Former Members
Yi-Chia Fang
Visiting Summer Student (2024)
Education: National Tsing Hua University
Research Fields: bioinformatics and next-generation sequencing study
Ying Liu, BS
Lab Manager (2016-2024)
Education: Beijing Industrial & Commercial College (BS)
Research Fields: In charge of Lab research stuff
Rinka Okahisa
UTHealth Houston Summer Research Program International Summer Intern (2024)
Education: Tokushima University Faculty of Medicine
Research Fields: mutant p53 and cancer immune
Award: UTHealth Houston UTHealth Houston Summer Research Program International Intern Scholarship
Brandon Sun
GradSURP Summer Intern (2024)
Education: Brown University
Research Fields: mutant p53
Award: UTHealth Houston GradSURP Scholarship
Taylor Rosen
Undergraduate Student (2022-2024)
Education: Rice University
Research Fields: Li-Fraumeni syndrome, mutant p53
Award: BioSciences Award for Outstanding Leadership and a Distinction in Research and Creative Work Award
Mariana K Najjar, PharmD, MS
GSBS Graduate Student (2024)
Education: Eastern Mediterranean University (PharmD); Wake Forest University (MS)
Research Fields: Breast tumors and the metastasis of breast cancer to the brain.
Yuan-Xin Wang, MS
Visiting Graduate Student (2023-2024)
Education: National Tsing Hua University (BS)
Research Fields: RB1 tumor suppressor and cancer
Award: Overseas Internship Program (Taiwan Ministry of Education) and Shen's Culture & Education Foundation Scholarship
Liang-Wei Lin, MS
Visiting Graduate Student (2022-2023)
Education: Asia University (BS), China Medical University (Ph.D.)
Research Fields: Li-Fraumeni syndrome, Hereditary Retinoblastoma
Cheng-En (Allen) Shen, MS
Graduate Student (2023)
Education: National Tsing Hua University (BS/MS)
Research Fields: mutant p53 and cancer
Rita B Khouri
UTHealth Houston McGovern Medical School Medical Student (2023)
Education: Brown University (MS), Chicago University (BS)
Research Fields: Li-Fraumeni syndrome, mutant p53
Yen-Ting Chiang
Visiting Graduate Student (2021-2023)
Education: China Medical Unversity
Research Fields: Li-Faruamnei syndrome, osteosarcoma, cancer mutations
Dandan Zhu, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow (DoD Horizon Award Fellow) (2017-2023)
Education: Central China Normal University (BS), Wuhan University (MS), The University of Hong Kong (Ph.D.)
Research Fields: Hereditary Retinoblastoma, transcriptional factors, bone development
Award: DoD Horizon postdoctoral fellowship, The 2nd Oversea Young Investigators Symposium of China Travel Award
Shannon Erhardt, MS
Ph.D. Student (2022)
Education: Iowa State University (BS), MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Houston Graduate School of Biological Sciences (MS)
Research Fields: neural crest differentiation
Yueh-Ming Shyu, MS
Ph.D. Student (2022)
Education: National Tsing Hua University (BS/MS)
Research Fields: Li-Fraumeni syndrome, Hereditary Retinoblastoma
Yumeng Sun
Undergraduate Student (2022)
Education: Texas A&M
Research Fields: p53 function
Award: UTHealth GradSURP summer program internship
Hao-Nien Chen, MS
Ph.D. Student (2022)
Education: Chung Shan Medical Dental University (BS), National Taiwan University (MS)
Research Fields: Dendritic cell (DC) differentiation
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Yi-Hung Chen, MS
Research Assistant (2021-2022)
Education: Taipei Medical University (BS), National Yang-Ming University (MS), Baylor Colledge of Medicine (Ph.D)
Research Fields: Hereditary Rentinoblatoma, RB1, oncogenic corporation
Hannah Ashraf
Undergraduate Student (2022)
Education: Rice University
Research Fields: Hereditary Retinoblastoma, RB1 mutation
Brittany E Jewell, Ph.D.
Ph.D. Student (UT Systems' student regent; Innovation for Cancer Prevention Research (ICPR) CPRIT Predoctoral Fellowship) (2016-2021)
Education: Baylor University (BS)The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (Ph.D.), Salk Institute for Biological Studies (Postdoc, currently)
Research Fields: Rothmund-Thomson syndrome, osteosarcoma, iPSC disease model
Award: UT Systems’ student regent, CRB Program Travel Award, Tzu Chi Scholarship Award for Excellence, GSBS Travel Award, NIH T32 Training Fellowship, ICPR CPRIT Predoctoral Fellowship, Charlene Kopchick Fellowship, Dr. John J. Kopchick Fellowship, Graduate Student Education Committee Travel Award, BCB Program Travel Award, AACR MICR Scholar Award, and UTHealth Dean’s Research Scholarship
Mo Liu, Ph.D.
