Faculty
Leanne Jones
Assistant Professor
William Scandling Developmental Chair
Laboratory of Genetics

Stem cells are the building blocks during development of organisms as varied as plants and humans. In addition, stem cells provide for the maintenance and regeneration of tissues, such as blood and skin, throughout the lifetime of an individual. The ability of stem cells to contribute to these processes depends on their ability to divide and generate both new stem cells (self-renewal) as well as specialized cell types (differentiation). Stem cells lose the potential for continued self-renewal when removed from their normal cellular environment, known as the stem cell "niche," suggesting an essential role for the niche in controlling stem cell behavior.
The Jones lab is using the process of spermatogenesis in Drosophila melanogaster as a model system to establish paradigms for how stem cell behavior is controlled. Stem cells can be easily located at the tip of the Drosophila testis; therefore, it is possible to study these cells in the context of their normal environment without destroying the tissue. Being able to study the behavior of stem cells in vivo allows us to begin to ask questions about how the niche can control stem cell self-renewal and survival and how the relationship between stem cells and the niche evolves during development, as a consequence of aging, and during tumor initiation and progression.
Age-related changes to stem cells and the stem cell niche
Loss of tissue and organ function is a characteristic of aging, and such changes have been attributed to decreases in stem cell function. Given the relationship between reduced stem cell activity, loss of tissue homeostasis, and aging, several key questions emerge. Is loss of tissue homeostasis due to 1) a decrease in stem cell number 2) an inability of stem cells to respond to appropriately to signals from the niche 3) reduced signaling from the niche to specify stem cell self-renewal and maintenance or 4) reduced progenitor cell function? If all of these factors contribute to loss of tissue homeostasis, is any one more prevalent than the others, and which changes could be most easily targeted in the treatment of aging-related diseases? Lastly, can loss of tissue homeostasis be uncoupled from the aging process and studied independently with respect to changes in stem cell function?
Data from our lab suggest that aging of the stem cell niche is a major factor in decreased stem cell activity and tissue homeostasis over time. Therefore, we predict that when considering transplantation of stem cells, it may be necessary to transplant niche cells, in addition to stem cells, to provide a "younger" niche that may be more capable of sustaining stem cell self-renewal. Furthermore, as one of the primary risk factors for the development of cancer is increased age, these studies will reveal the consequences of aging on the regulation of tissue stem cell behavior and may highlight some of the factors that lead to the transformation of normal stem cells into cancer stem cells over time.
Education
- B.S., Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA
- PhD. Harvard University, Cambridge, MA
- Postdoctoral Fellow- University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
- Postdoctoral Fellow- Stanford University, Stanford, CA
Awards and Honors
- California Institute of Regenerative Medicine New Faculty Award, 2008-2013
- American Cancer Society Research Scholar, 2007-2011
- Ellison Medical Foundation New Scholar in Aging Award, 2005-2009
- Lilly Fellow of the Life Sciences Research Foundation, 2001-2004
- Human Frontiers Science Program (HFSP) postdoctoral fellowship, 1999-20000
- AACR-AFLAC Scholar in Cancer Research, 1998
- Rhône Poulenc Young Investigator Award, 1997
Selected Publications
- J. Voog, C. D'Alterio, and D.L. Jones. 2008. Multipotent somatic stem cells contribute to the niche in the Drosophila testis. Nature (Advanced Online Publication July 20).
- N. Geijsen and D.L.Jones. 2008. Seminal discoveries in regenerative medicine: contribution of the male germ line to understanding pluripotency. Human Mol. Genetics. 17:16-22.
- T. Flatt, K.-J. Min, C. D'Alterio, E. Villa-Cuesta, J. Cumbers, R. Lehmann, D. L. Jones, and M. Tatar. 2008. Drosophila Germ-Line Modulation of Insulin Signaling and Lifespan. PNAS. 105(17): 6368-6373.
- D. L. Jones and A.J. Wagers. 2008. No place like home: anatomy and function of the stem cell niche. Nat. Rev. Mol. Cell Biol. 9:11-21.
- D. L. Jones. 2007. Aging and the germ line: where mortality and immortality meet. Stem Cell Reviews. 3(3):192-200.
- M. Boyle, C. Wong, M. Rocha, and D. L. Jones. 2007. Decline in self-renewal factors leads to aging of the stem cell niche in the Drosophila testis. Cell Stem Cell. 1(4): 470-478.
- M. F. Clarke, J.E. Dick, P. B. Dirks, C. J. Eaves, C. H. M. Jameison, D.L. Jones, J. Visvader, I. L. Weissman, and G. M. Wahl. 2006. Cancer Stem Cells- Perspectives on Current Status and Future Directions: AACR Workshop on Cancer Stem Cells. Cancer Research 66 (19): 9339-9344.
- Y.Yamashita, M.T.Fuller, and D.L.Jones*. 2005. Signaling in stem cell niches: Lessons from the Drosophila germ line. J. Cell Science. 118, Pt.4: 665-672.*-corresponding author
- Jones, D. L. and M. T. Fuller. 2004.Stem cell niches. In Handbook of Stem Cells. Vol.2: Adult and Fetal Stem Cells (R.Lanza, H. Blau, D. Melton, M. Moore, E.D. Thomas, C. Verfaillie, I.Weissman, and M. West, eds.) Academic Press. pp 59-72.
- Y.M. Yamashita, D.L.Jones, and M.T. Fuller. 2003. Orientation of asymmetric stem cell division by the APC tumor suppressor and centrosome. Science. 301: 1547-1550.
- A. A. Kiger*, D. L. Jones*, C. Schulz, M. B. Rogers, M.T. Fuller. 2001. Stem Cell Self-renewal specified by JAK-STAT signaling in response to a support cell cue. Science. 294: 2542-2545. (*-equal contribution)
Links
- For more information, please visit our lab website.
Salk News Releases
- Stem cell chicken and egg debate moves to unlikely arena: the testes, July 21, 2008
- Salk stem cell researchers receive New Faculty Awards, December 12, 2007
- Neighborly care keeps stem cells young, October 10, 2007

