Maho Shibata Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Cell Biology Office Phone: 202-994-0802 Email: Email Department: Anatomy and Cell Biology

Education

• B.S., University of Virginia, 2005
• Ph.D., Cornell University, 2011

Biography

Dr. Shibata obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Virginia in 2005. For her PhD in Genetics, she worked with Dr. Maria Garcia-Garcia at Cornell University and studied mid-gestation mouse embryos with ENU (N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea) induced mutations to identify functions of novel genes important for the morphogenesis of mouse embryos. Her work revealed tissue-specific requirements for a Kruppel-associated box (KRAB) zinc finger protein, ZFP568, and its binding partner TRIM28 in the development of extraembryonic tissues.

Her interest in applying knowledge from developmental biology to cancer research led her to Dr. Michael Shen’s lab at Columbia University Medical Center in 2011. In her postdoctoral research, she contributed to the establishment of an organoid culture system for studying prostate progenitor and luminal stem cells, and studied the role of Wnt signaling in mediating androgen receptor signaling to progenitor cells during prostate organogenesis.

Visit the Shibata Lab Website

Research

Hormone therapy (androgen deprivation) is the main treatment for advanced prostate cancer. However, many prostate cancers that initially respond to androgen deprivation therapies ultimately become castration-resistant, leading to recurrence. In our lab, we study mechanisms for castration resistance in prostate cancer from the perspective of developmental and stem cell biology.

We use genetically engineered mouse models, explant cultures, and 3D organoid culture systems. Our long-term goal is to apply our findings to developing new biomarkers and identify novel approaches for prostate cancer treatment.

Publications

Yende, A.*, Williams, E.C.*, Pletcher, A., Helfand, A., Ibeawuchi, H., North, T.M., Latham, P.S., Horvath, A., and Shibata, M. (2023). TRIM28 promotes luminal cell plasticity in a mouse model of prostate cancer. Oncogene. doi: 10.1038/s41388-023-02655-0. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36882525. (*co-first authors).

Pletcher, A. and Shibata, M. (2022). Prostate organogenesis. (Review). Development. 149 (12):dev200394. PMCID: PMC9270966.

Vasciaveo, A., Arriaga, J.M., Nunes de Almeida, F., Zou, M., Douglass, E.F., Picech, F., Shibata, M., Rodriguez-Calero, A., de Brot, S., Mitrofanova, A., Chua, C.W., Karan, C., Realubit, R., Pampou, S., Kim, J.Y., Afari, S.N., Mukhammadov, T., Zanella, L., Corey, E., Alvarez, M.J., Rubin, M.A., Shen, M.M., Califano, A., Abate-Shen, C. (2022). OncoLoop: A network-based precision cancer medicine framework. Cancer Discovery. 13(2):386-409. PMCID: PMC9905319.

Le, K., Sun, J., Khawaja, H., Shibata, M., Maggirwar, S.B., Smith, M.R., and Gupta, M. (2021). Mantle cell lymphoma polarizes tumor-associated macrophages into M2-like macrophages which in turn promote tumorigenesis. Blood Advances 5(14):2863-78. PMCID: PMC8341355.

Joglekar, T., Lin, J., Shibata. M. (2020). ONECUT2 is a novel target for treatment of castration-resistant prostate cancer. (Editorial) Expert Opinion on Therapeutic Targets 24(2): 89-90. PMID: 31983247.

Shibata, M.#, Epsi, N.J., Xuan, S., Mitrofanova, A., and Shen, M. M#. (2020). Bipotent progenitors do not require androgen receptor for luminal specification during prostate organogenesis. Stem Cell Reports 15(5):1026-1036. PMCID: PMC7664048. (#corresponding authors).

Bowen, C., Shibata, M., Zhang, H., Sarah K. Bergren, S.K., Shen, M.M., and Gelmann, E.P. (2020). CRISPR/Cas9-Mediated Point Mutation in Nkx3.1 Prolongs Protein Half-Life and Reverses Effects Nkx3.1 Allelic Loss. Cancer Research. Epub 2020/09/19. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-20-1742. PMID: 32943441.

Crowley, L., Cambuli, F., Aparicio, L., Shibata, M., Robinson, B.D., Xuan, S., Li, W., Hibshoosh, H., Loda, M., Rabadan, R., and Shen, M.M. (2020). A single-cell atlas of the mouse and human prostate reveals heterogeneity and conservation of epithelial progenitors. eLife 2020;9:e59465. PMID: 32915138.

Shibata, M., and Shen, M. M. (2015). Stem cells in genetically-engineered mouse models of prostate cancer. (Review) Endocrine-Related Cancer 22(6): T199-208. PMCID: PMC4618022.

Alexander, K.A., Wang, X., Shibata, M., Clark, A.G., and García-García, M. J. (2015). TRIM28 controls genomic imprinting through distinct mechanisms during and after early genome-wide reprogramming. Cell Reports 13(6): 1194-205. PMCID: PMC4644443.

Chua, C. W.*, Shibata, M.*, Lei, M.*, Toivanen, R., Barlow, L. J., Bergren, S. K., Badani, K. K., McKiernan, J. M., Benson, M. C., Hibshoosh, H, and Shen, M. M. (2014). Single luminal epithelial progenitors can generate prostate organoids in culture. Nature Cell Biology 16: 951-961. PMCID: PMC4183706. (*co-first authors).

Kruithof-de Julio, M.*, Shibata, M.*, Desai, N., Reynon, M., Halili, M. V., Hu, Y. P., Price, S. M., Abate-Shen, C. and Shen, M. M. (2013). Canonical Wnt signaling regulates Nkx3.1 expression and luminal epithelial differentiation during prostate organogenesis. Developmental Dynamics 242: 1160-1171. PMCID: PMC3788082. (*co-first authors).

Shibata, M., and Shen, M. M. (2012). The roots of cancer: Stem cells and the basis for tumor heterogeneity. (Review) BioEssays 35: 253-260. PMCID: PMC3687804.

Shibata, M., Blauvelt, K. E., Liem, K. F. Jr., and García-García, M. J. (2011). TRIM28 is required by the mouse KRAB domain protein ZFP568 to control convergent extension and morphogenesis of extraembryonic tissues. Development 138: 5333-5343. PMCID: PMC3222210.

Shibata, M., and García-García, M. J. (2011). The mouse KRAB zinc-finger protein CHATO is required in embryonic-derived tissues to control yolk sac and placental morphogenesis. Developmental Biology 349: 331-341. PMCID: PMC3023455.

García-García, M. J., Shibata, M., and Anderson, K. V. (2008). Chato, a KRAB zinc-finger protein, regulates convergent extension in the mouse embryo. Development 135: 3053-3062. PMCID: PMC2583081.

Industry Relationships and Collaborations

This faculty member (or a member of their immediate family) has reported a financial interest with the health care related companies listed below. These relations have been reported to the University and, when appropriate, management plans are in place to address potential conflicts.

• None