Mohamad Ali Najia bio photo

Mohamad Ali Najia

I am a bioengineer passionate about creating molecular technologies to understand biology, and ultimately, to improve human health. My research centers on understanding how stem cells make cell fate decisions in order to generate specific immune cells in a culture dish for potential adoptive cell therapies. I earned a PhD from the Health Sciences & Technology program at MIT under the mentorship of George Daley and Paul Blainey. Outside the lab, I enjoy sailing on the Charles River, hiking, baking, woodworking, and gardening.

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Publications & Patents

About the Cover Image
Induced pluripotent stem cells were differentiated into hemogenic endothelium then cultured in conducive conditions to undergo endothelial-to-hematopoietic transition, which generates hematopoietic progenitor cells.

Pre-prints

  • Mohamad Ali Najia*, Deepak Jha* , Cheng Zhang, Benoit Laurent, Caroline Kubaczka, Arianna Markel, Christopher Li, Vivian Morris, Allison Tompkins, Luca Hensch, Yue Qin, Bjoern Chapuy, Yu-Chung Huang, Michael Morse, Matthew R. Marunde, Anup Vaidya, Zachary B. Gillespie, Sarah A. Howard, Trista E. North, Daniel Dominguez, Michael-Christopher Keogh, Thorsten M. Schlaeger, Yang Shi, Hu Li, Margaret M. Shipp, Paul C. Blainey, George Q. Daley
    Heterochromatin fidelity is a therapeutic vulnerability in lymphoma and other human cancers
    BioRxiv, February 2025.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @article{Najia2025,
  author = {Mohamad Ali Najia, Deepak Jha* , Cheng Zhang, Benoit Laurent, Caroline Kubaczka, Arianna Markel, Christopher Li, Vivian Morris, Allison Tompkins, Luca Hensch, Yue Qin, Bjoern Chapuy, Yu-Chung Huang, Michael Morse, Matthew R. Marunde, Anup Vaidya, Zachary B. Gillespie, Sarah A. Howard, Trista E. North, Daniel Dominguez, Michael-Christopher Keogh, Thorsten M. Schlaeger, Yang Shi, Hu Li, Margaret M. Shipp, Paul C. Blainey, George Q. Daley},
  title = {Heterochromatin fidelity is a therapeutic vulnerability in lymphoma and other human cancers.},
  journal = {BioRxiv},
  year = {2025},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.01.31.635709}
}

  • Mohamad Ali Najia*, Jacob Borrajo* , Anna Le* , FuNien Tsai, Jeremy Y. Huang, Linda G. Griffith, George Q. Daley, Paul C. Blainey
    Live-cell transcriptomics with engineered virus-like particles
    BioRxiv, October 2024.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @article{Najia2024,
  author = {Najia, Mohamad Ali and Borrajo, Jacob and Le, Anna and Tsai, FuNien and Huang, Jeremy Y. and Griffith, Linda G. and Daley, George Q. and Blainey, Paul C.},
  title = {Live-cell transcriptomics with engineered virus-like particles.},
  journal = {BioRxiv},
  year = {2024},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.10.01.616098}
}

  • Eleanor Meader, Morgan T. Walcheck, Mindy R. Leder, Ran Jing, Paul J. Wrighton, Wade W. Sugden, Mohamad Ali Najia, Isaac M. Oderberg, Vivian M. Taylor, Zachary C. LeBlanc, Eleanor D. Quenzer, Sung-Eun Lim, George Q. Daley, Wolfram Goessling, Trista E. North
    Bnip3lb-driven mitophagy sustains expansion of the embryonic hematopoietic stem cell pool
    BioRxiv, September 2024.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @article{Meader2024,
  author = {Eleanor Meader, Morgan T. Walcheck, Mindy R. Leder, Ran Jing, Paul J. Wrighton, Wade W. Sugden, Mohamad Ali Najia, Isaac M. Oderberg, Vivian M. Taylor, Zachary C. LeBlanc, Eleanor D. Quenzer, Sung-Eun Lim, George Q. Daley, Wolfram Goessling, Trista E. North},
  title = {Bnip3lb-driven mitophagy sustains expansion of the embryonic hematopoietic stem cell pool.},
  journal = {BioRxiv},
  year = {2024},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.09.23.614531}
}

