Peter Sims

Peter Sims

Titles

Associate Professor, Department of Systems Biology
Scientific Director, Sulzberger Columbia Genome Center

 

Affiliations

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics
Department of Systems Biology
JP Sulzberger Columbia Genome Center
Center for Cancer Systems Therapeutics

Phone

(212) 305-2687

Peter Sims joined Columbia in 2012 as an assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics. Researchers in his laboratory are working to improve single-cell approaches to systems biology. These approaches are crucial because individual cells respond in different ways to identical chemical and genetic perturbations, and because clinical samples are often limited to small numbers of cells. Translating new and existing techniques for genome-wide analysis to the single cell level will facilitate their application to biomedicine. The Sims Lab develops new tools for single-cell analysis, applying cutting-edge microscopy, next-generation sequencing, and microfabrication to enable unbiased, system-wide measurements of biological samples. He and his colleagues focus on single-cell transcriptomics and sequencing technology along with novel approaches to proteomics, where current tools lag far behind those available for nucleic acid analysis.

More News

News

Peter Sims, PhD, receives grant from the Aging Biology Foundation
Peter Sims, PhD, and Donna Farber, PhD, Systems Biology: $2,275,349 over three years from the Aging Biology Foundation for a subaward of “Single cell analysis of aging in lymphoid compartments.”
DSB Retreat Boasts Diverse Research, Spotlights Young Investigators
Each year the Department of Systems Biology community comes together for an off-campus retreat to discuss science, share ongoing research and to network. During this year's two-day program, held in Ellenville, NY, research presentations were primarily delivered by young investigators, shining a light on the ongoing work by our graduate students and post-docs.
Making Strides in Mapping the Human Cell Atlas
In two groundbreaking research projects contributing to the Human Cell Atlas, Columbia University scientists are tasked with mapping complete cells in the immune system and the human spine. The global effort is aiming to identify and define every cell type of the human body and create a collection of maps for navigating the cellular basis of human health and disease. The Columbia teams include co-principal investigators from the Department of Systems Biology Drs. Peter Sims and Raul Rabadan, and are among the 38 collaborative science teams launching the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative’s Seed Networks for the Human Cell Atlas project announced June 21.
Advancing the Use of Single-Cell Technology for Novel Brain Cancer Treatment
The Mark Foundation for Cancer Research has awarded Dr. Peter Sims an Emerging Leader Award and will support his work to advance a novel use of single-cell RNA sequencing to develop brain cancer treatments. Dr. Sims, an early contributor to the emerging field of single-cell RNA sequencing, is one of just eight recipients of the inaugural grant, given to promising early career scientists for projects aimed at unmet needs in cancer risk prediction, prevention and treatment.
Integrating Single-Cell Sequencing with Live Cell Imaging
Jointly awarded a $1.5 million NIH grant, the Sims Lab and Cell Microsystems are collaborating to build and test a novel single-cell analysis platform that enables live cell imaging on a large scale and at low cost.