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Maximilian Heeg

@maximilian.heeg.io
155 followers 69 following 20 posts

Assistant Investigator at @alleninstitute.bsky.social | Former postdoc @GoldrathLab | Pediatrician | Interested in tissue resident memory T cells and Immunodeficiencies | Mountain enthusiast ⛰ | 🐕 #immunology Personal website: www.heeg.io

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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 18h
We’ve released SpatialTRACE and its code! Annotate a few structures, map anatomical axes and regions across spatial transcriptomics, then carry those maps into microscopy. Watch the video to see it in action 👇 Shoutout to @amonell.bsky.social for leading this work! www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
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Reposted by Maximilian Heeg
bioRxiv Bioinfo @biorxiv-bioinfo.bsky.social · 29/09/2026
SpatialTRACE predicts anatomical axes and regions in spatial transcriptomics and microscopy www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/20…
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Reposted by Maximilian Heeg
allen institute @alleninstitute.org · 13/05/2026
This vibrant video by our Immunology team shows how similar millions of cells are to one another. Each tiny dot represents a single cell; and their color, the cell type: cyan for intestinal cells, red for T cells, white for liver cells, orange for smooth muscle cells.
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allen institute @alleninstitute.org · 08/04/2026
Prostate cancer is common, yet immunotherapy has been difficult to apply effectively. New research maps how tissue‑resident memory T cells are organized inside the prostate, revealing location‑specific roles in immune defense and memory. In collaboration with @lji.org & @ucsandiego.bsky.social
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allen institute @alleninstitute.org · 21/01/2026
Pain-sensing neurons in the intestines play an important role in defending the body from threats. New study led by the Artis Lab at @weillcornell.bsky.social shows TRPV1+ nociceptors in the gut activate tuft cells, leading to expulsion of parasites. 🔗 go.nature.com/4jTvO7k
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 08/01/2026
So glad to see this finally being published. Congrats to Wen Zhang, Elizabeth Emanuel, David Artis, and all the co-authors on “Neuro-epithelial circuits promote sensory convergence and intestinal immunity” in Nature! #immunology
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The American Association of Immunologists @aai.org · 23/12/2025
#ICYMI: T cells rise up to fight infections in the gut. Fascinating research led by AAI members Ananda Goldrath, Maximilian Heeg and Miguel Reina-Campos show how a special group of T cells travels through the small intestine to combat pathogens. ow.ly/M4rQ50ULWSJ
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 01/12/2025
I just completed "Secret Entrance" - Day 1 - Advent of Code 2025 #AdventOfCode adventofcode.com/2025/day/1
adventofcode.com
Day 1 - Advent of Code 2025
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allen institute @alleninstitute.org · 21/10/2025
Susan Kaech, PhD, has been selected to be the new EVP of our Immunology moonshot. She currently leads the @salkinstitute.bsky.social NOMIS Center for Immunobiology & Microbial Pathogenesis. 🔗 alleninstitute.org/news/susan-k... #Immunology #CellBio #ImmunoBio
alleninstitute.org
Susan Kaech, Ph.D., named next leader of Allen Institute’s Immunology moonshot
Leader in immunology to advance the Institute’s next frontier in understanding the immune system’s role across health and disease
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 11/10/2025
So proud to be a co-author on this study and absolutely loved the beautiful thread by @marionpepper.bsky.social — high recommended 👇
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Waggoner Lab @labwaggoner.bsky.social · 07/10/2025
@biorxivpreprint.bsky.social Tertiary lymphoid structures support the development of allergen-specific progenitor CD4+ T cells @marionpepper.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1...
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Marion Pepper @marionpepper.bsky.social · 09/10/2025
More coming on what this means but this was one of those stories that took almost a decade to come together but was well worth the time. Also check out a companion piece on @biorxiv by Patrick Brennan!
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Rod Rahimi @rodrahimi.bsky.social · 26/01/2025
Very impressive paper by the Heeg and Goldrath labs using spatial transcriptomics to define CD8 Trm biology in the intestine in mice and humans. Congrats to @reinacampos.bsky.social and co-authors. #ImmunoSky
nature.com
Tissue-resident memory CD8 T cell diversity is spatiotemporally imprinted - Nature
Profiling of the location and transcriptome of tissue-resident memory CD8 T cell formation at single-transcript resolution finds regionalized signalling as the basis of immune diversity in t...
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 31/01/2025
📢 Join our team at @alleninstitute.bsky.social! We're hiring a Bioinformatics Scientist II for spatial transcriptomics in immunology. Our latest work in Nature shows how tissue architecture shapes immune cell diversity. Now we're expanding our team! Learn more: alleninstitute.org/careers/jobs...
alleninstitute.org
Jobs
We are working to solve the biggest mysteries in bioscience.
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 29/01/2025
Yes. The colors in the final row are unrelated. This shows Leiden Cluster and not cell types.
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 29/01/2025
The first three rows of Fig 1d are colored as indicated in the legend. Row 4 highlights the antigen specific T cells and row 5 is coloured by leiden clustering. If you want to explore the cell types I recommend having a look at the anndata object: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/geo/query/ac...
