Research Interests

Using transgenic and gene targeted mouse models to study the physiological and pathological roles of Rho GTPases and their regulators in hematopoiesis, neurogenesis, lung cancer development and small intestinal stem cell regulations; mechanism based, rational design of small molecule inhibitors targeting Rho GTPase signaling modules and pathologic functions in cancer and blood diseases; mouse model studies of mTor signaling function in hematopoietic stem cells and small intestinal stem cells.

BS: Tsinghua University, Beijing, China, 1986.

MS: Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 1988.

PhD: Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 1991.

Postdoctoral Fellow: Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 1995.

Stengel K, Zheng Y. Cdc42 in oncogenic transformation, invasion, and tumorigenesis. Cell Signal. 2011 Sep;23(9):1415-23.

Akbar H, Shang X, Perveen R, Berryman M, Funk K, Johnson JF, Tandon NN, Zheng Y. Gene Targeting Implicates Cdc42 GTPase in GPVI and Non-GPVI Mediated Platelet Filopodia Formation, Secretion and Aggregation. PLoS One. 2011;6(7):e22117.

Liu W, Feng Y, Shang X, Zheng Y. Rho GTPases in hematopoietic stem/progenitor cell migration. Methods Mol Biol. 2011;750:307-19.

Shang X, Cancelas JA, Li L, Guo F, Liu W, Johnson JF, Ficker A, Daria D, Geiger H, Ratner N, Zheng Y. R-Ras and Rac GTPase cross-talk regulates hematopoietic progenitor cell migration, homing, and mobilization. J Biol Chem. 2011 Jul 8;286(27):24068-78.

Wang X, Zhang F, Chen F, Liu D, Zheng Y, Zhang Y, Dong C, Su B. MEKK3 regulates IFN-gamma production in T cells through the Rac1/2-dependent MAPK cascades. J Immunol. 2011 May 15;186(10):5791-800.

Katayama K, Melendez J, Baumann JM, Leslie JR, Chauhan BK, Nemkul N, Lang RA, Kuan CY, Zheng Y, Yoshida Y. Loss of RhoA in neural progenitor cells causes the disruption of adherens junctions and hyperproliferation. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2011 May 3;108(18):7607-12.

Melendez J, Stengel K, Zhou X, Chauhan BK, Debidda M, Andreassen P, Lang RA, Zheng Y. RhoA GTPase is dispensable for actomyosin regulation but is essential for mitosis in primary mouse embryonic fibroblasts. J Biol Chem. 2011 Apr 29;286(17):15132-7.

Guo F, Zhang S, Tripathi P, Mattner J, Phelan J, Sproles A, Mo J, Wills-Karp M, Grimes HL, Hildeman D, Zheng Y. Distinct roles of Cdc42 in thymopoiesis and effector and memory T cell differentiation. PLoS One. 2011 Mar 24;6(3):e18002.

Akunuru S, Palumbo J, Zhai QJ, Zheng Y. Rac1 targeting suppresses human non-small cell lung adenocarcinoma cancer stem cell activity. PLoS One. 2011 Feb 9;6(2):e16951.

Melendez J, Grogg M, Zheng Y. Signaling role of Cdc42 in regulating mammalian physiology. J Biol Chem. 2011 Jan 28;286(4):2375-81.