Wei Li, PhD - Penn State Cancer Institute
Researcher Profile

Wei Li, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Division of Hematology and Oncology
Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Division of Hematology and Oncology
Associate Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Scientific Program:Mechanisms of Carcinogenesis
Research Interests
Dr. Wei Li’s laboratory is interested in studying intercellular interactions during tissue homeostasis and determining how de-regulated interactions among cells promote cell transformation and tumor progression. His research integrates molecular, cellular and biochemical approaches in combination with mouse tumorigenesis models. Currently, Dr. Li’s laboratory focuses on elucidating the regulation and function of the Hippo tumor suppressor pathway in brain tumors. The goal of Dr. Li’s research is to find molecular targets and biomarkers for cancer therapy.
- Neoplasms
- Neurofibromin 2
- Carcinogenesis
- Genes
- Growth
- Glioblastoma
- Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases
- Proteins
- Necrosis
- Mutation
- Cadaver
- Neurofibromatosis 2
Recent Publications
2022
Yee, PP, Wang, J, Chih, SY, Aregawi, DG, Glantz, MJ, Zacharia, BE, Thamburaj, K & Li, W 2022, 'Temporal radiographic and histological study of necrosis development in a mouse glioblastoma model', Frontiers in Oncology, vol. 12, 993649. https://doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2022.993649
2021
Wei, Y & Li, W 2021, 'Calcium, an Emerging Intracellular Messenger for the Hippo Pathway Regulation', Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology, vol. 9, 694828. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcell.2021.694828
Lin, S, Li, Y, Wang, D, Huang, C, Marino, D, Bollt, O, Wu, C, Taylor, MD, Li, W, DeNicola, GM, Hao, J, Singh, PK & Yang, S 2021, 'Fascin promotes lung cancer growth and metastasis by enhancing glycolysis and PFKFB3 expression', Cancer Letters, vol. 518, pp. 230-242. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.canlet.2021.07.025
Wei, Y, Luo, H, Yee, PP, Zhang, L, Liu, Z, Zheng, H, Zhang, L, Anderson, B, Tang, M, Huang, S & Li, W 2021, 'Paraspeckle Protein NONO Promotes TAZ Phase Separation in the Nucleus to Drive the Oncogenic Transcriptional Program', Advanced Science, vol. 8, no. 24, 2102653. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202102653
Yee, PP & Li, W 2021, 'Tumor necrosis: A synergistic consequence of metabolic stress and inflammation', BioEssays, vol. 43, no. 7, 2100029. https://doi.org/10.1002/bies.202100029
2020
Johnson, MT, Gudlur, A, Zhang, X, Xin, P, Emrich, SM, Yoast, RE, Courjaret, R, Nwokonko, RM, Li, W, Hempel, N, Machaca, K, Gill, DL, Hogan, PG & Trebak, M 2020, 'L-type Ca2+ channel blockers promote vascular remodeling through activation of STIM proteins', Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 117, no. 29, pp. 17369-17380. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2007598117
Wei, Y, Yee, PP, Liu, Z, Zhang, L, Guo, H, Zheng, H, Anderson, B, Gulley, M & Li, W 2020, 'NEDD4L-mediated Merlin ubiquitination facilitates Hippo pathway activation', EMBO Reports, vol. 21, no. 12, e50642. https://doi.org/10.15252/embr.202050642
Yee, PP, Wei, Y, Kim, SY, Lu, T, Chih, SY, Lawson, C, Tang, M, Liu, Z, Anderson, B, Thamburaj, K, Young, MM, Aregawi, DG, Glantz, MJ, Zacharia, BE, Specht, CS, Wang, HG & Li, W 2020, 'Neutrophil-induced ferroptosis promotes tumor necrosis in glioblastoma progression', Nature communications, vol. 11, no. 1, 5424. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-19193-y
2019
Liu, Z, Yee, PP, Wei, Y, Liu, Z, Imamura, Y & Li, W 2019, 'Differential YAP expression in glioma cells induces cell competition and promotes tumorigenesis', Journal of Cell Science, vol. 132, no. 5, jcs225714. https://doi.org/10.1242/jcs.225714
Pajtler, KW, Wei, Y, Okonechnikov, K, Silva, PBG, Vouri, M, Zhang, L, Brabetz, S, Sieber, L, Gulley, M, Mauermann, M, Wedig, T, Mack, N, Imamura Kawasawa, Y, Sharma, T, Zuckermann, M, Andreiuolo, F, Holland, E, Maass, K, Körkel-Qu, H, Liu, HK, Sahm, F, Capper, D, Bunt, J, Richards, LJ, Jones, DTW, Korshunov, A, Chavez, L, Lichter, P, Hoshino, M, Pfister, SM, Kool, M, Li, W & Kawauchi, D 2019, 'YAP1 subgroup supratentorial ependymoma requires TEAD and nuclear factor I-mediated transcriptional programmes for tumorigenesis', Nature communications, vol. 10, no. 1, 3914. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-11884-5