William Sander
Education:
B.S. University of California, Los Angeles (2022)
Advisor:
Agnieszka Bialkowska
Graduate Program:
Molecular & Cellular Pharmacology
Research Interests:
I am fascinated by the processes of epithelial regeneration throughout the body. I study this phenomenon in the intestine, the prototypical model of regeneration, whose renewal depends on a resident intestinal stem cell population at the base of the crypts. As one of the most proliferative organs, the intestine can regenerate even from devastating injury. My work aims to uncover the epigenetic mechanisms that govern how revival stem cells form their identity and dedifferentiate back into intestinal stem cells after injury. More broadly, I am interested in gastrointestinal disease, and especially in early-onset colorectal cancer, which I have recently begun to study using patient-derived organoid models.
Publications:
Gray SM, Wood MC, Mulkeen SC, Ahmed S, Thaker SD, Chen B, Sander WR, Bibeva V, Zhang X, Yang J, Herzog JW, Moss AD, Zhang S, Dogan B, Simpson KW, Sartor RB, Montrose DC. Dietary Protein Source Mediates Colitis Pathogenesis Through Bacterial Modulation of Bile Acids. Cell Mol Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2026 Jun 24:101825. doi: 10.1016/j.jcmgh.2026.101825. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 42342152.
Sha C, Sander WR, Bass K, Hsieh H, Bialkowska AB. Necrotizing Enterocolitis: What's New and What's Next? Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Oct 3;26(19):9660. doi: 10.3390/ijms26199660. PMID: 41096926; PMCID: PMC12524767.
Yau TY, Sander W, Eidson C, Courey AJ. SUMO Interacting Motifs: Structure and Function. Cells. 2021 Oct 21;10(11):2825. doi: 10.3390/cells10112825. PMID: 34831049; PMCID: PMC8616421.
Conference Posters/Presentations:
Sander, W.R., Lakha, R., Rosati, B., Yang, V.W., Bialkowska, A.B, Rapid Chromatin Remodeling of Poised Loci Precedes Revival Stem Cell Formation in the Injured Intestine., Digestive Diseases Week (DDW), 2026 [International Conference].
Lakha, R.*, Sander, W.R., Kesavan, S., Yang, V.W., Bialkowska, A.B., Effects of Genetic Abrogation of the Sonic Hedgehog Signaling Pathway on Intestinal Epithelial Regeneration Following Ionizing Radiation Injury, Digestive Diseases Week (DDW), 2026 [International Conference]. *Presenting Author
Sander, W.R., Lakha, R., Rosati, B., Yang, V.W., Bialkowska, A.B., Chromatin Opening Precedes Revival Stem Cell Emergence in a Crypt Position-Dependent Manner., American Physician-Scientist Association (APSA) Annual Meeting, 2026 [National Conference].
Gray, S.*, Wood, M.C, Mulkeen, S.C., Ahmed, S., Thaker, S.D., Chen, B., Sander, W.R, Bibeva, V., Zhang, X., Yang, J., Herzog, J., Zhang, S., Dogan, B., Simpson, K.W., Sartor, B.R., Montrose, D.M., Dietary Protein Sources Mediates Colitis Pathogenesis Through Bacterial Modulation of Bile Acids., Digestive Diseases Week (DDW), 2026 [International Conference]. *Presenting Author
Sander, W.R., Lakha, R., Rosati, B., Yang, V.W, and Bialkowska, A.B., Dissecting The Multi-omic Terrain of the Injured Intestine, SBU MSTP Retreat, 2025 [Local Conference].
Sander, W.R., Lakha, R., Rosati, B., Yang, V.W, and Bialkowska, A.B., Early Epigenetic Drivers of Revival Stem Cell Emergence in Intestinal Injury. Cell Fate Conversions, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), 2025 [International Conference].
Sander, W.R., Ingle, K., Orzechowska-Licari, E.J., Lakha, R., Rosati, B., Yang, V.W, and Bialkowska, A.B., Early and compartment-specific epigenetic alterations in response to intestinal injury. American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), Digestive Diseases Week (DDW), 2025 [International Conference].
Sander, W.R., Ingle, K., Orzechowska-Licari, E.J., Lakha, R., Yang, V.W, and Bialkowska, A.B., The Potential Role of CBP/p300 Histone Acetyltransferase in Altering the Epigenetic Landscape of the Injured Intestine. Stony Brook Department of Medicine Annual Research Symposium, 2025 [Local Conference].