Sarah Knox, PhD

Professor
Cell and Tissue Biology
[email protected]
+1 415 502-0811
The Knox Lab is concerned with analyzing the cellular and molecular events underlying the formation of epithelial organs (organogenesis) and their regeneration after injury. We employ multiple tissues (e.g. salivary gland, pancreas, ocular organs) to test three fundamental biological questions: 1) how do peripheral nerves impact epithelial stem cell fate decisions; 2) what are the mechanisms by which neuronal signals pattern organ architecture; and 3) how do immune cells modulate nerve-mediated morphogenesis, repair and regeneration. Understanding the relationships between multiple cell types will lead to new approaches to regenerate damaged tissue and to create new organs.
Publications: 

The First Transcriptomic Atlas of the Adult Lacrimal Gland Reveals Epithelial Complexity and Identifies Novel Progenitor Cells in Mice.

Cells

Delcroix V, Mauduit O, Lee HS, Ivanova A, Umazume T, Knox SM, de Paiva CS, Dartt DA, Makarenkova HP

Long-term functional regeneration of radiation-damaged salivary glands through delivery of a neurogenic hydrogel.

Science advances

Li J, Sudiwala S, Berthoin L, Mohabbat S, Gaylord EA, Sinada H, Cruz Pacheco N, Chang JC, Jeon O, Lombaert IMA, May AJ, Alsberg E, Bahney CS, Knox SM

Neuronal-epithelial cross-talk drives acinar specification via NRG1-ERBB3-mTORC2 signaling.

Developmental cell

May AJ, Mattingly AJ, Gaylord EA, Griffin N, Sudiwala S, Cruz-Pacheco N, Emmerson E, Mohabbat S, Nathan S, Sinada H, Lombaert IMA, Knox SM

A synthetic tear protein resolves dry eye through promoting corneal nerve regeneration.

Cell reports

Efraim Y, Chen FYT, Cheong KN, Gaylord EA, McNamara NA, Knox SM

A mechanism of gene evolution generating mucin function.

Science advances

Pajic P, Shen S, Qu J, May AJ, Knox S, Ruhl S, Gokcumen O

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 3A1 deficiency leads to mitochondrial dysfunction and impacts salivary gland stem cell phenotype.

PNAS nexus

Viswanathan V, Cao H, Saiki J, Jiang D, Mattingly A, Nambiar D, Bloomstein J, Li Y, Jiang S, Chamoli M, Sirjani D, Kaplan M, Holsinger FC, Liang R, Von Eyben R, Jiang H, Guan L, Lagory E, Feng Z, Nolan G, Ye J, Denko N, Knox S, Rosen DM, Le QT

Septum submucosal glands exhibit aberrant morphology and reduced mucin production in chronic rhinosinusitis.

International forum of allergy & rhinology

Nnabue OE, Pletcher SD, Gurrola JG, Goldberg AN, Jordan KM, Knox SM, May AJ

Functional Specialization of Human Salivary Glands and Origins of Proteins Intrinsic to Human Saliva.

Cell reports

Saitou M, Gaylord EA, Xu D, May AJ, Neznanova L, Nathan S, Grawe A, Chang J, Ryan W, Ruhl S, Knox SM, Gokcumen O

Alterations in corneal biomechanics underlie early stages of autoimmune-mediated dry eye disease.

Journal of autoimmunity

Efraim Y, Chen FYT, Stashko C, Cheong KN, Gaylord E, McNamara N, Knox SM

2155-P: Peripheral Nervous System Innervation of the Developing Pancreas.

Diabetes

SEAN DE LA O, LAUREN BYRNES, DANIEL M. WONG, SARAH KNOX, JULIE B. SNEDDON

The emerging role of cranial nerves in shaping craniofacial development.

Genesis (New York, N.Y. : 2000)

Sudiwala S, Knox SM

Diverse progenitor cells preserve salivary gland ductal architecture after radiation-induced damage.

Development (Cambridge, England)

May AJ, Cruz-Pacheco N, Emmerson E, Gaylord EA, Seidel K, Nathan S, Muench MO, Klein OD, Knox SM

Lineage dynamics of murine pancreatic development at single-cell resolution.

Nature communications

Byrnes LE, Wong DM, Subramaniam M, Meyer NP, Gilchrist CL, Knox SM, Tward AD, Ye CJ, Sneddon JB

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 3A1 activation prevents radiation-induced xerostomia by protecting salivary stem cells from toxic aldehydes.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

Saiki JP, Cao H, Van Wassenhove LD, Viswanathan V, Bloomstein J, Nambiar DK, Mattingly AJ, Jiang D, Chen CH, Stevens MC, Simmons AL, Park HS, von Eyben R, Kool ET, Sirjani D, Knox SM, Le QT, Mochly-Rosen D

Salivary gland stem cells: A review of development, regeneration and cancer.

