Xiling Shen

Xiling Shen developed single-cell and microfluidic technologies revealing that cancer stem cell identity is maintained by Wnt signaling gradients within tumor microenvironments rather than being a fixed cell-intrinsic property, demonstrating that differentiated cancer cells can reacquire stemness when re-exposed to Wnt ligands from stromal niches. His mathematical modeling of Wnt gradient dynamics in intestinal crypts predicted how APC mutations flatten the Wnt gradient to expand the cancer stem cell compartment, validated in patient-derived organoids. He engineers organ-on-chip platforms recapitulating cancer stem cell niches for drug screening against stem cell-maintaining pathways.