Validation for Next-Generation Drug Discovery.” In Molecular Therapy, 27:35–35. CELL PRESS, 2019.
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  - Kantor, Boris, Ekaterina Ilich, Lidia Tagliafierro, and Ornit Chiba-Falek. “Integrase-Deficient Lentiviral Vector for Efficient CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Gene and Epigenome-Editing Applications.” In Molecular Therapy, 27:101–101. CELL PRESS, 2019.
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  - Kantor, B., R. Shemer, and A. Razin. “The Prader-Willi/Angelman imprinted domain and its control center.” In Cytogenet Genome Res, 113:300–305, 2006. https://doi.org/10.1159/000090845.
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  - Lubbe, D., J. D. Altman, B. Kantor, D. R. Holmes, R. S. Schwartz, and B. J. Gersh. “By what mechanism does glucose-insulin-potassium improve survival following myocardial infarction?” In Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 37:353A-353A. ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC, 2001.
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Teaching & Mentoring
Recent Courses
Scholarly, Clinical, & Service Activities
Outreach & Engaged Scholarship

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Education, Training, & Certifications

Previous Appointments & Affiliations

Selected Grants

External Relationships

Selected Publications

Academic Articles

Book Sections

Conference Papers

Recent Courses

Outreach & Engaged Scholarship