研究领域

我们实验室致力于研究正常干细胞与癌症干细胞自我复制、迁移及分化的分子调控机理。干细胞就像一柄双刃剑：其有效利用为再生医学提供了希望，但其谱系调控的紊乱又可导致癌症、组织萎缩等多种人类疾病。如何在特异性去除癌症干细胞的同时避免对正常干细胞造成损伤是干细胞及癌症领域的一大挑战。组织受损后，干细胞如何被诱导、迁移至受损处并正确、及时地修复受损组织是再生医学领域的一个重要问题。我们利用新颖、独特的研究干细胞衍生癌症和干细胞迁移的体内模型，结合荧光动态成像、分子遗传学、细胞生物学及生物化学等研究手段探究干细胞谱系内细胞命运、身份、状态决定的分子机理。我们的研究成果将为癌症防治和再生医学提供重要的理论基础。

近期论文

1. Li B#, Wong C#, Gao SM, Zhang R, Sun R, Li Y and Song Y* (2018) The retromer complex safeguards against neural progenitor-derived tumorigenesis by regulating Notch receptor trafficking. Elife 2018;7;e38181
2. Xu K, Liu X, Wang Y, Wong C and Song Y* (2018) Temporospatial induction of homeodomain gene cut dictates natural lineage reprogramming. Elife 2018;7:e33934
3. Liu K, Shen D, Shen J, Gao SM, Li B, Wong C, Feng W and Song Y* (2017) The super elongation complex drives neural stem cell commitment. Developmental Cell, 40(6), 537-551. [Cover article] (Highlighted in Developmental Cell and recommended by F1000Prime).
4. Liu K, Xu K and Song Y* (2019) Faster, Higher, Stronger: Timely and robust cell fate/identity commitment in stem cell lineages. Open Biology, 9: 180243. [Invited review]
5. Lee KS#, Wu Z#, Song Y, Mitra SS, Feroze AH, Cheshier SH, Lu B* (2013) Roles of PINK1, mTORC2, and mitochondria in preserving brain tumor-forming stem cells in a noncanonical Notch signaling pathway. Genes & Development, 27(24):2642-7 [Cover article]
6. Wu YC, Lee KS, Song Y, Gehrke S, Lu B* (2017) The bantam microRNA acts through Numb to exert cell growth control and feedback regulation of Notch in tumor-forming stem cells in the Drosophila brain. PLoS Genetics, 13(5):e1006785.
7. Song Y and Lu B* (2011) Regulation of cell growth by Notch signaling and its differential requirement in normal vs. tumor-forming stem cells in Drosophila. Genes & Development, 25(24):2644-2658.
8. Song Y and Lu B* (2012) Interaction of Notch signaling modulator Numb with α-Adaptin regulates endocytosis of Notch pathway components and cell fate determination of neural stem cells. JBC, 287(21):17716-28.