  • Rubul Mout, Ran Jing, Emily D. Egan, Helen Eisenach, Mohamad Ali Najia, Luca Hensch, Trevor Bingham, Martin A. Kononov, Rajesh Gunage, Yunliang Zhao, Natasha I. Edman, Thorsten M. Schlaeger, Leonard I. Zon, Trista E. North, Urban Lendahl, David Baker, Stephen C. Blacklow, George Q. Daley
    Design of a soluble multivalent notch agonist
    BioRxiv, August 2024.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @article{Mout2024,
  author = {Mout, Rubul and Jing, Ran and Egan, Emily and Eisenach, Helen and Najia, Mohamad Ali and Hensch, Luca and Bingham, Trevor and Kononov, Martin and Gunage, Rajesh and Zhao, Yunliang and Edman, Natasha and Schlaeger, Thorsten and Zon, Leonard and North, Trista and Lendahl, Urban and Baker, David and Blacklow, Stephen and Daley, George Q.},
  title = {Design of a soluble multivalent notch agonist.},
  journal = {BioRxiv},
  year = {2024},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.08.07.607099}
}

Journal Publications

  • Ran Jing, Marcelo Falchetti, Tianxiao Han, Mohamad Najia, Luca T. Hensch, Eleanor Meader, Edroaldo Lummertz da Rocha, Martin Kononov, Stephanie Wang, Trevor Bingham, Zhiheng Li, Yunliang Zhao, Katie Frenis, Caroline Kubaczka, Song Yang, Deepak Jha, Gabriela F. Rodrigues-Luiz, R. Grant Rowe, Thorsten M. Schlaeger, Marcela V. Maus, Trista E. North, Leonard I. Zon, George Q. Daley
    Maturation and persistence of CAR T cells derived from human pluripotent stem cells via chemical inhibition of G9a/GLP
    Cell Stem Cell, vol. 32, pp. 71-85.e5, January 2025.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] [PubMed] 

    @article{Jing2022,
  author = {Ran Jing, Marcelo Falchetti, Tianxiao Han, Mohamad Najia, Luca T. Hensch, Eleanor Meader, Edroaldo Lummertz da Rocha, Martin Kononov, Stephanie Wang, Trevor Bingham, Zhiheng Li, Yunliang Zhao, Katie Frenis, Caroline Kubaczka, Song Yang, Deepak Jha, Gabriela F. Rodrigues-Luiz, R. Grant Rowe, Thorsten M. Schlaeger, Marcela V. Maus, Trista E. North, Leonard I. Zon, George Q. Daley},
  title = {Maturation and persistence of CAR T cells derived from human pluripotent stem cells via chemical inhibition of G9a/GLP.},
  journal = {Cell Stem Cell},
  year = {2025},
  volume = {32},
  pages = {71-85.e5},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2024.10.004}
}

  • Ran Jing, Irene Scarfo, Mohamad Ali Najia, Edroaldo Lummertz da Rocha, Areum Han, Michael Sanborn, Trevor Bingham, Caroline Kubaczka, Deepak K. Jha, Marcelo Falchetti, Thorsten M. Schlaeger, Trista E. North, Marcela V. Maus and George Q. Daley
    EZH1 repression generates mature iPSC-derived CAR T cells with enhanced antitumor activity
    Cell Stem Cell, vol. 29, pp. 1181-1196.e6, August 2022.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] [PubMed]
    Jing2022_CellStemCell_Cover