Genesis (New York, N.Y. : 2000)

Emmerson E, Knox SM

Salivary glands regenerate after radiation injury through SOX2-mediated secretory cell replacement.

EMBO molecular medicine

Emmerson E, May AJ, Berthoin L, Cruz-Pacheco N, Nathan S, Mattingly AJ, Chang JL, Ryan WR, Tward AD, Knox SM

SOX2 regulates acinar cell development in the salivary gland.

eLife

Emmerson E, May AJ, Nathan S, Cruz-Pacheco N, Lizama CO, Maliskova L, Zovein AC, Shen Y, Muench MO, Knox SM

Identification and characterization of a rich population of CD34+ mesenchymal stem/stromal cells in human parotid, sublingual and submandibular glands.

Scientific reports

Togarrati PP, Sasaki RT, Abdel-Mohsen M, Dinglasan N, Deng X, Desai S, Emmerson E, Yee E, Ryan WR, da Silva MCP, Knox SM, Pillai SK, Muench MO

Defining epithelial cell dynamics and lineage relationships in the developing lacrimal gland.

Development (Cambridge, England)

Farmer DT, Nathan S, Finley JK, Shengyang Yu K, Emmerson E, Byrnes LE, Sneddon JB, McManus MT, Tward AD, Knox SM

miR-205 is a critical regulator of lacrimal gland development.

Developmental biology

Farmer DT, Finley JK, Chen FY, Tarifeño-Saldivia E, McNamara NA, Knox SM, McManus MT

Salivary gland development and disease.

Wiley interdisciplinary reviews. Developmental biology

Mattingly A, Finley JK, Knox SM

Submandibular parasympathetic gangliogenesis requires sprouty-dependent Wnt signals from epithelial progenitors.

Developmental cell

Knosp WM, Knox SM, Lombaert IM, Haddox CL, Patel VN, Hoffman MP

Manipulating the Murine Lacrimal Gland.

Journal of Visualized Experiments

Jennifer K. Finley, D'Juan Farmer, Elaine Emmerson, Noel Cruz Pacheco, Sarah M. Knox

Manipulating the murine lacrimal gland.

Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE

Finley JK, Farmer D, Emmerson E, Cruz Pacheco N, Knox SM

Parasympathetic innervation regulates tubulogenesis in the developing salivary gland.

Developmental cell

Nedvetsky PI, Emmerson E, Finley JK, Ettinger A, Cruz-Pacheco N, Prochazka J, Haddox CL, Northrup E, Hodges C, Mostov KE, Hoffman MP, Knox SM

The society of craniofacial genetics and developmental biology 35th annual meeting.

American Journal of Medical Genetics Part A

Ophir D. Klein, Jeffrey O. Bush, Sarah M. Knox, Andrew H. Jheon, Dwight R. Cordero, Joan T. Richtsmeier

Parasympathetic stimulation improves epithelial organ regeneration.

Nature communications

Knox SM, Lombaert IM, Haddox CL, Abrams SR, Cotrim A, Wilson AJ, Hoffman MP

Salivary gland organogenesis.

Wiley interdisciplinary reviews. Developmental biology

Knosp WM, Knox SM, Hoffman MP

Parasympathetic innervation maintains epithelial progenitor cells during salivary organogenesis.

Science (New York, N.Y.)

Knox SM, Lombaert IM, Reed X, Vitale-Cross L, Gutkind JS, Hoffman MP

Recombinant heparan sulfate for use in tissue engineering applications.

Journal of Chemical Technology & Biotechnology

John Whitelock, J Leo, Neil Davies, Natasja Nielsen, Christine Chuang, Martin Rees, Renato V Iozzo, Sarah Knox, Megan Lord

Heparanase cleavage of perlecan heparan sulfate modulates FGF10 activity during ex vivo submandibular gland branching morphogenesis.

Development (Cambridge, England)

Patel VN, Knox SM, Likar KM, Lathrop CA, Hossain R, Eftekhari S, Whitelock JM, Elkin M, Vlodavsky I, Hoffman MP

The function of a Drosophila glypican does not depend entirely on heparan sulfate modification.

Developmental biology

Kirkpatrick CA, Knox SM, Staatz WD, Fox B, Lercher DM, Selleck SB