Current Lab members
Yuwei Jiang, Ph.D.
Principle Investigator, Associate Professor
Dr. Jiang is originally from China and earned her B.S. in Biological Sciences from Fudan University. She received her Ph.D. in Molecular and Human Genetics from Baylor College of Medicine, where she studied organ development, disease modeling, and gene regulation. She subsequently completed her postdoctoral training in the Department of Developmental Biology and the Division of Endocrinology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. Dr. Jiang joined the UIC Department of Physiology and Biophysics as an Assistant Professor in August 2018 and is currently an Associate Professor. Her research focuses on the roles of adipose stem and progenitor cells in adipose tissue development, expansion, and aging. Outside the laboratory, she enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, biking, running, baking, and listening to a wide variety of podcasts.
Dr. Jooman Park, Ph.D.
Research Assistant Professor
Jooman received his B.S. in the Department of Life Science from Yonsei University, South Korea, and earned M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Yonsei University College of Medicine, South Korea. Previously, his studies focused on the mechanisms regulating transcriptional factors by post-translational modification and their functional relevance to Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).
At the Jiang lab, he is investigating the mechanisms underlying the extension of beige adipocyte longevity and its role in adipose tissue dysfunction, such as obesity, T2DM, and lipodystrophy. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with his family, playing basketball and soccer, and traveling to new places.
Dr. Shaolei Xiong, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Shaolei received his B.S. with honors in Ecology from Sun Yat-sen University and his M.S. in Genomics from the Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences. He then moved to the U.S., where he studied the evolutionary genetics of cavefish at the Stowers Institute for Medical Research in Dr. Nicolas Rohner’s lab.
As a postdoctoral fellow in the Jiang lab, Shaolei investigates the crosstalk between Notch signaling and its regulators in brown adipose tissue development and remodeling, using lineage tracing and mouse models. Outside the lab, he enjoys fishing, playing volleyball, and watching movies.
Dr. Junxiao Ren, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
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Junxiao received his Ph.D. from China Agricultural University in 2022, where he studied the mechanisms of embryonic stem cell development. He then completed a three-year postdoctoral training in Dr. Feng Yue’s lab at the University of Florida, focusing on how mitochondrial metabolism regulates cell fate decisions in muscle stem cells and adipocytes.
As a postdoctoral associate in the Jiang lab, Junxiao will continue to leverage adipose and muscle models to investigate stem cell fate determination under physiological and pathological conditions, including aging and disease. Outside the lab, he enjoys spending time with his wife and their young daughter.
Dr. Bingqing Ji, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Bingqing received her B.S. from Southwest University, China, and her Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from Huazhong University of Science and Technology, China, where she conducted her doctoral research in the Brainsmatics Team at the National Laboratory for Optoelectronics.
As a postdoctoral researcher in the Jiang lab, Bingqing leverages her expertise in omics data analysis to investigate the mechanisms underlying adipocyte formation and its functional dysregulation in obesity, aging, and cancer.
Fang (Tina) Tang, Ph.D.
Visiting Research Scholar
Fang (Tina) Tang is a visiting scholar in the Jiang lab. She received her M.S. in Endocrinology and Metabolism from Xiangya School of Medicine at Central South University in China and currently serves as an attending endocrinologist at a tertiary hospital in Shenzhen.
In the Jiang lab, Tina investigates the role of GRER in adipose tissue thermogenesis and metabolic adaptation using both mouse models and cell culture systems.
Pranav Harish
Undergraduate, GPPA Medical Scholar
Pranav is an undergraduate student majoring in Neuroscience under the GPPA Medical Scholars Program. In his free time, he enjoys reading, playing basketball, and spending time with friends.
Rodger Zawodniak
Undergraduate, GPPA Medical Scholar
Rodger Zawodniak is an undergraduate student in the GPPA Medicine Program studying Statistics and Biological Sciences.
Jasmine De Luna
Undergraduate, GPPA Medical Scholar
Jasmine is an undergraduate student in the GPPA program at the University of Illinois Chicago, majoring in Biological Sciences, who is interested in pursuing a career in oncology. I enjoy playing soccer and skateboarding.
Aarush Vora
Undergraduate, GPPA Medical Scholar
Aarush is an undergraduate student in the GPPA Medicine program with a strong interest in genetics and anatomy. He hopes to pursue a career as a physician and is excited to develop his research skills through lab work. Outside of class, he plays tennis and enjoys writing.
Lab Alumni
Yanyu Qian
Master Student
Ruoci Hu
Ph.D. Student
Pranav Nair
Undergraduate Student
Aditya Chhikara
Undergraduate Student
Yexian Yuan, Ph.D.
Postdoc Fellow
Ruifan Wu, Ph.D.
Postdoc Fellow
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Cedric Shi
Ph.D. Student
Jaden Wang
Undergraduate Student
Asma El-Sabbagh
Undergraduate Student
Sana Syed
Undergraduate Student
Sonia Shin, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Lifeng Liu, Ph.D.
Research Specialist
Michael Jose Lukas
Undergraduate Student
Brandon Lukas
Undergraduate Student
Maryam Majid, PhD
Research Specialist
Huailin Fan, Ph.D.
Visiting Scholar
The Jiang Lab welcomes strong candidates to apply to the lab as postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, undergraduate students or professional scientists.
Individuals with experience/interest in stem cell, organ development and aging, obesity and diabetes, bioinformatics or mouse genetics are especially encouraged to apply.