    @article{Jing2022,
  author = {Jing, Ran and Scarfo, Irene and Najia, Mohamad Ali and Lummertz da Rocha, Edroaldo and Han, Areum and Sanborn, Michael and Bingham, Trevor and Kubaczka, Caroline and Jha, Deepak K. and Falchetti, Marcelo and Schlaeger, Thorsten M. and North, Trista E. and Maus, Marcela V. and Daley, George Q.},
  title = {EZH1 repression generates mature iPSC-derived CAR T cells with enhanced antitumor activity.},
  journal = {Cell Stem Cell},
  year = {2022},
  volume = {29},
  pages = {1181-1196.e6},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stem.2022.06.014}
}

  • Edroaldo Lummertz da Rocha*, Caroline Kubaczka*, Wade W. Sugden, Mohamad Ali Najia, Ran Jing, Arianna Markel, Zachary C. LeBlanc, Rafael Dos Santos Peixoto, Marcelo Falchetti, James J. Collins, Trista E. North and George Q. Daley
    CellComm infers cellular crosstalk that drives haematopoietic stem and progenitor cell development
    Nature Cell Biology, vol. 24, pp. 579-589, April 2022.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] [PubMed] 

    @article{LummertzdaRocha2022,
  author = {Lummertz da Rocha, Edroaldo and Kubaczka, Caroline and Sugden, Wade W. and Najia, Mohamad Ali and Jing, Ran and Markel, Arianna and LeBlanc, Zachary C. and Dos Santos Peixoto, Rafael and Falchetti, Marcelo and Collins, James J. and North, Trista E. and Daley, George Q.},
  title = {CellComm infers cellular crosstalk that drives haematopoietic stem and progenitor cell development.},
  journal = {Nature Cell Biology},
  year = {2022},
  volume = {24},
  pages = {579-589},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1038/s41556-022-00884-1}
}

  • Rebecca A. Soto, Mohamad Ali T. Najia, Mariam Hachimi, Jenna M. Frame, Gabriel A. Yette, Edroaldo Lummertz da Rocha, Kryn Stankunas, George Q. Daley and Trista E. North
    Sequential regulation of hemogenic fate and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell formation from arterial endothelium by Ezh1/2
    Stem Cell Reports, vol. 16, pp. 1718-1734, July 2021.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] [PubMed] 

    @article{Soto2021,
  author = {Soto, Rebecca A. and Najia, Mohamad Ali T. and Hachimi, Mariam and Frame, Jenna M. and Yette, Gabriel A. and Lummertz da Rocha, Edroaldo and Stankunas, Kryn and Daley, George Q. and North, Trista E.},
  title = {Sequential regulation of hemogenic fate and hematopoietic stem and progenitor cell formation from arterial endothelium by Ezh1/2.},
  journal = {Stem Cell Reports},
  year = {2021},
  volume = {16},
  pages = {1718-1734},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.stemcr.2021.05.014}
}

  • Robin Singh, Alex Jaffe, Galit H. Frydman, Mohamad Ali Toufic Najia, Zijun Wei, Jason Yang and Maulik D. Majmudar
    Noninvasive Assessment of Jugular Venous Pressure via Force-Coupled Single Crystal Ultrasound
    IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering, vol. 65, pp. 1705-1710, August 2018.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] [PubMed] 

    @article{Singh2018,
  author = {Singh, Robin and Jaffe, Alex and Frydman, Galit H. and Najia, Mohamad Ali Toufic and Wei, Zijun and Yang, Jason and Majmudar, Maulik D.},
  title = {Noninvasive Assessment of Jugular Venous Pressure via Force-Coupled Single Crystal Ultrasound.},
  journal = {IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering},
  year = {2018},
  volume = {65},
  pages = {1705-1710},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1109/TBME.2017.2767828}
}