Instructor (2017-2020)
Education: Wuhan University (BS), The University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at Houston (Ph.D.), Neural Stem Cell Institute (Postdoc)
Research Fields: Li-Fraumeni syndrome, mutant p53, organoid, brain tumors
Xueqin Gao, MD Ph.D.
Senior Research Scientist (2019-2020)
Education: Tongji Medical University (MD), Shandong University (Ph.D.), University of Pittsburgh (Postdoc) UTHealth (Assistant Professor))
Research Fields: bone development, muscle differentiation
Haidan Luo, MD
Visiting Student (2018-2020)
Education: Sun Yat-sen University (MD)
Research Fields: nasopharyngeal carcinoma, drug treatment, mutant p53
Jian Tu, MD
Visiting Scholar (2016-2019)
Education: Sun Yat-sen University (MD), The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (Postdoc)
Research Fields: hereditary retinoblastoma, osteosarcoma, RB1 tumor suppressor, cancer drivers, ubiquitin
Awards: Ke Lin program fellowship
Zijun Huo, MD
Visiting Scholar (2016-2019)
Education: Sun Yat-sen University (MD), The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (Postdoc)
Research Fields: Li-Fraumeni syndrome, mutant p53, liver cancer, liver lineage differentiation, AI
Awards: Ke Lin program fellowship
Ruoji Zhou, MD Ph.D.
PhD Student (2016-2019)
Education: Sun Yat-sen University, (MD), Fudan University (MS), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (Ph.D.), Northwestern University (Postdoc), UCLA Pathology Residence (currently)
Research Fields: Li-Fraumeni syndrome, osteosarcoma, cancer mutations
Awards: Cancer Prevention Research (ICPR) CPRIT Predoctoral Fellowship, Wei Yu Family Endowed Scholarship, UTHealth Dean’s Research Scholarship Award, Andrew Sowell-Wade Huggins Scholarships in Cancer Research
Lon Kai Pang
Undergraduate Student (Summer Intern) (2018-2021)
Education: Rice University (BS), Baylor Colledge of Medicine (MD student, currently)
Research Fields: osteosarcoma, drug treatment
Awards: UTHealth MedSURP program internship; UTHealth SPH CPRIT summer program internship
Mezthly Pena
Undergraduate Student (Summer Intern) (2019)
Education: Rice University (BS)
Research Fields: p53 and MDM2
Yao-Sheng Chen
MD Student (Summer Intern) (2019)
Education: National Defense Medical Center (MD)
Research Fields: CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing, enhancer
Yi-Lin Lee
MD Student (Summer Intern) (2019)
Education: National Defense Medical Center (MD)
Research Fields: transcription factors in bone development
Wei-Chao Lee
MD Student (Summer Intern) (2019)
Education: National Defense Medical Center (MD)
Research Fields: p53 stability, ubiquitin
Vivian Tat
Undergraduate Student (2018)
Education: The University of Texas at Austin (BS), The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (Ph.D. student, currently)
Research Fields: osteosarcoma, drug treatment
Yu Lin, MD
Visiting Student (2018-2019)
Education: Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine
Research Fields: p53 stability, ubiquitin
Alaa M.T. Mohamed
Research Assistant (2017-2018)
Education: Ain Shams University (BA and MS), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (Ph.D. student, currently)
Research Fields: liver differentiation
Donghui Wang, MD Ph.D.
Visiting Student (2016-2018)
Education: Sun Yat-sen University (MD)
Research Fields: nasopharyngeal carcinoma, radiation resistance
Award: China scholarship council fellowship
Celine Shuet Lin Kong
Undergraduate Student (Summer Intern) (2017), Research Assistant (2018)
Education: Queens University of Charlotte (BS), The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center UTHealth Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (Ph.D. student, currently)
Research Fields: mutant p53, brain tumors
Grant A. Dixon
MD Student (Summer Intern) (2017)
Education:
Research Fields: mutant p53, osteosaarcoma
Yu-Hsuan Lin
Research Assistant (2016-2017)
Education: National Tsing Hua University, (BS), National Taiwan University, (MS), UT Southwestern Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (Ph.D. student, currently)
Research Fields: Diamond-Blackfan anemia, RPS19, RPL5, osteosaarcoma