Josien van Wolfswinkel, PhD, MSc
Assistant Professor of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology
Research & Publications
Biography
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Research Summary
My lab is interested in the regulation of pluripotent stem cells in vivo, and uses the planarian Schmidtea mediterranea as a model system.
Planarians have legendary regenerative capabilities due to a population of dividing cells called neoblasts, which are maintained throughout the entire lifespan of the animal. The neoblast population contains pluripotent cells, and is able to generate all cell types of the adult animal. We study the processes involved in the maintenance of pluripotency and the transition to lineage specification by combining molecular, cell biological, genetic, proteomic, and computational methods, as well as (single cell) sequencing and imaging techniques.
We are particularly interested in the function of several classes of non-coding RNAs that are enriched in the neoblast population and have the potential to coordinate shifts in gene expression. Furthermore our model system presents the remarkable opportunity to compare the adult pluripotent state and the embryonic pluripotent state within the same organism, which will result in an improved understanding of the requirements and the endogenous regulation of pluripotency.
Research Interests
Germ Cells; Molecular Biology; Regeneration; Developmental Biology; Cell Lineage; Genomics; Regulatory Sequences, Ribonucleic Acid; Pluripotent Stem Cells; Inheritance Patterns; Epigenomics; Cellular Microenvironment
Selected Publications
- piRNA generation is associated with the pioneer round of translation in stem cellsParambil S, Li D, Zelko M, Poulet A, van Wolfswinkel J. piRNA generation is associated with the pioneer round of translation in stem cells. Nucleic Acids Research 2023, 52: 2590-2608. PMID: 38142432, PMCID: PMC10954484, DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad1212.
- Chromatin analysis of adult pluripotent stem cells reveals a unique stemness maintenance strategyPoulet A, Kratkiewicz A, Li D, van Wolfswinkel J. Chromatin analysis of adult pluripotent stem cells reveals a unique stemness maintenance strategy. Science Advances 2023, 9: eadh4887. PMID: 37801496, PMCID: PMC10558129, DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adh4887.
- The Histone Chaperone Network Is Highly Conserved in Physarum polycephalumPoulet A, Rousselot E, Téletchéa S, Noirot C, Jacob Y, van Wolfswinkel J, Thiriet C, Duc C. The Histone Chaperone Network Is Highly Conserved in Physarum polycephalum. International Journal Of Molecular Sciences 2023, 24: 1051. PMID: 36674565, PMCID: PMC9864664, DOI: 10.3390/ijms24021051.
- NODeJ: an ImageJ plugin for 3D segmentation of nuclear objectsDubos T, Poulet A, Thomson G, Péry E, Chausse F, Tatout C, Desset S, van Wolfswinkel JC, Jacob Y. NODeJ: an ImageJ plugin for 3D segmentation of nuclear objects. BMC Bioinformatics 2022, 23: 216. PMID: 35668354, PMCID: PMC9169307, DOI: 10.1186/s12859-022-04743-6.
- PIWI-mediated control of tissue-specific transposons is essential for somatic cell differentiationLi D, Taylor D, van Wolfswinkel J. PIWI-mediated control of tissue-specific transposons is essential for somatic cell differentiation. Cell Reports 2021, 37: 109776. PMID: 34610311, PMCID: PMC8532177, DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109776.
- A widely employed germ cell marker is an ancient disordered protein with reproductive functions in diverse eukaryotesCarmell M, Dokshin G, Skaletsky H, Hu Y, van Wolfswinkel J, Igarashi K, Bellott D, Nefedov M, Reddien P, Enders G, Uversky V, Mello C, Page D. A widely employed germ cell marker is an ancient disordered protein with reproductive functions in diverse eukaryotes. ELife 2016, 5: e19993. PMID: 27718356, PMCID: PMC5098910, DOI: 10.7554/elife.19993.
- Single-Cell Analysis Reveals Functionally Distinct Classes within the Planarian Stem Cell Compartmentvan Wolfswinkel JC, Wagner DE, Reddien PW. Single-Cell Analysis Reveals Functionally Distinct Classes within the Planarian Stem Cell Compartment. Cell Stem Cell 2014, 15: 326-339. PMID: 25017721, PMCID: PMC4171737, DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2014.06.007.
