Profile

Dr. Kai Yuan, born in 1982 in Changsha, Hunan Province, is a member of the Communist Party of China. He is currently a researcher at the Institute of Precision Molecular Medicine, Xiangya Hospital, Central South University; a researcher at the Medical Genetics Research Center, School of Life Sciences; and Director of the Clinical Biosample Center at Xiangya Hospital. He also serves as a PhD supervisor. In 2004, he obtained his bachelor’s degree from the School of Life Sciences at the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC), and in 2009, he earned his PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology from the same institution under the supervision of Professor Xuebiao Yao. From 2010 to 2016, he conducted postdoctoral research and worked as a Specialist at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), under the mentorship of Patrick O’Farrell, a member of both the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2017, Dr. Yuan joined Xiangya Hospital, Central South University.

He has been selected as a National Overseas High-Level Young Talent, a Special Expert in the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) "Hai Zhi" Program, a Leading Talent in Scientific and Technological Innovation in Hunan Province, a recipient of the Hunan Outstanding Youth Fund, and a "Huxiang Youth Talent".

Dr. Yuan’s research group focuses on studying the regulatory functions and molecular mechanisms of tandem and dispersed DNA repeat sequences in the genome during physiological and pathological processes, such as embryonic development and tumor progression, using models like Drosophila, embryonic stem cells, and clinical samples. His team is also developing novel strategies for disease diagnosis and treatment based on these findings. Key achievements include: (1) elucidating the dynamic processes and mechanisms that maintain the compartmentalization of heterochromatin by repeat sequences; (2) uncovering novel roles of repeat sequence transcriptional activity in cell fate determination and transition; and (3) establishing an innovative platform for clinical sample resources and developing targeted diagnostic and therapeutic strategies for repeat sequences.

Over the past five years, Dr. Yuan has published 17 original research papers in developmental and cell biology journals as a corresponding author (including co-corresponding) in journals such as Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), Nature Communications, eLife (2 articles), PLoS Biology, Cell Reports, Journal of Molecular Cell Biology (3 articles), Journal of Genetics and Genomics (2 articles), and Cell Regeneration. He has also filed four national invention patents. Dr. Yuan teaches courses in developmental biology and cell biology for undergraduate and graduate students, and he contributed to the editing of Developmental Biology (Second Edition) published by Science Press and Organoids and Their Applications by Shanghai Science and Technology Press. He serves as a mentor for the CAST Youth Talent Program for high school students.

Dr. Yuan has participated in or led numerous research projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), including major research plans and general programs, as well as key R&D programs by the Ministry of Science and Technology. He has received various awards, including the Hunan Youth Science and Technology Award, the Hunan Outstanding Talent in Scientific and Technological Innovation, the UCSF Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) Strategic Opportunities Support Early Career Pilot Award, and the Program for Breakthrough Biomedical Research (PBBR) Postdoctoral Award.

He holds several leadership and committee positions, including Vice Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chinese Society for Cell Biology, Vice President of the Hunan Genetics Society, Executive Council Member and Party Secretary of the Hunan Neuroscience Society, and member of several professional committees under the Chinese Society for Cell Biology, the Chinese Society of Zoology, the Chinese Society for Biotechnology, and the Chinese Research Hospital Association. Dr. Yuan also serves as Associate Editor for Cell Biology International, the official journal of the International Federation for Cell Biology (IFCB), and as an editorial board member or early-career editor for Gene Therapy, Phenomics, and other journals.