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 24/01/2025
Thanks. Are you going to be in asilomar this weekend?
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 23/01/2025
I cannot believe you still have that picture! That's when all the fun started almost two years ago....
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Eric Topol @erictopol.bsky.social · 22/01/2025
Spatial omics rides again, this time determining how immune CD8 T cells by location in the gut have different roles, such as killing function in the villus and backup reinforcements in the crypts www.nature.com/articles/s41... Good Explainer www.lji.org/news-events/... @alleninstitute.bsky.social
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Journal of Experimental Medicine @jem.org · 22/01/2025
New: Amir Ferry, Ananda Goldrath and colleagues @ucsdhealthsci.bsky.social show that differentiation of tissue-resident memory T cells (TRM) is accompanied by the upregulation of the conventional DC1 (cDC1) chemoattractant, Xcl1. buff.ly/4hrKCYe #MucosalImmunology #TumorImmunology
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allen institute @alleninstitute.org · 22/01/2025
When your gut is under attack, the immune system is activated. Like any good army, the roles of each cellular soldier depends on their location. 🧵 📸 Elena Lin/ @ucsdhealthsci.bsky.social #ImmunoSky
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
Beautiful thread on how tissue-resident T cells organize in the gut post-infection from my co-conspirator @reinacampos.bsky.social. Our spatial multi-omics work revealed unexpected complexity in immune system architecture. Think less checkers, more 4D chess 🧬🔬
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La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) @lji.org · 22/01/2025
New in @nature.com — LJI's @reinacampos.bsky.social and colleagues at @ucsdhealthsci.bsky.social and @alleninstitute.bsky.social track the amazing journey of T cells in the gut. “For the first time, we were able to capture the formation of immunological memory in space and time." bit.ly/40Tnlt7
lji.org
T cells rise up to fight infections in the gut
Scientists show how a special group of T cells travels through the small intestine to combat pathogens
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 10/10 This work establishes a framework for studying tissue immune networks and reveals how cellular positioning shapes immune cell identity and function. Full paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41... Big thanks again to all the authors for their incredible work! ❤️
nature.com
Tissue-resident memory CD8 T cell diversity is spatiotemporally imprinted - Nature
Profiling of the location and transcriptome of tissue-resident memory CD8 T cell formation at single-transcript resolution finds regionalized signalling as the basis of immune diversity in t...
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 9/10 Technical innovation: We developed a strategy for pooled optically encoded gene perturbations compatible with spatial transcriptomics, enabling mechanistic studies in situ
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 8/10 Our spatial framework reveals that T cell location and functional state are fundamentally intertwined - establishing a new paradigm for understanding tissue immunity
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 7/10 Importantly, we validated these findings in human tissue. Analysis of healthy human terminal ileum revealed similar spatial organization of CD8 T cell states
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 6/10 TGFβ signaling proved essential for proper TRM positioning. TGFβRII KO cells showed impaired migration to the villus tip and reduced acquisition of tissue-residency programs
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 5/10 Using CRISPR-based perturbations with spatial readout, we demonstrated that CXCR3 signaling is crucial for early positioning of effector cells. Loss of CXCR3 altered cellular positioning and subsequent differentiation fate
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 4/10 This diversity is regulated by: 1. Distinct ligand-receptor activities 2. Spatial cytokine gradients 3. Specialized cellular contacts creating a complex molecular landscape that guides TRM differentiation
Specialized cellular contacts create a complex molecular landscape that guides TRM differentiation. Cells in the small intestine are colored by cell type and connected to their neighboring cells.
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 3/10 Key finding: We identified two distinct TRM states defined by their location: • Differentiated TRM cells (Gzma+, Gzmb+, Itgae+) in upper villus • Progenitor-like TRM cells (Tcf7+, Slamf6+) in lower villus/crypt
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
🧵 2/10 Using spatial transcriptomics (Xenium & MERSCOPE), we discovered that intestinal TRM cells occupy distinct niches that shape their phenotype and function. We developed computational approaches to map cells along three anatomical axes 📊
Each cell is colored according to its positions along the 3 main axes (crypt to villus, epithelial distance and longitudinal).
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Maximilian Heeg @maximilian.heeg.io · 22/01/2025
Today in @nature.com. We mapped the spatial and temporal dynamics of intestinal tissue-resident memory CD8 T (TRM) cell differentiation. 🔗 www.nature.com/articles/s41.... @ucsandiego.bsky.social @lji.org @alleninstitute.bsky.social @amonell.bsky.social @reinacampos.bsky.social @GoldrathLab 🧵 1/10
nature.com
Tissue-resident memory CD8 T cell diversity is spatiotemporally imprinted - Nature
Profiling of the location and transcriptome of tissue-resident memory CD8 T cell formation at single-transcript resolution finds regionalized signalling as the basis of immune diversity in t...
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