Research Funding

  • September 30, 2021 - June 30, 2026 - Next-generation human liver gene therapy , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: DP1DK130689
  • September 20, 2018 - July 31, 2023 - Microphysiological systems to interrogate the Islet-Liver-Adipose Axis in normal physiology and Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: UH3DK120004
  • September 1, 2018 - May 31, 2023 - Targeting AAV vectors to cell types involved in alcohol-induced liver injury , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: R01AA026578
  • September 1, 2016 - July 31, 2021 - Building a functional biliary system from hepatocytes , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: R01DK107553
  • September 20, 2018 - July 31, 2020 - Microphysiological systems to interrogate the Islet-Liver-Adipose Axis in normal physiology and Type-2 Diabetes Mellitus , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: UG3DK120004
  • September 1, 2013 - August 31, 2016 - Myofibroblast-to-hepatocyte conversion as a therapy for alcoholic liver disease , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: R21AA022158
  • April 1, 2008 - August 31, 2013 - Liver regeneration with stems cells of uniparental origin , Co-Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: R01DK080852

Education

 

Medical University Lübeck, Germany, MD, 1996
Medical University Lübeck, Germany, PhD, 1999
University of Münster, Germany, pediatrics residency, 2001
Oregon Health & Science University, postdoctoral fellowship, 2005

Honors & Awards

  • 2006
    Liver Scholar Award of the American Liver Foundation (ALF) and the American Society of Transplantation (AST)
  • 2008
    California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) New Faculty Award
  • 2021
    National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) Catalyst Award

