Duncan NRI Benjamin Deneen, Ph.D.
Professor and Dr. Russell J. and Marian K. Blattner Chair, Center for Cancer Neuroscience and Department of Neurosurgery, Baylor College of Medicine
Member, Dan L. Duncan Comprehensive Cancer Center, Baylor College of Medicine
Principal Investigator, Jan and Dan Duncan Neurological Research Institute
Contact Information
Phone: 713-798-7987
Fax: 713-798-1234
Email: deneen@bcm.edu
Research focus
Gliogenesis and glial differentiation
Get to know Benjamin Deneen, Ph.D.
My laboratory studies the molecular and cellular mechanisms that control the diverse physiological roles of glial cells in the central nervous system.
Our studies concentrate on two emerging areas in the neurosciences: astrocyte control of brain circuits and cancer neuroscience of brain tumors. Our investigations into brain circuits focus on the lines of communication between astrocytes and neurons that drive circuit function. These studies identified functionally distinct astrocyte subtypes and region-specific transcription factor codes that oversee circuit function in the hippocampus, cortex, olfactory bulb, amygdala, and spinal cord. We extended these studies towards experience-dependent astrocyte plasticity, identifying new cellular, transcriptional, and epigenetic mechanisms governing astrocyte adaptation to a host of experiences, including learning, sensory, depression, and sleep
In the brain tumor space, my lab developed several autochthonous mouse models of glioma that we combined with high-throughput, in vivo functional genomics screens to uncover how brain tumors remodel the neuronal microenvironment towards hyperactivity. Our work in the cancer neuroscience of brain tumors has uncovered circuit-specific effects on brain tumor pathogenesis, while identifying bi-directional signaling mechanisms between tumors and neurons that drive malignant progression and hyperactive brain states.
Lin CC, Yu K, Hatcher A, Huang TW, Lee HK, Carlson J, Weston MC, Chen F, Zhang Y, Mohila CA, Ahmed N, Patel AJ, Arenkiel BR, Noebels JL, Creighton CJ, and Deneen B (2017) The Identification of Diverse Astrocyte Populations and their Malignant Analogs. Nature Neuroscience 20(3) 396-405. PMID: 28166219
Yu K, Lin CC, Hatcher A, Lozzi B, Kong K, Huang-Hobbs E, Chen Y-T, Beechar VB, Zhu W, Zhang Y, Chen F, Mills GB, Mohila CA, Creighton CJ, Noebels JL, Scott KL and Deneen B (2020) PIK3CA variants selectivity initiate brain hyperactivity during gliomagenesis. Nature 578:166-171. PMID: 31996845
Cheng Y-T, Luna-Figueroa E, Woo J, Chen H-C, Lee Z-F, Serin Harmanci A, and Deneen B (2023) Inhibitory input directs astrocyte morphogenesis through glial GABABR. Nature 617(7960):369-376 PMID: 37100909
Sardar D, Cheng YT, Woo J, Choi DJ, Lee ZF, Kwon W, Chen HC, Lozzi B, Cervantes A, Rajendran K, Huang TW, Jain A, Arenkiel B, Maze I, and Deneen B (2023) Activity-dependent induction of astrocytic Slc22a3 regulates sensory processing through histone serotonylation. Science 380 (6650): eade0027. PMID: 37319217
Huang-Hobbs E, Cheng Y-T, Ko Y, Luna-Figueroa E, Lozzi B, Taylor KR, McDonald M, He P, Chen H-C, YangY, Maleki E, Lee Z-F, Murali S, Williamson M, Choi D, Curry R, Bayley J, Woo J, Jalali A, Monje M, Noebels JL, Serin Harmanci A, Rao G, and Deneen B (2023) Remote neuronal activity drives glioma infiltration via Sema4f. Nature 619(7971): 844-850.
View a complete list of publications by Benjamin Deneen, Ph.D.
