Yan Zhang, PhD

Principal Investigator

Associate Professor of Biological Chemistry

Associate Professor of Microbiology and Immunology

B.S.  Peking University

PhD: University of Wisconsin Madison

Email: yzhangbc@med.umich.edu

Yan is an Associate Professor at the University of Michigan Medical School, in the Department of Biological Chemistry and Department of Microbiology & Immunology. She also serves as a Co-Director of the RNA Therapeutics Core. Yan earned her B.S. in Biological Sciences from Peking University, and her Ph.D. in Biomolecular Chemistry from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. For postdoctoral training, she worked with Erik Sontheimer at Northwestern University and the University of Massachusetts Medical School, where she investigated the role of CRISPR-Cas9 in bacteria natural transformation. She also established NmeCas9 as a Type II-C prototype and developed it into a miniature gene editor for use in human embryonic stem cells.

Yan started the lab In 2017 at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor, and was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 2024. She is the recipient of the NSF CAREER Award, the NIH MIRA Award, the NIH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award, and the AHA Postdoctoral Fellowship. She has also received institutional awards, including the Biological Scholar Award, he Michigan's Translational Research and Commercialization (MTRAC) Award, the EBS Accelerator Award, the Research Scouts Award.

Yan is deeply committed to mentorship and to fostering a collaborative, supportive research team. She has guided three dozen undergraduate, graduate, and postdoctoral trainees, and takes great pride in tailoring her mentoring to each trainee’s career aspirations. She finds it deeply gratifying to watch her trainees grow, build confidence, and succeed.

Outside the lab, you’ll often find her cooking, traveling, or answering a nonstop stream of ‘why’s from her young son.