Yong Zhu, Ph.D.
Associate Professor,
Division of Environmental Health Sciences
Dr. Zhu's research interests are oriented towards the use of the molecular epidemiological approach in the study of genetic susceptibility biomarkers and their interactions with environmental exposures in human disease development. Dr. Zhu has been developing and validating novel phenotypic and genotypic assays and biomarkers for several cancer types, including non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, breast, bladder, lung and prostate cancer. By utilizing various techniques in genetics, epigenetics, cytogenetics, cell biology, and computational biology, Dr. Zhu's studies have identified biomarkers that can characterize inherited predisposition and cellular response to environmental factors. Current research focuses on studying the role of two classes of transcriptional regulators, circadian genes and microRNAs, in tumorigenesis.
Education
Ph.D., Rice University, 2000
M.A., Rice University, 1998
M.S., Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1994
B.S., Zhejiang University, 1991
Awards and Honors
Scholar-in Trainee Award, American Association for Cancer Research, 2002
Bristol-Myers Squibb Award in Clinic/Translational Research, 2002
Cancer Prevention Post-Doctoral Fellowship, M. D. Anderson Cancer Center, 2000
Wray-Todd Fellowship, Rice University, 1996-1999
Professional Services
NIEHS Superfund Basic Research and Training Program Special Emphasis Panel, 2009
NCI Special Emphasis Panel for Cancer Prevention, 2008-present
Pennsylvania Department of Health Special Review Panel, 2007-present
Thomas F & Kate Miller Jeffress Memorial Trust Special Review Panel, 2005-present
British Medical Research Council Special Review Panel, 2008
Health Research Board Ireland Special Review Panel for Cancer Biomarker Research Network, 2006
Courses Taught
EHS 545b, Environmental Genetics
Current Research Projects
Molecular epidemiology and functional analysis of circadian genes and human cancers; Molecular epidemiology of methylation-related genes and human cancers; Molecular epidemiology and functional analysis of microRNAs and human cancers; Functional SNP database for environmentally responsive genes
Yale Affiliations
Yale Cancer Center
Selected Publications
Zhu Y, Stevens RG, Hoffman A, FitzGerald LM, Kwon EM, Ostrander EA, Davis S, Zheng T, Stanford JL. Testing the circadian gene hypothesis in prostate cancer: a population-based case-control study. Cancer Research (In press)
Hoffman A, Zheng T, Yi CH, Leaderer D, Weidhaas J, Slack F, Zhang Y, Paranjape T, Zhu Y. microRNA miR-196a-2 and Breast Cancer: A Genetic and Epigenetic Association Study and Functional Analysis. Cancer Research July 15;69 (14), 2009
Yi CH, Zheng T, Leaderer D, Hoffman A, Zhu Y. Cancer-related transcriptional targets of the circadian gene NPAS2 identified by genome-wide ChIP-on-chip analysis. Cancer Letter May 18, 2009
Hoffman A, Zheng T, Stevens RG, Ba Y, Zhang Y, Leaderer D, Yi CH, Holford TR, Zhu Y. Clock-cancer connection in Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma: a genetic association study and pathway analysis of the circadian gene Cryptochrome 2. Cancer Research Apr 15;69(8):3605-13, 2009
Yi CH, Mu L, de la Longrais R, Sochirca O, Arisio R, Yu H, Zhu Y, Katsaro D. The circadian gene NPAS2 is a novel prognostic biomarker for breast cancer. Breast Cancer Research and Treatment Aug 1. 2009
Zhu Y, Hoffman A, Wu X, Zhang H, Zhang Y, Leaderer D, and Zheng T. Correlating observed odds ratios from lung cancer case-control studies to SNP functional scores predicted by bioinformatic tools. Mutation Research March 1; 2008
Hoffman A, Zheng T, Ba Y, Zhu Y. The circadian gene NPAS2, a putative tumor suppressor, is involved in DNA damage response. Molecular Cancer Research Sep;6(9):1461-8. 2008
Zhu, Y, Brown, H, Zhang, Y, Stevens, RG, Zheng, T. Period3 Structural Variation: A Circadian Biomarker Associated with Breast Cancer in Young Women. Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention 14(1):268-70, 2005
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