Postdoctoral Research Scientist

Dr. Junqing Kang completed her doctoral studies in biochemistry and molecular biology at Tsinghua University, specializing in the epigenetic regulation of transcription initiation under the mentorship of Dr. Haitao Li. Following her Ph.D., she joined the Zhang lab in 2024, where she continues to investigate the intricacies of epigenetics and chromatin biology. Junqing's current research focuses on unraveling the molecular mechanisms underlying the inheritance patterns of parental histones during the process of DNA replication.

Postdoctoral Research Scientist

Dr. Gu received a B.E. in biopharmaceutics from Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine. He received his Ph.D. in biochemistry and molecular biology from the Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, where he first constructed several single-chromosome Schizosaccharomyces pombe models and revealed that both chromosome number(s) and configuration affect meiosis and natural speciation under the guidance of Dr. Jin-Qiu Zhou and Li-Lin Du. Now, in Dr. Zhiguo Zhang’s lab, he focuses on exploring the molecular mechanisms for neurons to promote the proliferation of diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) to identify new potential therapeutic targets for epigenetically dysregulated DIPG.

Postdoctoral Research Scientist

Dr. Xiaojie Zhang earned her B.S. from the School of Life Sciences at Shandong University and obtained her Ph.D. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the Center for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences. During her doctoral training in Dr. Guoliang Xu’s lab, she discovered that Tet dioxygenases self-regulate their enzymatic activity to ensure precise methylome reprogramming.

Currently, in the Zhang Lab, Xiaojie focuses on identifying novel factors/genes involved in parental histone transfer and silencing of transposons during DNA replication. She is also developing experimental approaches based on long-read sequencing to reveal chromatin states.

Outside the lab, Xiaojie enjoys a variety of sports and outdoor activities.

Postdoctoral Research Scientist

Dr. Hui Han received BS/MS/PhD in basic medicine from the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University under the mentorship of Dr. Shuibin Lin. His doctoral research focused on RNA epigenetics, particularly the role of N7-methylguanosine (m7G) tRNA modifications in selective regulation of mRNA translation efficiency and their impact on tumorigenesis. Now as a postdoctoral researcher in Dr. Zhiguo Zhang’s lab at Columbia University, Hui is investigating the mechanisms and regulators of epigenetic silencing at transposable elements and its implications for genome stability and cancer development. His research also explores transcript-mediated regulation of parental histone transfer coupled to DNA replication, aiming to understand how this process influences chromatin dynamics.

Postdoctoral Research Scientist

Dr. An obtained her B.S. from the College of Life Sciences at Sichuan University and went on to earn her Ph.D. from the Institutes of Biomedical Sciences at Fudan University, where she trained under the mentorship of Dr. Jinchuan Hu and Dr. Guoliang Xu. During her doctoral studies, she focused on developing and utilizing novel sequencing techniques to study DNA damage and repair at the genomic level. In 2024, Dr. An joined the Zhang Lab to further explore the intricate regulatory networks of epigenetics. Her current research is centered on understanding the molecular mechanisms governing the silencing of endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) in mouse embryonic stem cells.

Postdoctoral Research Scientist

Dr. Fang earned his B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from Huazhong University of Science and Technology and his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering from the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, where he was mentored by Dr. Victor Jin. Currently, as a member of Dr. Zhiguo Zhang’s lab, Dr. Fang focuses on modeling cfDNA methylation patterns for multi-cancer early detection and analyzing long-read sequencing data to decode replication-associated epigenetic patterns.

Associate Research Scientist

Dr. Zhang received a BS in biotechnology from Huazhong University of Science and Technology. He received a PhD in cell biology from Peking University, where he completed a proof-of-principle study reprogramming the cell fate of somatic cells to induced pluripotent cells by using only small molecules under the mentorship of Dr. Hongkui Deng. Now in Dr. Zhiguo Zhang’s lab, he is dedicated to elucidating the molecular mechanisms for onco-histone mutations in diffuse midline gliomas (DMG) and identifying potential therapeutic targets for novel treatments. He is making use of state-of-the-art techniques (e.g., CUT&RUN, CUT&Tag) to determine how H3K27M onco-histones regulate the tumorigenesis of DMG. He is also using CRISPR/Cas9 genetic screens to identify novel therapeutic targets for DMG tumors.

Lab Manager

Hui is the lab manager of the Zhang Lab. Her current research project focuses on early cancer detection using cell-free DNA.

Official Lab Mascot

Fufu is a three-year-old American domestic cat. She enjoys her canned food and Hide N’ Seek!