Joshua Welch, PhD
Associate Professor of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics, Medical School
Associate Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, College of Engineering
Email:
[email protected]
Available to mentor
Joshua Welch, PhD
Associate Professor
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Qualifications
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Postdoctoral ResearcherBroad Institute of Harvard and MIT, United States
2017 - 2018
Postdoctoral Research
Center Memberships
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Center Membere-Health and Artificial Intelligence Initiative
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Center MemberCenter for Cell Plasticity and Organ Design
Research Overview
I develop AI/ML approaches to decipher the link between molecular features and cellular phenotypes. By combining generative AI (autoencoders, diffusion models, and generative adversarial networks) with emerging single-cell experimental technologies, I aim to build predictive models of how cells will respond to genetic and chemical perturbations. Additionally, I perform experiments on iPS-derived neuron models to better model and treat neurodevelopment and neurological disease.
Links
Welch Lab
Recent Publications
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Núñez FJ, Banerjee K, Mujeeb AA, Mauser A, Tronrud CE, Zhu Z, Raghuram S, Sheth MR, Pena Agudelo JA, Zelaya J, Taher A, Kadiyala P, Carney SV, Garcia-Fabiani MB, Comba A, Alghamri MS, McClellan BL, Klaiss A, Nwosu ZC, Hong HS, Sajjakulnukit P, Qin T, Sartor MA, Ljungman M, Welch JD, Cheng S-Y, Lowenstein PR, Lahann J, Lyssiotis CA, Castro MG. Nat Commun, 2026 Sep 18; 17 (1):Journal ArticleAutophagy inhibition sensitizes radiotherapy responses in high-grade mutant IDH1 glioma.
DOI:10.1038/s41467-026-77320-7 PMID: 42760279 -
Varela ML, Kast H, West M, Rose M, Visñuk DP, Springer MV, Raghuram S, Zhu Z, Wang Y, McClellan B, Comba A, Murthy B, Hafshejani FK, AlMunaidi H, Edwards M, Welsh J, Castro MG, Lowenstein PR. 2026 Aug 5;PreprintA dual pronged approach to cancer immune exclusion: tumor-derived LAIR-1 simultaneously drives fibrosis and blocks immune recruitment in glioma.
DOI:10.21203/rs.3.rs-10472790/v1 PMID: 42620371 -
McLinden AP, Tadokoro K, Ibuki Y, Walker NM, Lu L, Ke F, Vittal R, Ranjan A, Mehta MP, Farver CF, Welch JD, Lama VN. 2026 Jul 27;PreprintIL-6 trans-signaling regulates CXCL12 expression in mesenchymal stromal cells and plasma cell niche in rejecting lung allografts.
DOI:10.1101/2025.02.16.638532 PMID: 42538956 -
Lu L, McLinden AP, Walker NM, Vittal R, Wang Y, Fattahi F, Russell ST, Combs MP, Welch JD, Lama VN. Jci Insight, 2026 Jul 8; 11 (13):Journal ArticleSingle-cell multiomic analysis of mesenchymal cells reveals molecular signatures and regulators of lung allograft fibrosis
DOI:10.1172/jci.insight.196651 PMID: 42044158 -
Wang C, Geng X, Abdelrahman S, Fu Y, Kady N, Rauf MA, Hristov A, Tejasvi T, Murga-Zamalloa C, Tsoi L, Welch J, Fox J, Carty SA, Gudjonsson JE, Wilcox RA. Blood, 2026 Jun 30;Journal ArticleA single-cell atlas identifies oncogenic transcriptional programs and immune escape mechanisms in CTCL.
DOI:10.1182/blood.2025032507 PMID: 42378251 -
McClellan BL, Peña Agudelo JA, Mujeeb AA, Dabaja AA, Zhu Z, Raghuram S, Varela ML, Tronrud C, Banerjee K, Wei A, Calatroni C, Zhang LH, Romero LC, Oh P, Alghamri MS, Robbins A, Perricone M, Wang Y, Shay B, Sajjakulnukit P, Lyssiotis CA, Welch JD, Schwendeman A, Lowenstein PR, Castro MG. Molecular Therapy Oncology, 2026 Jun 18; 34 (2):Journal ArticleReprogramming the immune suppressive tumor microenvironment in glioma enhances the efficacy of immune-mediated gene therapy
DOI:10.1016/j.omton.2026.201215 -
Welch J. 2026 Jun 11;PresentationInferring cell differentiation and migration from spatial transcriptomic data
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Liu J, Manabe H, Qian W, Orikasa S, Ghaemmaghami J, Wang Y, Gu Y, Chu AKY, Gadhvi G, Song Y, McClinden P, Lama VN, Ono N, Welch JD. Nature Genetics, 2026 Jun 1; 58 (6): 1396 - 1408.Journal ArticleCytoSignal detects locations and dynamics of ligand–receptor signaling at cellular resolution from spatial transcriptomic data
DOI:10.1038/s41588-026-02624-9 PMID: 42271087
Featured News & Stories
Health Lab
Studying neurons using neurons
Labs at the University of Michigan Medical School are exploring a new technology that leverages the biological capabilities of human neurons for artificial intelligence.
Health Lab
New algorithmic tool enables to scientists to see cells “talk” to one another
A new U-M study, featured in Nature Genetics, details a technique to infer cell-cell communication using spatial transcriptomics
Health Lab
An AI model accurately predicts how cells end up in position inside tissues
Understanding transitions from cell to tissue in space and over time: A new modeling tool from the Welch lab at Michigan Medicine.
Department News
A Welch lab publication is recognized in Molecular Systems Biology with a cover design
A Welch lab publication is recognized in Molecular Systems Biology with a cover design
The Welch lab developed PertubNet, a generative AI model that can predict shifts in cell state—changes in overall gene expression—in response to multiple types of unseen cellular perturbations, including responses to drugs.
This tool was published in Molecular Systems Biology (Volume 21, Issue 8, 4 August 2025.) and was recognized with the opportunity to design the cover of the journal.
Great Minds, Greater Discoveries Stories
Research Scout Scholar: Joshua Welch, PhD
Meet Dr. Joshua Welch, a Great Minds Research Scouts scholar at the U-M Medical School.
Department News
Thomas Chen, M.S.: From U-M to Harvard/MIT
Thomas Chen, M.S., graduated in Spring 2025 from the Gilbert S. Omenn Department of Computational Medicine and Bioinformatics (DCMB) with a Master's in Science degree. He started his bioinformatics studies at U-M as a senior student majoring in Microbiology, and attended DCMB’s Accelerated MS program. In June 2025, he will pursue his training to become a scientist-physician at the Harvard/MIT MD-PhD Program.
