Education & Certifications

  • BASc, University of Waterloo, Chemical Engineering (2023)

All Publications

  • Prevention of transgene silencing during human pluripotent stem cell differentiation. Cell stem cell Uenaka, T., Napole, A., Saha, A. D., Sun, D., Singavarapu, A., Calzada, E., Chen, J., Erlebach, L., McQuade, A., Ramos, D. M., Rigamonti, A., Salazar, L., Samelson, A. J., Sedov, K., Welsh, N. J., Wild, K., Wu, Q., Arenas, E., Bassett, A. R., Kampmann, M., Kronenberg-Versteeg, D., Merkle, F. T., Schüle, B., Thompson, L. M., Skarnes, W. C., Ward, M. E., Wernig, M. 2026

    Abstract

    Transgenes are often silenced upon differentiation of pluripotent stem cells using conventional expression systems. Here, we developed the TK4 PiggyBac vector to conduct a comparative analysis to evaluate the impact of various promoters, transcriptional regulatory elements, insulators, and genomic integration sites on transgene silencing during neuronal differentiation. Our findings reveal that specific combinations of CAG and Ubc promoters with the Woodchuck hepatitis virus post-transcriptional regulatory element (WPRE) can prevent transgene silencing during differentiation, whereas chromatin insulators have less impact on sustained expression. Three novel safe harbor loci, distant from known genes, as well as the citrate lyase beta-like (CLYBL) locus, similarly support the prevention of transgene silencing. Remarkably, the TK4 vector showed complete resistance to silencing across various neuronal and microglial differentiation protocols, as independently confirmed by seven laboratories. This construct will be highly useful for assays requiring stable transgene expression during differentiation and holds potential for broad applications in various research fields.

    View details for DOI 10.1016/j.stem.2026.01.007

    View details for PubMedID 41690310

  • New Insights Into Diabetes-Induced Cell-Type-Specific Responses in the Neural Retina via Single-Cell Transcriptomics: A Report on Research Supported by Pathway to Stop Diabetes. Diabetes Deng, B., Nnebe, C., Prakhar, P., Ren, X., Sun, D., Sun, Y., Wang, S. 2025

    Abstract

    Single-cell transcriptomics provides a powerful solution for dissecting diabetes-induced cell-type-specific responses in mammalian retina. This article summarizes key findings from recent single-cell transcriptomic studies regarding the mechanisms of diabetic retinopathy, with a particular emphasis on the neural retina. Specific retinal neuronal types/subtypes exhibit heightened sensitivity to diabetes at the transcriptional level. Retinal Müller glial cells are key contributors to diabetic retinopathy and promising therapeutic targets for retinal protection against diabetes.

    View details for DOI 10.2337/dbi24-0009

    View details for PubMedID 40794446