- Piwi and Potency: PIWI Proteins in Animal Stem Cells and Regenerationvan Wolfswinkel JC. Piwi and Potency: PIWI Proteins in Animal Stem Cells and Regeneration. Integrative And Comparative Biology 2014, 54: 700-713. PMID: 24948137, DOI: 10.1093/icb/icu084.
- Whole-Body Acoel Regeneration Is Controlled by Wnt and Bmp-Admp SignalingSrivastava M, Mazza-Curll K, van Wolfswinkel J, Reddien P. Whole-Body Acoel Regeneration Is Controlled by Wnt and Bmp-Admp Signaling. Current Biology 2014, 24: 1107-1113. PMID: 24768051, DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2014.03.042.
- MUT-14 and SMUT-1 DEAD Box RNA Helicases Have Overlapping Roles in Germline RNAi and Endogenous siRNA FormationPhillips C, Montgomery B, Breen P, Roovers E, Rim Y, Ohsumi T, Newman M, van Wolfswinkel J, Ketting R, Ruvkun G, Montgomery T. MUT-14 and SMUT-1 DEAD Box RNA Helicases Have Overlapping Roles in Germline RNAi and Endogenous siRNA Formation. Current Biology 2014, 24: 839-844. PMID: 24684932, PMCID: PMC4010136, DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2014.02.060.
- Differential Impact of the HEN1 Homolog HENN-1 on 21U and 26G RNAs in the Germline of Caenorhabditis elegansKamminga LM, van Wolfswinkel JC, Luteijn MJ, Kaaij LJ, Bagijn MP, Sapetschnig A, Miska EA, Berezikov E, Ketting RF. Differential Impact of the HEN1 Homolog HENN-1 on 21U and 26G RNAs in the Germline of Caenorhabditis elegans. PLOS Genetics 2012, 8: e1002702. PMID: 22829772, PMCID: PMC3400576, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1002702.
- The role of small non-coding RNAs in genome stability and chromatin organizationvan Wolfswinkel JC, Ketting RF. The role of small non-coding RNAs in genome stability and chromatin organization. Journal Of Cell Science 2010, 123: 1825-1839. PMID: 20484663, DOI: 10.1242/jcs.061713.
- CDE-1 Affects Chromosome Segregation through Uridylation of CSR-1-Bound siRNAsvan Wolfswinkel JC, Claycomb JM, Batista PJ, Mello CC, Berezikov E, Ketting RF. CDE-1 Affects Chromosome Segregation through Uridylation of CSR-1-Bound siRNAs. Cell 2009, 139: 135-148. PMID: 19804759, DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2009.09.012.
- The Argonaute CSR-1 and Its 22G-RNA Cofactors Are Required for Holocentric Chromosome SegregationClaycomb J, Batista P, Pang K, Gu W, Vasale J, van Wolfswinkel J, Chaves D, Shirayama M, Mitani S, Ketting R, Conte D, Mello C. The Argonaute CSR-1 and Its 22G-RNA Cofactors Are Required for Holocentric Chromosome Segregation. Cell 2009, 139: 123-134. PMID: 19804758, PMCID: PMC2766185, DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2009.09.014.
- Assessment of potency of allergenic activity of low molecular weight compounds based on IL-1α and IL-18 production by a murine and human keratinocyte cell lineVan Och F, Van Loveren H, Van Wolfswinkel J, Machielsen A, Vandebriel R. Assessment of potency of allergenic activity of low molecular weight compounds based on IL-1α and IL-18 production by a murine and human keratinocyte cell line. Toxicology 2005, 210: 95-109. PMID: 15840424, DOI: 10.1016/j.tox.2005.01.004.
- Chromatin and RNAi factors protect the C. elegans germline against repetitive sequencesRobert VJ, Sijen T, van Wolfswinkel J, Plasterk RH. Chromatin and RNAi factors protect the C. elegans germline against repetitive sequences. Genes & Development 2005, 19: 782-787. PMID: 15774721, PMCID: PMC1074315, DOI: 10.1101/gad.332305.