Selected Publications

  1. Becker J, Domenger C, Choksi P, Krämer C, Baumgartl C, Maiakovska O, Kim JJ, Weinmann J, Huber G, Schmidt F, Thirion C, Müller OJ, Willenbring H, Grimm D. Identification of a robust promoter in mouse and human hepatocytes by in vivo biopanning of a barcoded AAV library. Mol Ther. 2025 Apr 21.  View on PubMed
  2. Kim JJ, Kurial SNT, Choksi PK, Nunez M, Lunow-Luke T, Bartel J, Driscoll J, Her CL, Dhillon S, Yue W, Murti A, Mao T, Ramos JN, Tiyaboonchai A, Grompe M, Mattis AN, Syed SM, Wang BM, Maher JJ, Roll GR, Willenbring H. AAV capsid prioritization in normal and steatotic human livers maintained by machine perfusion. Nat Biotechnol. 2025 Jan 29.  View on PubMed
  3. Yang MG, Richter HJ, Wang S, McNally CP, Harris N, Dhillon S, Maresca M, de Wit E, Willenbring H, Maher J, Goodarzi H, Ramani V. Pervasive and programmed nucleosome distortion patterns on single mammalian chromatin fibers. bioRxiv. 2025 Jan 22.  View on PubMed
  4. Qi L, Groeger M, Sharma A, Goswami I, Chen E, Zhong F, Ram A, Healy K, Hsiao EC, Willenbring H, Stahl A. Adipocyte inflammation is the primary driver of hepatic insulin resistance in a human iPSC-based microphysiological system. Nat Commun. 2024 Sep 12; 15(1):7991.  View on PubMed
  5. Hsu BY, Driscoll J, Human Cholangiocarcinogenesis Project, Tateno C, Mattis AN, Kelley RK, Willenbring H. Human Hepatocytes Can Give Rise to Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinomas. Gastroenterology. 2024 Oct; 167(5):1029-1032.e7.  View on PubMed
  6. Groeger M, Matsuo K, Heidary Arash E, Pereira A, Le Guillou D, Pino C, Telles-Silva KA, Maher JJ, Hsiao EC, Willenbring H. Modeling and therapeutic targeting of inflammation-induced hepatic insulin resistance using human iPSC-derived hepatocytes and macrophages. Nat Commun. 2023 07 03; 14(1):3902.  View on PubMed
  7. Qi L, Matsuo K, Pereira A, Lee YT, Zhong F, He Y, Zushin PH, Gröger M, Sharma A, Willenbring H, Hsiao EC, Stahl A. Human iPSC-Derived Proinflammatory Macrophages cause Insulin Resistance in an Isogenic White Adipose Tissue Microphysiological System. Small. 2023 08; 19(34):e2203725.  View on PubMed
  8. Laemmle A, Häberle J, Willenbring H. Reply. Hepatology. 2022 04; 75(4):1059-1060.  View on PubMed
  9. Laemmle A, Poms M, Hsu B, Borsuk M, Rüfenacht V, Robinson J, Sadowski MC, Nuoffer JM, Häberle J, Willenbring H. Aquaporin 9 induction in human iPSC-derived hepatocytes facilitates modeling of ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency. Hepatology. 2022 09; 76(3):646-659.  View on PubMed
  10. Lee-Montiel FT, Laemmle A, Charwat V, Dumont L, Lee CS, Huebsch N, Okochi H, Hancock MJ, Siemons B, Boggess SC, Goswami I, Miller EW, Willenbring H, Healy KE. Integrated Isogenic Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Based Liver and Heart Microphysiological Systems Predict Unsafe Drug-Drug Interaction. Front Pharmacol. 2021; 12:667010.  View on PubMed
  11. Duwaerts CC, Le Guillou D, Her CL, Phillips NJ, Willenbring H, Mattis AN, Maher JJ. Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-derived Hepatocytes From Patients With Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Display a Disease-specific Gene Expression Profile. Gastroenterology. 2021 06; 160(7):2591-2594.e6.  View on PubMed
  12. Kurial SNT, Willenbring H. Emerging cell therapy for biliary diseases. Science. 2021 02 19; 371(6531):786-787.  View on PubMed
  13. Kurial SNT, Willenbring H. Transcriptomic Traces of Adult Human Liver Progenitor Cells. Hepatology. 2020 04; 71(4):1504-1507.  View on PubMed
  14. Chen F, Jimenez RJ, Sharma K, Luu HY, Hsu BY, Ravindranathan A, Stohr BA, Willenbring H. Broad Distribution of Hepatocyte Proliferation in Liver Homeostasis and Regeneration. Cell Stem Cell. 2020 01 02; 26(1):27-33.e4.  View on PubMed
  15. Huck I, Gunewardena S, Espanol-Suner R, Willenbring H, Apte U. Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor 4 Alpha Activation Is Essential for Termination of Liver Regeneration in Mice. Hepatology. 2019 08; 70(2):666-681.  View on PubMed
  16. Schaub JR, Huppert KA, Kurial SNT, Hsu BY, Cast AE, Donnelly B, Karns RA, Chen F, Rezvani M, Luu HY, Mattis AN, Rougemont AL, Rosenthal P, Huppert SS, Willenbring H. De novo formation of the biliary system by TGFβ-mediated hepatocyte transdifferentiation. Nature. 2018 05; 557(7704):247-251.  View on PubMed
  17. Holger Willenbring. Postnatal Organogenesis by Transdifferentiation. The FASEB Journal. 2018 Apr 1; 32:240.3-240.3.  View on PubMed
  18. Abou-Alfa GK, Andersen JB, Chapman W, Choti M, Forbes SJ, Gores GJ, Hong TS, Harding JJ, Vander Heiden MG, Javle M, Kelley RK, Kwong LN, Lowery M, Merrell A, Miyabe K, Rhim A, Saha S, Sia D, Tanasanvimon S, Venook A, Valle JW, Walesky C, Whetstine J, Willenbring H, Zhu AX, Mayer D, Stanger BZ. Advances in cholangiocarcinoma research: report from the third Cholangiocarcinoma Foundation Annual Conference. J Gastrointest Oncol. 2016 Dec; 7(6):819-827.  View on PubMed
  19. Rezvani M, Español-Suñer R, Malato Y, Dumont L, Grimm AA, Kienle E, Bindman JG, Wiedtke E, Hsu BY, Naqvi SJ, Schwabe RF, Corvera CU, Grimm D, Willenbring H. In Vivo Hepatic Reprogramming of Myofibroblasts with AAV Vectors as a Therapeutic Strategy for Liver Fibrosis. Cell Stem Cell. 2016 06 02; 18(6):809-816.  View on PubMed
  20. Rezvani M, Grimm AA, Willenbring H. Assessing the therapeutic potential of lab-made hepatocytes. Hepatology. 2016 07; 64(1):287-94.  View on PubMed

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