  • Jenna L. Wilson, Mohamad Ali Najia, Rabbia Saeed and Todd C. McDevitt,
    Alginate encapsulation parameters influence the differentiation of microencapsulated embryonic stem cell aggregates
    Biotechnology and Bioengineering, vol. 111, pp. 618-631, March 2014.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] [PubMed] 

    @article{Wilson2014,
  author = {Wilson, Jenna L. and Najia, Mohamad Ali and Saeed, Rabbia and McDevitt, Todd C.},
  title = {Alginate encapsulation parameters influence the differentiation of microencapsulated embryonic stem cell aggregates.},
  journal = {Biotechnology and Bioengineering},
  year = {2014},
  volume = {111},
  pages = {618-631},
  doi = {https://doi.org/10.1002/bit.25121}
}

US Patents & Patent Applications

  • Jacob Borrajo, Paul Blainey, Mohamad Najia, Hong Anh Anna Le, Funien Tsai
    Affinity-based multiplexing for live-cell monitoring of complex cell populations
    US 2022/0228168 A1, 2022.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @patent{Borrajo2022,
	author = {Jacob Borrajo, Paul Blainey, Mohamad Najia, Hong Anh Anna Le, Funien Tsai},
	title = {Affinity-based multiplexing for live-cell monitoring of complex cell populations},
	year = {2022},
	number = {US 2022/0228168 A1}
}

  • Paul Blainey, Jacob Borrajo, Mohamad Najia, Hong Anh Anna Le
    Construct for continuous monitoring of live cells
    US 2022/0195514 A1, 2022.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @patent{Blainey2022,
	author = {Paul Blainey, Jacob Borrajo, Mohamad Najia, Hong Anh Anna Le},
	title = {Construct for continuous monitoring of live cells},
	year = {2022},
	number = {US 2022/0195514 A1}
}

  • Galit Hocsman Frydman, Alexander Tyler Jaffe, Maulik D. Majmudar, Mohamad Ali Toufic Najia, Robin Singh, Zijun Wei, Jason Yang, Brian W. Anthony, Athena Yeh Huang, Aaron Michael Zakrzewski
    Non-invasive assessment of anatomic vessels
    US 11,096,654 B2, 2021.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @patent{Frydman2021,
	author = {Galit Hocsman Frydman, Alexander Tyler Jaffe, Maulik D. Majmudar, Mohamad Ali Toufic Najia, Robin Singh, Zijun Wei, Jason Yang, Brian W. Anthony, Athena Yeh Huang, Aaron Michael Zakrzewski},
	title = {Non-invasive assessment of anatomic vessels},
	year = {2021},
	number = {US 11,096,654 B2}
}

  • Paul Blainey, Jacob Borrajo, Mohamad Najia, Atray Dixit
    Constructs for continuous monitoring of live cells
    US 2020/0017861 A1, 2020.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @patent{Blainey2020,
	author = {Paul Blainey, Jacob Borrajo, Mohamad Najia, Atray Dixit},
	title = {Constructs for continuous monitoring of live cells},
	year = {2020},
	number = {US 2020/0017861 A1}
}

  • Denise Sujin Kim, Jacquelyn Borinski, Andrew Kolpitcke, Mohamad Ali Najia, Drew Padilla
    Tissue-cutting and -sealing forceps
    US 10,213,200 B2, 2019.
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @patent{Kim2019,
	author = {Denise Sujin Kim, Jacquelyn Borinski, Andrew Kolpitcke, Mohamad Ali Najia, Drew Padilla},
	title = {Tissue-cutting and -sealing forceps},
	year = {2019},
	number = {US 10,213,200 B2}
}

Written Theses

  • PhD thesis
    Transposable elements and the regulatory logic of hematopoietic differentiation
    Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2023
    [BibTeX] [PDF] 

    @phdthesis{Najia2023,
	author = {Mohamad Ali Najia},
	title = {Transposable elements and the regulatory logic of hematopoietic differentiation},
	school = {Massachusetts Institute of Technology},
	year = {2023}
}