Xiaowen Bai, MD, PhD

Associate Professor

Locations

Cell Biology, Neurobiology & Anatomy

Contact Information

Education

Postdoctoral, University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, 2007
PhD, Stem Cell Center, Beijing University, Beijing, China, 2004
MD, Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, China, 1993

Biography

My research interests are centered on the application of stem cells on disease modeling and tissue regeneration. The current major focus of the laboratory is to utilize gain- and loss-of-function approaches to examine the novel molecular mechanisms underlying the roles of non-coding RNAs, mitochondria, and genetic factors in neurodegeneration and cardiotoxicity in mice, and translate the findings to humans using stem cell-derived brain cells, heart cells, three-dimensional mini brains, and heart organoids.

Research Areas of Interest

Brain Damage, Chronic
Diabetic Cardiomyopathies
Disease Models, Animal
Neurotoxicity Syndromes
Organoids
Stem Cells

Research Experience

Adult Stem Cells
Cell- and Tissue-Based Therapy
Diabetic Cardiomyopathies
Embryonic Stem Cells
Gene Regulatory Networks
Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells
MicroRNAs
Mitochondria
Neurogenesis
Organoids
Pluripotent Stem Cells
RNA, Long Noncoding

Research Interests

Research Area 1: Non-coding RNAs, mitochondria, and cell stress-related genes in neurodegeneration:
Neurological disorders have emerged as a predominant healthcare concern in recent years due to their severe consequences on quality of life and prevalence throughout the world. Understanding the underlying mechanisms of these diseases and the interactions between different brain cell types is essential for the development of new therapeutics. Many drugs (e.g., anesthetics), environmental factors (e.g., alcohol), diseases, and genetic risks are related to neurodegeneration. We examine the novel molecular mechanisms underlying the roles of microRNAs, long non-coding RNAs, mitochondria, immediate early and other cell stress-related genes in neurodegeneration using both mouse, and human stem cell-derived brain cell and three-dimensional mini brain models

Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived mini brain (left) and the neurons in mini brain (middle). Alcohol-induced neuroapoptosis (red) in neonatal mouse brain (right).

Research Area 2: Stem cell-mediated myocardial regeneration
Myocardial infarction is one of the major causes of death throughout the world. Currently, there is not a highly effective approach for treatment. Stem cells hold promise in repairing injured cardiac tissue. Our lab is involved in studying the effect of the transplantation of adipose tissue-derived stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes on myocardial regeneration following ischemia injury. A molecular imaging method has been developed to investigate the molecular mechanisms controlling homing, engraftment, and survival of injected cells in vivo.

Research Area 3: The mechanisms of impaired cardioprotection under diabetic conditions
Hyperglycemia has been shown to be particularly detrimental to the cardioprotective effects, with the underlying mechanisms remaining largely unknown. We have developed and validated a clinically relevant model of functional human cardiomyocytes derived from both normal induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and diabetes mellitus iPSCs. This in vitro model of human disease will enable developmental and comparative studies of normal and diabetic cardiomyocytes to address genetic and environmental mechanisms responsible for attenuation of cardioprotection signaling in diabetics.

Functional contracting human cardiomyocytes generated from induced pluripotent stem cells

Mitochondrial dynamics (movement, fusion and fission) in human neurons generated from embryonic stem cells. Green signals represent mitochondria. Red and yellow colors highlight mitochondria in process of fusion.

Identification of a dihydropyridine scaffold that blocks ryanodine receptors.

(Gunaratne GS, Rebbeck RT, McGurran LM, Yan Y, Arzua T, Frolkis T, Sprague DJ, Bai X, Cornea RL, Walseth TF, Marchant JS.) iScience. 2022 Jan 21;25(1):103706 PMID: 35059610 PMCID: PMC8760560 01/22/2022
The Neuroprotective Effects of the CB2 Agonist GW842166x in the 6-OHDA Mouse Model of Parkinson's Disease.

