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Stefan Koch

Senior Associate Professor

I am investigating how cellular signaling shapes tissue injury and repair
in inflammatory disorders and cancer

Molecular cell signaling

How do cells communicate with each other, and how can we interfere with their communication to cure common diseases?

Every cell in our body constantly makes decisions based on exchange of information with its surroundings. For example, cells next to a wound will actively repair the tissue and then return to a resting state. Bad decisions, on the other hand, are the cause of many common diseases, such as auto-immune disorders.

My group seeks to understand the molecular foundations of the complex signaling networks within cells, with the goal to find new treatment options for inflammatory diseases and cancer.


Publications

2026

Diana Atanasova, Ali Kusay, Lavanya Moparthi, Stefan Koch, Mathias Haarhaus, Sonoko Narisawa, Jose Luis Millan, Eva Landberg, Per Magnusson (2026) N-linked glycosylation plays an essential role in the stability and function of tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase Journal of Biological Chemistry, Vol. 302, Article 111092 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbc.2025.111092

2025

Amaia Jauregi Miguel, Simon Söderholm, Tamina Weiss, Anna Nordin, Valeria Ghezzi, Salome M. Brutsch, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Yorick van de Grift, Gianluca Zambanini, Jacopo Ulisse, Alessandro Mattia, Ruslan Deviatiiarov, Elena Faustini, Lavanya Moparthi, Wenjing Zhong, Bergthor Björnsson, Per A Sandström, Erik Lundqvist, Francisca Lottersberger, Stefan Koch, Andreas E. Moor, Xiao-Feng Sun, Eleonore von Castelmur, Guojun Shengo, Claudio Cantù (2025) The developmental factor TBX3 engages with the Wnt/ß-catenin transcriptional complex in colorectal cancer to regulate metastasis genes Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 122, Article 2419691122 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2419691122
Stefan Koch (2025) The transcription factor FOXQ1 in cancer Cancer Metastasis Review, Vol. 44, Article 22 (Article, review/survey) https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10555-025-10240-y

2024

Giulia Pizzolato, Lavanya Moparthi, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Claudio Cantù, Padraig D´arcy, Stefan Koch (2024) The tumour suppressor p53 is a negative regulator of the carcinoma-associated transcription factor FOXQ1 Journal of Biological Chemistry, Vol. 300, Article 107126 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbc.2024.107126
Diana Atanasova, Ekaterina Mirgorodskaya, Lavanya Moparthi, Stefan Koch, Mathias Haarhaus, Sonoko Narisawa, José Luis Millán, Eva Landberg, Per Magnusson (2024) Glycoproteomic profile of human tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase expressed in osteoblasts JBMR Plus, Vol. 8, Article ziae006 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jbmrpl/ziae006

News

Two male researchers in front of a computer.

Mechanism in embryonic development makes cancer aggressive

Tumour cells in colorectal cancer exploit an important signalling pathway that normally controls embryo development. Researchers have now shown how a protein that controls limb development make colorectal cancer cells more likely to spread.

Publications

2026

Diana Atanasova, Ali Kusay, Lavanya Moparthi, Stefan Koch, Mathias Haarhaus, Sonoko Narisawa, Jose Luis Millan, Eva Landberg, Per Magnusson (2026) N-linked glycosylation plays an essential role in the stability and function of tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase Journal of Biological Chemistry, Vol. 302, Article 111092 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jbc.2025.111092

2025

Amaia Jauregi Miguel, Simon Söderholm, Tamina Weiss, Anna Nordin, Valeria Ghezzi, Salome M. Brutsch, Pierfrancesco Pagella, Yorick van de Grift, Gianluca Zambanini, Jacopo Ulisse, Alessandro Mattia, Ruslan Deviatiiarov, Elena Faustini, Lavanya Moparthi, Wenjing Zhong, Bergthor Björnsson, Per A Sandström, Erik Lundqvist, Francisca Lottersberger, Stefan Koch, Andreas E. Moor, Xiao-Feng Sun, Eleonore von Castelmur, Guojun Shengo, Claudio Cantù (2025) The developmental factor TBX3 engages with the Wnt/ß-catenin transcriptional complex in colorectal cancer to regulate metastasis genes Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 122, Article 2419691122 (Article in journal) https://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2419691122
Stefan Koch (2025) The transcription factor FOXQ1 in cancer Cancer Metastasis Review, Vol. 44, Article 22 (Article, review/survey) https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10555-025-10240-y

Research

Cell signaling in inflammation and cancer.

Cell signaling in intestinal inflammation

All cells in an organism communicate with one another and with their environment through integrated signaling pathways. By exploring the molecular events that shape cellular decision-making, we can predict and control the fate of individual cells.

News and articles

Two male researchers in front of a computer.

Mechanism in embryonic development makes cancer aggressive

Tumour cells in colorectal cancer exploit an important signalling pathway that normally controls embryo development. Researchers have now shown how a protein that controls limb development make colorectal cancer cells more likely to spread.

Related research

Image of molecules that will take you to WCMM's homepage.

Wallenberg Centre for Molecular Medicine at LiU

WCMM at LiU focuses on the medicine-technology interface, and build upon our existing strengths in research within medical technology, materials science and bioengineering.

Organisation

Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences (BKV)

What characterizes the Department of Biomedical and Clinical Sciences (BKV) is the wide breadth of research and education. BKV is one of the largest departments at LiU with affiliation mainly to the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences.