Research Areas:

1. Hepatocyte metabolism and its metabolic interaction with microenvironment in hepatic metabolic diseases

2. The mechanism of redox stress regulating organ operation and promoting the deterioration of metabolic diseases

3. The mechanism of nutritional intervention regulating organ metabolism and synergistic drug therapy

Brief Biography:

2021–Now: PI, Shanghai Institute of nutrition and health, Chinese Academy of Sciences

2017-2021: Postdoctoral Fellow, Lewis Sigler Institute, Princeton University, USA

2016-2016: Postdoctoral in chemistry and Bioengineering, Rice University, USA

2010-2016: Doctor of chemistry and Bioengineering, Rice University, USA

2006-2010: Bachelor, School of chemical engineering, Tianjin University

Selected Publications:

1. Lifeng Yang, Tara TeSlaa, Serina Ng, Michel Nofal, Lin Wang, Taijin Lan, Xianfeng Zeng, Alexis Cowan, Matthew McBride, Wenyun Lu, Shawn Davidson, Gaoyang Liang, Tae Gyu Oh, Michael Downes, Ronald Evans, Daniel Von Hoff, Jessie Yanxiang Guo, Haiyong Han, Joshua D. Rabinowitz. Ketogenic diet and chemotherapy combine to disrupt pancreatic cancer metabolism and growth. Med 2022 Feb;3(2):119-136.E8
2. Yang Lifeng, Garcia Canaveras JC, Chen Z, Wang L, Liang L, Jang C, Mayr JA, Zhang Z, Ghergurovich JM, Zhan L, Joshi S, Hu Z, McReynolds MR, Su X, White E, Morscher RJ, Rabinowitz JD*. Serine catabolism feeds NADH when respiration is impaired. Cell Metabolism 2020;31(4):809-821
3. Yang Lifeng, Venneti S*, Nagrath D*. Glutaminolysis: A Hallmark of Cancer Metabolism. Annual Review of Biomedical Engineering 2017;19:163-194
4. Han Cecil^#, Yang L^#, Choi HH^#, Baddour J, Achreja A, Liu Y, Li Y, Li J, Wan G, Huang C, Ji G, Zhang X, Nagrath D*, Lu X*. Amplification of USP13 Promotes Ovarian Cancer Cell Metabolism and Tumor Progression. Nature Communications 2016;7(1):1-16 (*Equal Contribution)
5. Yang Lifeng, Achreja A, Yeung TL, Mangala LS, Jiang D, Han C, Baddour J, Marini JC, Ni J, Nakahara R, Wahlig S, Chiba L, Kim SH, Morse J, Pradeep S, Nagaraja AS, Haemmerle M, Kyunghee N, Derichsweiler M, Plackemeier T, Mercado-Uribe I, Lopez-Berestein G, Moss T, Ram PT, Liu J, Lu X, Mok SC, Sood AK*, Nagrath D*. Targeting Glutamine Synthetase in Tumors Disrupts Tumor Microenvironment-regulated Cancer Cell Growth. Cell Metabolism 2016;24(5):685-700
6. Caneba Christine A^#, Yang L^#, Baddour J, Curtis R, Win J, Hartig S, Marini J, Nagrath D*. Nitric Oxide is a Positive Regulator of the Warburg Effect in Ovarian Cancer Cells. Cell Death & Diseases 2014;5(6):e1302 (*Equal Contribution)
7. Yang Lifeng, Moss T, Mangala LS, Marini J, Zhao H, Wahlig S, Armaiz-Pena G, Jiang D, Achreja A, Win J, Roopaimoole R, Rodriguez-Aguayo C, Mercado-Uribe I, Lopez-Berestein G, Liu J, Tsukamoto T, Sood AK, Ram PT, Nagrath D*. Metabolic shifts toward glutamine regulates tumor growth, invasion and bioenergetics in ovarian cancer. Molecular Systems Biology 2014;10(5):728