# Roel Nusse
**Roel Nusse** (Roeland Nusse) is a Dutch-born developmental biologist at Stanford University who discovered the first Wnt gene and built the field of Wnt signaling (a cell-to-cell communication system controlling growth and stem cells) research around it. He is the Virginia and Daniel K. Ludwig Professor of Cancer Research and a Professor of Developmental Biology at Stanford, and has been an Investigator of the [Howard Hughes Medical Institute](https://www.edgepedia.org/howard-hughes-medical-institute) (HHMI) since 1990.[1](https://profiles.stanford.edu/roeland-nusse) His laboratory studies Wnt proteins, signaling molecules essential for regulating stem cell differentiation and self-renewal.[2](https://www.hhmi.org/scientists/roel-nusse)
| Key facts | |
| --- | --- |
| Signature work | Discovery of the first Wnt gene (int-1/Wnt1) in mouse mammary tumors, *Cell*, 1982[3](https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(82)90409-3); ["Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling, Disease, and Emerging Therapeutic Modalities"](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2017.05.016), *Cell*, 2017; ["Wnt genes"](https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(92)90630-u), *Cell*, 1992 |
| Training | PhD, Netherlands Cancer Institute and University of Amsterdam, 1980; postdoc with Harold Varmus at UCSF, 1980–1982[4](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse) |
| Positions | Staff Scientist, Netherlands Cancer Institute, 1982; head of molecular biology there, 1983–1989; Stanford faculty and HHMI since 1990[4](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse) • [1](https://profiles.stanford.edu/roeland-nusse) |
| Field-defining reviews | "Wnt Genes" (*Cell*, 1992)[5](https://stanford.edu/~rnusse/reviews/NusseVarmusCel1992review.pdf); "Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling, Disease, and Emerging Therapeutic Modalities" (*Cell*, 2017)[6](https://wnt.stanford.edu/sites/g/files/sbiybj32631/files/media/file/nusse_clevers_cell_review_2017.pdf) |
| Technical contribution | First purification of active WNT3A protein, 2003; purified Wnts now used worldwide as stem cell growth factors[7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033) • [8](https://www.gairdner.org/winner/roel-nusse) |
| Honors | Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, 2017; Canada Gairdner International Award, 2020; US National Academy of Sciences, 2010[9](https://breakthroughprize.org/Laureates/1/L3792) • [8](https://www.gairdner.org/winner/roel-nusse) • [1](https://profiles.stanford.edu/roeland-nusse) |
| Industry | Co-founded Surrozen, a Wnt-focused biotechnology company, in 2016[10](https://www.surrozen.com/team/roel-nusse) |
## Early life and training
Nusse was born in Amsterdam. He earned a BSc in biology in June 1975 and a PhD in molecular biology in June 1980, awarded by the Netherlands Cancer Institute and the [University of Amsterdam](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-amsterdam).[1](https://profiles.stanford.edu/roeland-nusse) • [4](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse) From 1980 to 1982 he was a postdoctoral fellow at the [University of California, San Francisco](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-california-san-francisco), working with Harold Varmus.[4](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse) According to a 2020 *Cell* retrospective, Varmus's offer letter mentioned the proviruses that would lead to the Wnt gene only in a postscript.[7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033)
## Career
He holds the Virginia and Daniel K. Ludwig Professorship of Cancer Research.[10](https://www.surrozen.com/team/roel-nusse) His laboratory's common research theme remains Wnt signaling, with a recent interest in how Wnts and other signals regulate the cell cycle, studied by live imaging of organoids with new cell cycle reporters.[11](https://nusselab.stanford.edu/)
## Representative work
The 1982 *Cell* paper ["Many tumors induced by the mouse mammary tumor virus contain a provirus integrated in the same region of the host genome"](https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(82)90409-3) reported the discovery of int-1, the first Wnt gene. Mouse mammary tumor virus had landed near an unknown cellular gene in many independent tumors, driving its expression through viral enhancer sequences in the LTRs; the gene's structure was mapped a year later, in 1984.[7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033) • [4](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse) The finding showed that a gene could be overexpressed, rather than genetically altered, and still contribute to tumor formation.[7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033) His laboratory then identified the *Drosophila* gene **wingless** as the homolog of Wnt1, opening Wnt signaling mechanisms to fly genetics.[4](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse) • [8](https://www.gairdner.org/winner/roel-nusse)
A second strand established the pathway's machinery. Nusse established β-catenin as a mediator of Wnt signaling and, with a co-author, identified the Frizzled proteins as Wnt receptors.[8](https://www.gairdner.org/winner/roel-nusse) In 2003, with a co-author, he purified active mouse WNT3A protein, keeping the hydrophobic, lipid-modified protein soluble with serum and detergent.[7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033) Purified WNT3A maintains self-renewal in many stem cell types, including pluripotent embryonic stem cells, and Wnts are now used worldwide as stem cell growth factors for expanding organoids.[7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033) • [8](https://www.gairdner.org/winner/roel-nusse) In 2020 his group described engineered, water-soluble, Frizzled subtype-specific "next-generation surrogate" Wnts that support long-term expansion of kidney, colon, hepatocyte, ovarian, and breast organoids.[12](https://www.cell.com/cell-stem-cell/fulltext/S1934-5909(20)30358-1)
