Yi-Shiuan Liu
Yi-Shiuan Liu |
|
Appointments:Assistant Professor |
Lab:Stem Cell Physiology and Mechanobiology Lab |
Education:Ph.D. |
School/Nation:University of Virginia / USA |
Tel: 5095 / 5096 |
E-mail: ysliu@mail.cgu.edu.tw |
Research website: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3205-8963 |
|
Research outline: Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs) are adult stem cells of stromal origin and can be derived from a variety of different sources. MSCs are capable of self-renewal and differentiation into diverse specialized cell types. Under proper chemical or physical stimulation, MSCs can differentiate into functional hepatocyte-like, osteoblast-like, or neuron-like cells. The therapeutic effects of MSC transplantation on damaged tissues are also through paracrine factors. In addition, with immunomodulatory properties, multipotent MSCs provide a great potential in cell therapy and regenerative medicine. Our research is mainly focused on the regulation of growth and differentiation of MSCs. The research themes are: (1) The effects of mechanical forces on directed differentiation of MSCs, and the mechanotransduction related to stem cell differentiation. Transient receptor potential melastatin 7 (TRPM7) is one of the mechanosensors expressed in MSCs in response to shear stress and a mediator for osteogenic differentiation. TRPM7 is involved in many cellular processes including Mg2+ homeostasis, cell growth and migration, as well as cancer progression. It is a calcium permeable nonselective cation channel fused with a magnesium-sensitive kinase domain and forms a complex with cytoskeleton. However, the mechanotransduction initiated by TRPM7 remains elusive. The regulatory mechanism of TRPM7 and other mechanosensors upon mechanical stimuli as well as the downstream epigenetic modification of MSCs are under investigation. (2) Development of microfluidic biochips for cell culture and drug screening. Microfluidic devices not only can provide better control over many system parameters, such as chemical and oxygen gradients, that are not easily fine-tuned in static cultures or in bioreactors, the devices also can provide the complex biomechanical microenvironment of living tissues to be recapitulated in vitro, such as fluid shear stress and cell patterning. Culturing stem cells on microfluidic devices mimicking lineage-specific biomechanical microenvironments has been shown to be beneficial in promoting differentiation. (3) Cancer immunotherapy. Mesoporous silica nanoparticles loaded with anti-ICER small interfering RNA and decorated with oligopeptides spanning specific paratopes trapping CTLA-4 will be utilized to elicit antitumor immunity against melanoma. This is one of EuroNanoMed project in cooperation with Professor Zdeněk Sofer at University of Chemistry and Technology, Czech Republic.
|
|
Publications: 2015-present
|