Jason R Spence, PhD

 Jason Spence
H Marvin Pollard Professor of Gastrointestinal Sciences
Professor of Internal Medicine
Professor of Cell and Developmental Biology
Medical School and Professor of Biomedical Engineering
College of Engineering and Medical School
[email protected]
Available to mentor
Jason R Spence, PhD
Jason Spence
Professor
  • Center Memberships
  • Research Overview
  • Links
  • Recent Publications

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    • Center Memberships
    • Center Member
      Biosciences Initiative
    • Center Member
      Center for Cell Plasticity and Organ Design
    • Center Member
      Caswell Diabetes Institute
    • Center Member
      Rogel Cancer Center

    Research Overview

    1. Developmental Biology: Using model organisms and human tissue to understand mechanisms by which the embryo develops, with a focus on specification, differentiation and organogenesis of tissue derived from the endoderm.

    2. Stem Cell Biology, Regenerative Medicine and Disease Modeling: Directing differentiation of human pluripotent stem cells into different endodermal lineages such that we may generate tissue for replacement therapies and discover novel in vitro methods to model and study human development and disease.

    Links
    • Jason Spence Lab
    • Translational Tissue Modeling Laboratory
    • @TheSpenceLab

    Recent Publications

     See All Publications
    • Journal Article
      Tu1481 RUNX2 PROMOTES EPIGENETIC WNT SIGNALING IN INFLAMED INTESTINAL EPITHELIAL CELLS
      Silva RIC, Wilson Z, Miranda J, Fan S, Dame M, Bishu S, Spence JR, Brazil J, Colacino J, Nusrat A, Parkos C. Gastrointestinal Endoscopy, 2026 May 6; 103 (5): s - 1263. DOI:10.1016/s0016-5107(26)03100-7
    • Journal Article
      Tu1481 RUNX2 PROMOTES EPIGENETIC WNT SIGNALING IN INFLAMED INTESTINAL EPITHELIAL CELLS
      Silva RIC, Wilson Z, Miranda J, Fan S, Dame M, Bishu S, Spence JR, Brazil J, Colacino J, Nusrat A, Parkos C. Gastroenterology, 2026 May 7; 170 (6): s - 1263. DOI:10.1016/s0016-5085(26)03169-0
    • Journal Article
      Dynamic Reprogramming of PDGFRA-Expressing Stromal Cells Facilitates WNT-Driven Transformation by Promoting a Fetal-Like State in the Intestinal Epithelium.
      Pellon-Cardenas O, Rout P, Hassan S, Fokas E, Patel I, Patel J, Qiu X, He P, Nussbaum O, Wu A, Kumar R, Akther M, Logerfo A, Wu S, Wagner D, Boffelli D, Walton KD, Tong K, Iqbal J, Xiao R, Chen L, Spence JR, Bessman NJ, Manieri E, Shivdasani RA, Verzi MP. Cancer Res, 2026 Mar 5; DOI:10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-25-0101
      PMID: 41784677
    • Journal Article
      Endogenous FGFs drive ERK-dependent cell fate patterning in 2D human gastruloids
      Jo K, Liu ZY, Patel G, Yu Z, Yao LA, Teague S, Johnson C, Spence J, Heemskerk I. Development Cambridge England, 2026 Feb 1; 153 (3): DOI:10.1242/dev.205459
      PMID: 41521789
    • Preprint
      Bidirectional fibrogenic cross-talk revealed in a human iPSC-derived epithelial-mesenchymal co-culture model of pulmonary fibrosis.
      Alber AB, Kwong G, Gupta VK, Dooley PE, Patel JR, Bawa PS, Minakin K, Jones D, Gopal D, Souza H, Yampolskaya M, Vilker E, Sen C, Conchola AS, Mehta P, Gomperts BN, Frum T, Spence JR, Alysandratos K-D, Kotton DN. 2026 Jan 31; DOI:10.64898/2026.01.30.702837
      PMID: 41659605
    • Preprint
      A robust human airway organoid platform enables scalable expansion and trajectory mapping of pulmonary neuroendocrine cells
      Candeli N, Hartigh LD, Hou N, Marco A, Sánchez-Villacaña JA, Garcia-Gonzales A, Gandhi S, Sgualdino F, Miller AJ, Spence J, de Sousa Lopes SC, McFaline-Figueroa JL, Clevers H, Dayton TL. 2026 Jan 14; bioRxiv, DOI:10.64898/2026.01.10.698835
    • Journal Article
      Surface expression of antitoxin on engineered bacteria neutralizes genotoxic colibactin in the gut
      Yang S, Wang Z, Fang C, Yang M, Khawaled S, Bonanno S, Joshi NS, Wei Y, Zhang K, Márquez-Pellegrin V, Guan M, Zhang S, Bader AC, Ye N, Haley AE, Dame MK, Spence JR, He X, Fox JG, Yilmaz ÖH, Shah YM, Romee R, Li J. Nature Microbiology, 2026 Jan 1; 11 (1): 53 - 66. DOI:10.1038/s41564-025-02177-3
      PMID: 41361522
    • Journal Article
      Dynamics of YAP localization and transcript activity in human oocytes and granulosa cells across early-stage folliculogenesis: an exploratory investigation
      Machlin JH, Potocsky K, Kruger RE, Spence J, Padmanabhan V, Shikanov A. Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics, 2025 Dec 1; 42 (12): 4221 - 4236. DOI:10.1007/s10815-025-03668-2
      PMID: 40999292

    Featured News & Stories

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    New Publication from the Spence Lab!

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    Ansley Conchola, MD, PhD, shares her experience in the Medical Scientist Training Program at the University of Michigan.