Biography:
Dr. Xie received a Bachelor’s degree in biochemical engineering at Shanghai University. He then went to Fudan University to study the origin and migration of people residing in East Asia and received a Master’s degree. His Ph.D. thesis focused on developmental biology using the Drosophila fly as a model system. With this broad background in life science, he is capable of studying complex brain tumors as a developmental disease from an evolutionary perspective. The major obstacle in glioma treatment is the adaptation of tumor cells to therapeutic intervention and recurrence. Cancer stem cells have been proposed to play a critical role in this process. As a developmental biologist, Dr. Xie decided to examine cancer stem cells during tumor initiation, development, and recurrence to reveal their vulnerability. This strategy prompted him to design a new tool to trace them during the whole spectrum of tumorigenesis, which resulted in the identification, isolation, and characterization of glioma stem cells both in mice and humans. The spontaneous mouse glioma model he produced is ideal for the functioning investigation of candidate genes derived from the cancer stem cell signature or clinical trials. Except for the contributions to glioma stem cell studies, He also collaborated to identify cancer stem cells in malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumors (MPNST). His works paved the basis for designing novel therapeutics for both glioma and MPNST.
Title : Heterogeneity of glioblastoma and enrichment of stem-like cells upon transplantation, chemotherapeutics, and recurrence