Project: Primary Cilia in T1D Pancreas

NIH NIDDK Gateway Investigator Recipient

►Where are you from originally, and where did you go to school?

I grew up in China and moved to the U.S. in the 1990s. I attended Stanford University for undergrad and Penn for MD PhD, then Yale for my clinical training in Internal Medicine and Endocrinology. 

►What is your current position?

Assistant Professor in the Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism, and Lipid Research at Washington University.  

►Why did you decide to become a researcher?

I love creating new knowledge. As a physician-scientist, this means finding out about how our bodies work, in ways that re-write medical textbooks. 

►What is the “Big Picture” of what you study?

We are trying to understand islet cell crosstalk. Islets are complex mixtures of cells that communicate and inter-regulate. We study primary cilia which are cellular antennae that allow us to eavesdrop on the cells to see what messages they are sending and receiving from each other. 

►What is your favorite aspect of your research?

We love finding new ways to do science. Cilia research is the perfect topic to unite all my interests – microscopy, physiology, molecular biology. It is a beautiful structure to image, and cilia biology is fascinating.

► What do you hope to achieve with your research?

We want to learn: 1) What functions do primary cilia have in islet cells? 2) How do cilia defects lead to human diabetes? 3) What other pancreatic diseases affect primary cilia?