Middle‑aged person with short, dark, wavy hair smiles softly at the camera. They are wearing a dark blue shirt, and the background shows a bright room with large windows and blurred office equipment.”

Thomas Schwarz, Ph.D.

Professor of Neurology and Neurobiology in the Department of Neurology
Boston Children's Hospital
Schwarz Lab Website

Thomas Schwarz, Ph.D. – Faculty Profile

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Title: Professor of Neurology and Neurobiology in the Department of Neurology, Boston Children's Hospital.

The Aim

The Schwarz Lab studies the inner workings of neurons, including how they transport essential materials and how mitochondria sustain them. The lab aims to reveal how breakdowns in these processes contribute to disorders such as Parkinson’s disease and optic neuropathy.

The Impact

The Schwarz Lab investigates how nerve cells keep their many parts healthy and connected, focusing on how organelles like mitochondria or molecules like RNA are delivered across long distances. By uncovering the basics of nerve cell maintenance and transport, their work sheds light on how failures in these systems can lead to disorders like Parkinson’s disease and neuropathy. Their research bridges fundamental cell biology and neuroscience, helping to reveal how brain cells grow, adapt, and break down in both health and disease.

A Closer Look

Article: How Mitochondria Stay Still in Neurons , The Scientist, March 2024. This article explains how brain cells use a helper protein to hold their “power plants” (mitochondria) in the right spots so they can reliably fuel learning and memory.

Article: New Research Offers Hope to Preserve Vision in Autosomal Dominant Optic Atrophy , News Medical Life Sciences, July 2025. The article describes how Dr. Thomas Schwarz’s team discovered that shutting down a single protein called SARM1 in a mouse model can protect the eye’s vision‑carrying nerve cells, offering a promising new path to preserve sight in people with autosomal dominant optic atrophy.

Contact

Email: thomas.schwarz@childrens.harvard.edu
Lab website: www.schwarzlab.org

Publications View
Ccdc181 is a microtubule-binding protein that interacts with Hook1 in haploid male germ cells and localizes to the sperm tail and motile cilia.
Authors: Authors: Schwarz T, Prieler B, Schmid JA, Grzmil P, Neesen J.
Eur J Cell Biol
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O-GlcNAc Transferase Is Essential for Sensory Neuron Survival and Maintenance.
Authors: Authors: Su C, Schwarz TL.
J Neurosci
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Neurotoxic mechanisms of paclitaxel are local to the distal axon and independent of transport defects.
Authors: Authors: Gornstein EL, Schwarz TL.
Exp Neurol
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Calcium-dependent binding of Myc to calmodulin.
Authors: Authors: Raffeiner P, Schraffl A, Schwarz T, Röck R, Ledolter K, Hartl M, Konrat R, Stefan E, Bister K.
Oncotarget
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A high mitochondrial transport rate characterizes CNS neurons with high axonal regeneration capacity.
Authors: Authors: Cartoni R, Pekkurnaz G, Wang C, Schwarz TL, He Z.
PLoS One
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The Mammalian-Specific Protein Armcx1 Regulates Mitochondrial Transport during Axon Regeneration.
Authors: Authors: Cartoni R, Norsworthy MW, Bei F, Wang C, Li S, Zhang Y, Gabel CV, Schwarz TL, He Z.
Neuron
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Filamin, a synaptic organizer in Drosophila, determines glutamate receptor composition and membrane growth.
Authors: Authors: Lee G, Schwarz TL.
Elife
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Miro phosphorylation sites regulate Parkin recruitment and mitochondrial motility.
Authors: Authors: Shlevkov E, Kramer T, Schapansky J, LaVoie MJ, Schwarz TL.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A
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Phosphorylation-Induced Motor Shedding Is Required at Mitosis for Proper Distribution and Passive Inheritance of Mitochondria.
Authors: Authors: Chung JY, Steen JA, Schwarz TL.
Cell Rep
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Urocanic Acid: An Endogenous Regulator of Langerhans Cells.
Authors: Authors: Bruhs A, Eckhart L, Tschachler E, Schwarz T, Schwarz A.
J Invest Dermatol
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