Personal profile
Research interests
Research in my laboratory is dedicated to exploring the molecular regulation and applications of pluripotent stem cells. I have developed culture conditions for the generation of “naive” pluripotent stem cells that closely resemble pluripotent cells in the human blastocyst in vivo based on transcriptional and epigenetic criteria. My laboratory investigates the signaling requirements for naive pluripotent stem cells, as a basis for improving their long-term genetic and epigenetic stability. We also seek to leverage the unique properties of naive stem cells to better model early human development and X-linked diseases, and compare the differentiation potential of distinct stem cell states.
Mentoring
Dr. Theunissen has completed formal mentorship training through the University of Minnesota's Clinical and Translational Science Institute in 2024.
Available to Mentor:
- PhD Students
- High School Students
- Undergraduate Students
- Post-Baccalaureate Students
- Postdocs
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Collaborations and top research areas from the last five years
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Exiting the ground state: the broad spectrum of cell fates accessible from naïve human pluripotent stem cells
Park, K. M., Yin, R. & Theunissen, T. W., Dec 2026, In: Cellular and Molecular Life Sciences. 83, 1, 23.Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review
Open Access -
Primate embryo model leaps across developmental boundaries
Kong, X. & Theunissen, T. W., Jan 1 2026, In: Nature. 649, 8095, p. 34-35 2 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate
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Erratum: Rapid iPSC inclusionopathy models shed light on formation, consequence, and molecular subtype of α-synuclein inclusions (Neuron (2024) 112(17) (2886–2909.e16), (S0896627324004094), (10.1016/j.neuron.2024.06.002))
Lam, I., Ndayisaba, A., Lewis, A. J., Fu, Y. H., Sagredo, G. T., Kuzkina, A., Zaccagnini, L., Celikag, M., Sandoe, J., Sanz, R. L., Vahdatshoar, A., Martin, T. D., Morshed, N., Ichihashi, T., Tripathi, A., Ramalingam, N., Oettgen-Suazo, C., Bartels, T., Boussouf, M. & Schäbinger, M. & 34 others, , Feb 19 2025, In: Neuron. 113, 4, p. 637 1 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate
Open Access -
Manifold roles of the chemokine G-protein-coupled receptor CCR7 in differentiation of human trophoblast into extravillous and syncytiotrophoblast lineages
Yoon, E. J., Beltcheva, M., Ali, S. S., Fu, S., Yang, A., Dong, C., Zemke, J. E., Karvas, R. M., Chang, C. T., Fischer, L. A., Gontarz, P., Zhang, B., Dietmann, S., Theunissen, T. W. & Solnica-Krezel, L., Sep 2025, In: Development (Cambridge). 152, 17, dev204309.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
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Raising the bar for human post-implantation embryo models
Kong, X. & Theunissen, T. W., Oct 2 2025, In: Cell Stem Cell. 32, 10, p. 1479-1481 3 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate
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