Thomas Shupe's Biography

Thomas Shupe, Assistant Professor, Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine

I began my career in cancer research where I identified several alternative pathways for carcinogen metabolism that are activated during liver regeneration and was a key player in the characterization of several molecular factors that govern the phenotypes of both liver stem cells and liver tumor cells. I have more than 20 years’ experience working with in vivo and in vitro models for human disease. More recently, I transitioned to the field of regenerative medicine and was the first to publish a method for the decellularization of intact liver. These decellularized matrices are currently under evaluation as scaffolds for clinical scale liver bioengineering. Together with colleagues at the Institute, we have developed methods for incorporating decellularized tissue matrices into cell culture substrates that provide exceptional support for human primary cells. I serve as the scientific coordinator for the ECHO “Body-on-a-Chip” program and as the primary investigator for a universal media project.