Abstract:
Our genome is decorated with diverse chemical modifications on proteins that package the DNA. These modifications constitute an essential layer of information (referred to as the epigenome) above the DNA sequence to regulate genome architecture and function. How the epigenome is decoded to impact a cell’s fate and behavior and how this process goes awry in human diseases remain poorly understood. Liling Wan, Ph.D., will discuss about her efforts in addressing these important questions and how we can translate the insights gained to therapeutic opportunities.

Speaker:
Liling Wan, Ph.D., graduated from Tsinghua University in China with a B.S. in biological sciences and biotechnology. She then went on to obtain Ph.D. degree from Princeton University, where she studied cancer biology, with a focus on cancer metastasis. Wan is now a postdoctoral fellow with David Allis, Ph.D., at Rockefeller University. During her postdoc, she studied how epigenetic information stored on chromatin is translated by chromatin reader proteins, and how this process impacts cell fate and cancer. Wan is recognized by numerous awards for her work, including a Jane Coffin Childs Postdoctoral Fellowship and a NIH K99 Pathway to Independent career award.