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
Education
Medical University, Lübeck, Germany, MD, 1996, Medicine Medical University, Lübeck, Germany, PhD, 1999, Genetics
Honors & Awards
2006-2009 Liver Scholar Award of the American Liver Foundation (ALF) and the American Society of Transplantation (AST)
2008-2013 California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) New Faculty Award
Selected Publications
Laemmle A, Häberle J, Willenbring H. Reply. Hepatology. 2022 04; 75(4):1059-1060.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Kurial SNT, Willenbring H. Emerging cell therapy for biliary diseases. Science. 2021 02 19; 371(6531):786-787.
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Kurial SNT, Willenbring H. Transcriptomic Traces of Adult Human Liver Progenitor Cells. Hepatology. 2020 04; 71(4):1504-1507.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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Holger Willenbring. Postnatal Organogenesis by Transdifferentiation. The FASEB Journal. 2018 Apr 1; 32:240.3-240.3.
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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.
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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.
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Rezvani M, Grimm AA, Willenbring H. Assessing the therapeutic potential of lab-made hepatocytes. Hepatology. 2016 07; 64(1):287-94.
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Desai SS, Tung JC, Zhou VX, Grenert JP, Malato Y, Rezvani M, Español-Suñer R, Willenbring H, Weaver VM, Chang TT. Physiological ranges of matrix rigidity modulate primary mouse hepatocyte function in part through hepatocyte nuclear factor 4 alpha. Hepatology. 2016 07; 64(1):261-75.
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Mattis AN, Song G, Hitchner K, Kim RY, Lee AY, Sharma AD, Malato Y, McManus MT, Esau CC, Koller E, Koliwad S, Lim LP, Maher JJ, Raffai RL, Willenbring H. A screen in mice uncovers repression of lipoprotein lipase by microRNA-29a as a mechanism for lipid distribution away from the liver. Hepatology. 2015 Jan; 61(1):141-52.
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Hentzschel F, Hammerschmidt-Kamper C, Börner K, Heiss K, Knapp B, Sattler JM, Kaderali L, Castoldi M, Bindman JG, Malato Y, Willenbring H, Mueller AK, Grimm D. AAV8-mediated in vivo overexpression of miR-155 enhances the protective capacity of genetically attenuated malarial parasites. Mol Ther. 2014 12; 22(12):2130-2141.
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Johanna R. Schaub, Yann Malato, Coralie Gormond, Holger Willenbring. Evidence against a Stem Cell Origin of New Hepatocytes in a Common Mouse Model of Chronic Liver Injury. Cell Reports. 2014 Sep 1; 8(5):1607.
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Schaub JR, Malato Y, Gormond C, Willenbring H. Evidence against a stem cell origin of new hepatocytes in a common mouse model of chronic liver injury. Cell Rep. 2014 Aug 21; 8(4):933-9.
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Espejel S, Eckardt S, Harbell J, Roll GR, McLaughlin KJ, Willenbring H. Brief report: Parthenogenetic embryonic stem cells are an effective cell source for therapeutic liver repopulation. Stem Cells. 2014 Jul; 32(7):1983-8.
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Lee RH, Roll G, Nguyen V, Willenbring H, Tang Q, Kang SM, Stock PG. Failure to achieve normal metabolic response in non-obese diabetic mice and streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice after transplantation of primary murine hepatocytes electroporated with the human proinsulin gene (p3MTChins). Transplant Proc. 2014 Jul-Aug; 46(6):2002-6.
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