Leanne M Wiedemann, PhD

Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Division of Cancer & Developmental Biology, School of Medicine, University of Kansas Medical Center 2001- present
Affiliate Member of the Kansas Masonic Cancer Research Institute 2005- present
Ph.D., Ohio State University (Biochemistry), 1980
Postdoctoral Fellow, American Cancer Society and NATO/NSF, Beatson Institute for Cancer Research, Glasgow, Scotland, 1982-1985
Postdoctoral Fellow (NIH training grant), Fox Chase Cancer Center, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1980-1982.

Research Interests:

The primary objective of my research is to understand the function of genes altered as a result of tumor-associated chromosomal translocations, both their normal function and defining their role in the oncogenic process. Following our lab's molecular characterization of the MLL locus and chromosomal translocations, in light of MLL's critical role in leukemogenesis, we have begun to define both the normal and oncogenic mechanisms of action and down stream targets. Both trx in Drosophila and MLL (in rodent and human) gene products are known to play key roles in the regulation of Hox genes. Hox genes themselves have been implicated in the oncogenic processes in the hematopoietic system; therefore, it is important to define the cis and trans-regulatory pathways which regulate this gene family as well as their downstream targets. The Stowers Institute provides a rich collaborative environment to explore the roles of MLL in Hox gene regulation and oncogenesis: in the context of spatial and temporal patterning in development.

Recent Publications:

1. Zhang, J., C. Niu, L. Ye, H. Huang, X. He, W.-G. Tong, J. Ross, J. Haug, T. Johnson, J.Q. Feng, S. Harris, L.M. Wiedemann, Y. Mishina, and L. Li, Identification of the haematopoietic stem cell niche and control of the niche size. Nature, 2003. 425: p. 836-841.
2. He, X.C., J. Zhang, W.-G. Tong, O. Tawfik, J. Ross, D.H. Scoville, Q. Tian, X. Zeng, X. He, L.M. Wiedemann, Y. Mishina, and L. Li, BMP signaling inhibits intestinal stem cell self-renewal through suppression of Wnt-b-catenin signaling. Nature Genetics, 2004. 36: p. 1117-1121.
3. Ferretti, E., F. Cambronero, S. Tumpel, E. Longobardi, L.M. Wiedemann, F. Blasi, and R. Krumlauf, Hoxb1 enhancer and control of rhombomere 4 expression: complex interplay between PREP1-PBX1-HOXB1 binding sites. Molecular and Cellular Biology, 2005. 25(19): p. 8541-52.
4. Serpente, P., S. Tumpel, N.B. Ghyselinck, K. Niederreither, L.M. Wiedemann, P. Dolle, P. Chambon, R. Krumlauf, and A.P. Gould, Direct crossregulation between retinoic acid receptor {beta} and Hox genes during hindbrain segmentation. Development, 2005. 132(3): p. 503-13.
5. Tümpel, S., F. Cambronero, L.M. Wiedemann, and R. Krumlauf, Evolution of cis elements in the differential expression of two Hoxa2 coparalogous genes in pufferfish (Takifugu rubripes). Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 2006. 103: p. 5419-5424.
6. Zhang, J., J.C. Grindley, T. Yin, S. Jayasinghe, X.C. He, J.T. Ross, J.S. Haug, D. Rupp, K.S. Porter-Westpfahl, L.M. Wiedemann, H. Wu, and L. Li, PTEN maintains haematopoietic stem cells and acts in lineage choice and leukaemia prevention. Nature, 2006. 441: p. 518-22.
7. Zhang, J., X.C. He, W.G. Tong, T. Johnson, L.M. Wiedemann, Y. Mishina, J.Q. Feng, and L. Li, Bone Morphogenetic Protein signaling inhibits hair follicle anagen induction by restricting epithelial stem/progenitor cell activation and expansion. Stem Cells, 2006. 25(12): p. 2826-2839.
8. He, X.C., T. Yin, J.C. Grindley, Q. Tian, T. Sato, W.A. Tao, R. Dirisina, K.S. Porter-Westpfahl, M. Hembree, T. Johnson, L.M. Wiedemann, T.A. Barrett, L. Hood, H. Wu, and L. Li, PTEN-deficient intestinal stem cells initiate intestinal polyposis. Nature Genetics, 2007. 39(2): p. 189-98.
9. Tümpel, S., F. Cambronero, E. Ferretti, F. Blasi, L.M. Wiedemann, and R. Krumlauf, Expression of Hoxa2 in rhombomere 4 is regulated by a conserved cross-regulatory mechanism dependent upon Hoxb1. Developmental Biology, 2007. 302(2): p. 646-60.
10. Tümpel, S., F. Cambronero, C. Sims, R. Krumlauf, and L.M. Wiedemann, A regulatory module embedded in the coding region of Hoxa2 controls expression in rhombomere 2. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2008: p. in press.