IGI Seminar Series: De-coding and Re-coding Stem/Niche Crosstalk in Regeneration and Fibrosis

Summary

Communication between stem cells and their niche is foundational for the collective cell behaviors of tissue repair and regeneration. The variable regenerative capacity across different species is often dictated by differential stem-niche communication, highlighting the vast potential of modulating this cellular crosstalk. However, clinical trials targeting pathways like Wnt and Tgf-B have failed due to toxicity, highlighting the need for new approaches to manipulate this crosstalk. My lab focuses on defining the molecules and principles of stem-niche communication in regeneration, fibrosis, and cancer. We aim to re-wire signaling as a precision-medicine strategy. I will discuss two directions the group is taking: (1) decode the logic of Wnt signaling in epithelial, immune, and stromal cells using single-cell transcriptomics, gene editing, and Wnt mimetics. This will enable us to re-code Wnt signaling to promote regeneration and inhibit fibrosis. (2) Building on tools developed to study Wnt, we will systematically decode stem-niche communication using a high throughput organoid system that recapitulates the interaction between stem and niche cells, thereby bringing the study of cellular crosstalk to its fundamental resolution.

Speaker

Ahmad Nabhan is interested in deciphering the molecular signals and principles governing the collective tissue behavior. By understanding the basic biology of this process, the Nabhan lab aims to re-wire stem-niche communication in oncogenic and degenerative diseases. He received his Ph.D at Stanford University and did his postdoctoral fellowship at Genentech.