Three reviews frame the field for its readers. ["Wnt Genes"](https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(92)90630-u) appeared in *Cell* in 1992, when Nusse was at HHMI and Stanford and Varmus at UCSF, arguing that genes important in carcinogenesis are central to pattern formation in development.[5](https://stanford.edu/~rnusse/reviews/NusseVarmusCel1992review.pdf) ["Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling, Disease, and Emerging Therapeutic Modalities"](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2017.05.016) (*Cell*, 2017) laid out the core pathway, its role in adult tissue stem cells, and strategies for Wnt-based therapies.[6](https://wnt.stanford.edu/sites/g/files/sbiybj32631/files/media/file/nusse_clevers_cell_review_2017.pdf)
**Stem cell niches.** Wnt signals act as self-renewal factors for stem cells in multiple mammalian tissues, and because Wnt proteins are lipid-modified they act as short-range signals, so cells leaving the Wnt domain differentiate and the niche is spatially delimited.[13](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1248012) Using Axin2 lineage tracing, his laboratory has identified new stem cell populations, with recent work focused on hepatocytes and central vein endothelial cells as a liver stem cell and niche compartment.[7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033)
## Honors and recognition
Nusse received the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for 2017, a $3 million award, "for pioneering research on the Wnt pathway, one of the crucial intercellular signaling systems in development, cancer and stem cell biology."[9](https://breakthroughprize.org/Laureates/1/L3792) • [14](https://devbio.stanford.edu/news/2017/2/15/roeland-nusse-wins-3-million-breakthrough-prize) The Canada Gairdner International Award for 2020 cited his pioneering work on the [Wnt signaling pathway](https://www.edgepedia.org/wnt-signaling-pathway) and its importance in development, cancer, and stem cells; the 100,000 [Canadian dollar](https://www.edgepedia.org/canadian-dollar) award was to be donated to UNICEF for pandemic protective equipment.[8](https://www.gairdner.org/winner/roel-nusse) • [15](https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2020/05/roeland-nusse-receives-gairdner-international-award-.html) He was elected to the US National Academy of Sciences in 2010 and is a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, a member of the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences (since 1997) and of EMBO (since 1988), and received the Peter Debye Prize from the University of Maastricht in 2000.[1](https://profiles.stanford.edu/roeland-nusse) • [4](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse) • [14](https://devbio.stanford.edu/news/2017/2/15/roeland-nusse-wins-3-million-breakthrough-prize)
## Industry roles and applications
Mutated Wnt pathway components are causative of multiple growth-related pathologies and of cancer, and Wnt-targeted therapeutic efforts include Wnt-secretion inhibitors and antibodies against WNT/Frizzled binding.[6](https://wnt.stanford.edu/sites/g/files/sbiybj32631/files/media/file/nusse_clevers_cell_review_2017.pdf) • [7](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033)
## References
1. [Roeland Nusse's Profile | Stanford Profiles](https://profiles.stanford.edu/roeland-nusse)
2. [Roel Nusse, PhD | Investigator Profile | 1990-Present | HHMI](https://www.hhmi.org/scientists/roel-nusse)
3. https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(82)90409-3
4. [NusseBiosketch2018 (Stanford CAP biosketch)](https://cap.stanford.edu/profiles/viewBiosketch?facultyId=4280&name=Roeland_Nusse)
5. [Nusse & Varmus (1992), Wnt Genes, Cell](https://stanford.edu/~rnusse/reviews/NusseVarmusCel1992review.pdf)
6. [Wnt/β-Catenin Signaling, Disease, and Emerging Therapeutic Modalities (Cell, 2017)](https://wnt.stanford.edu/sites/g/files/sbiybj32631/files/media/file/nusse_clevers_cell_review_2017.pdf)
7. [Celebrating Discoveries in Wnt Signaling (Cell, 2020)](https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2020.03.033)
8. [Roel Nusse – Gairdner Foundation Award Winner](https://www.gairdner.org/winner/roel-nusse)
9. [Roeland Nusse – 2017 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences](https://breakthroughprize.org/Laureates/1/L3792)
10. [Roel Nusse, PhD | Surrozen](https://www.surrozen.com/team/roel-nusse)
11. [Nusse Lab – Stanford University](https://nusselab.stanford.edu/)
12. https://www.cell.com/cell-stem-cell/fulltext/S1934-5909(20)30358-1
13. [Wnt signaling and stem cell control (Science, 2014)](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1248012)
14. [Roeland Nusse wins $3 million Breakthrough Prize, Stanford Developmental Biology](https://devbio.stanford.edu/news/2017/2/15/roeland-nusse-wins-3-million-breakthrough-prize)
15. [Roeland Nusse receives Canada's Gairdner International Award (Stanford Medicine)](https://med.stanford.edu/news/all-news/2020/05/roeland-nusse-receives-gairdner-international-award-.html)
16. [Surrozen Scientific Founder Roel Nusse Receives Canada Gairdner International Award](https://www.biopharmawatch.com/news/SRZN/surrozen-scientific-founder-roel-nusse-phd-receives-prestigious-canada-gairdner-internatio-srzn-20200406)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Life and health › Life and health scientists › Life scientists › Researchers in developmental biology, stem cells, and plant biology › Cell signaling and pattern formation in development*
*Initially written Sep 20, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 25, 2026 · Last review: Sep 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license