(Yu H, Liu X, Chen B, Vickstrom CR, Friedman V, Kelly TJ, Bai X, Zhao L, Hillard CJ, Liu QS.) Cells. 2021 12 16;10(12) PMID: 34944056 PMCID: PMC8700250 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85121121427 12/25/2021
Perspective: Why and How Ubiquitously Distributed, Vascular-Associated, Pluripotent Stem Cells in the Adult Body (vaPS Cells) Are the Next Generation of Medicine.

(Alt EU, Schmitz C, Bai X.) Cells. 2021 09 03;10(9) PMID: 34571951 PMCID: PMC8467324 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85115886729 09/29/2021
The importance of non-coding RNAs in environmental stress-related developmental brain disorders: A systematic review of evidence associated with exposure to alcohol, anesthetic drugs, nicotine, and viral infections.

(Arzua T, Jiang C, Yan Y, Bai X.) Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2021 09;128:633-647 PMID: 34186153 PMCID: PMC8357057 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85109839820 06/30/2021
Biphasic effect of metformin on human cardiac energetics.

(Emelyanova L, Bai X, Yan Y, Bosnjak ZJ, Kress D, Warner C, Kroboth S, Rudic T, Kaushik S, Stoeckl E, Ross GR, Rizvi F, Tajik AJ, Jahangir A.) Transl Res. 2021 03;229:5-23 PMID: 33045408 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85095776755 10/13/2020
Expression Signature of lncRNAs and mRNAs in Sevoflurane-Induced Mouse Brain Injury: Implication of Involvement of Wide Molecular Networks and Pathways.

(Jiang C, Arzua T, Yan Y, Bai X.) Int J Mol Sci. 2021 Jan 30;22(3) PMID: 33573239 PMCID: PMC7869012 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85100021031 02/13/2021
Modeling alcohol-induced neurotoxicity using human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived three-dimensional cerebral organoids.

(Arzua T, Yan Y, Jiang C, Logan S, Allison RL, Wells C, Kumar SN, Schäfer R, Bai X.) Transl Psychiatry. 2020 10 13;10(1):347 PMID: 33051447 PMCID: PMC7553959 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85092448660 10/15/2020
Isolation and Culture of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cerebral Organoid Cells.

(Yan Y, Arzua T, Logan S, Bai X.) Methods Mol Biol. 2020 Oct 08 PMID: 33029748 PMCID: PMC8030126 10/09/2020
Stem Cell-Based Disease Modeling and Cell Therapy.

(Bai X.) Cells. 2020 09 29;9(10) PMID: 33003295 PMCID: PMC7599677 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85092490838 10/03/2020
Dynamic Characterization of Structural, Molecular, and Electrophysiological Phenotypes of Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cerebral Organoids, and Comparison with Fetal and Adult Gene Profiles.

(Logan S, Arzua T, Yan Y, Jiang C, Liu X, Yu LK, Liu QS, Bai X.) Cells. 2020 05 23;9(5) PMID: 32456176 PMCID: PMC7291286 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85085461803 05/28/2020
Proteasome activation by insulin-like growth factor-1/nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 signaling promotes exercise-induced neurogenesis.

(Niu X, Zhao Y, Yang N, Zhao X, Zhang W, Bai X, Li A, Yang W, Lu L.) Stem Cells. 2020 02;38(2):246-260 PMID: 31648402 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85075204508 10/28/2019
Genome-wide differential expression profiling of lncRNAs and mRNAs associated with early diabetic cardiomyopathy.

(Pant T, Dhanasekaran A, Bai X, Zhao M, Thorp EB, Forbess JM, Bosnjak ZJ, Ge ZD.) Sci Rep. 2019 10 25;9(1):15345 PMID: 31653946 PMCID: PMC6814824 SCOPUS ID: 2-s2.0-85074150710 10/28/2019

Xiaowen Bai, MD, PhD