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Lisa Zhang, PhD, MD

Lisa Yuxia Zhang portrait
Associate Professor, Pharmacology, Toxicology & Therapeutics

KU Cancer Center member

lzhang5@kumc.edu

Professional Background

Dr. Zhang is an Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology, Toxicology and Therapeutics at the University of Kansas Medical Center.

Dr. Zhang received her medical degree and PhD in Cancer Biology from the Wuhan University School of Medicine, China and proceeded to complete postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Kansas Medical Center and University of Utah School of Medicine. Her research interests include basic and translational research in metabolic and inflammatory disorders such as obesity, diabetes, nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and NAFLD-associated liver cancer.

Dr. Zhang was a recipient of several grants and awards including NIH K22 career development award, NIH COBRE pilot project, American Cancer Society (ACS) Institutional award, and American Association for the Study of Liver Disease (AASLD) Bridging award. Currently She is the principle investigator of an ongoing NIH R01 project.

Education and Training
  • MD, Bachelor degree of clinical Medicine, equivalent to MD, Wuhan University School of Medicine, Wuhan, China
  • MS, Molecular & Cell Biology, Wuhan University School of Medicine, Wuhan, China
  • PhD, Cancer Biology, Wuhan University School of Medicine, Wuhan, China
  • Post Doctoral Fellowship, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City, KS
  • Post Doctoral Fellowship, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT
Professional Affiliations
  • Society of Toxicology (SOT), Member, 2019 - Present
  • American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology , Member, 2016 - Present
  • American Society for Investigative Pathology , Member, 2016 - Present
  • American Society for Physiology , Member, 2014 - Present
  • American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases , Member, 2008 - Present

Research

Overview

The overall goal of my research is to improve understanding of the complex regulation of metabolic homeostasis in physiology and pathophysiology, and to identify new therapeutic strategies to treat metabolic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), and NAFLD-associated liver cancer. Insulin resistance and dyslipidemia are major risk factors of cardiovascular disease, which is the leading cause of death in diabetic and NAFLD patients. In addition, simple steatosis may progress to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), which is a hepatic inflammatory condition that leads to cirrhosis, liver failure and liver cancer. Currently, genetic and environmental factors driving steatosis to NASH progression are incompletely understood, and there are still no FDA approved drugs for NASH treatment. Better understanding the pathogenesis of obesity, insulin resistance, and metabolic disorders is fundamental to developing effective strategies for disease prevention and treatment.

Current projects in my laboratory have been focused on investigating the role of transcription factors and RNA-binding proteins in the regulation of hepatic lipid and glucose metabolism during the development of obesity, diabetes, NAFLD, and NAFLD-associated liver cancer. We address basic biology and clinically relevant questions using dietary, genetic and pharmacological models, and approaches such as unbiased genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and proteomics techniques.

Current Research and Grants
  • RNA-binding protein HuR in liver pathophysiology and carcinogenesis, NIH, PI
Publications
  • Magee, N, Zou, A, Lehn, S, He, Lin, Ghosh, Priyanka, Ahamed, F, Zhang, Y. 2022. Hepatic transcriptome profiling reveals key signatures associated with disease progression from nonalcoholic steatosis to steatohepatitis.. Liver Research, 6, 238-250
  • Magee, N, Zou, A, Ghosh, P, Ahamed, F, Delker, D, Zhang, Y. 2020. Disruption of hepatic small heterodimer partner induces dissociation of steatosis and inflammation in experimental nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. The Journal of Biological Chemistry, 295 (4), 994-1008
  • Zou, A, Magee, N, Deng, F, Lehn, S, Zhong, C, Zhang, Y. 2018. Hepatocyte nuclear receptor SHP suppresses inflammation and fibrosis in a mouse model of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis.. The Journal of biological chemistry, 293 (22), 8656-8671
  • Deng, F, Magee, N, Zhang, Y. 2017. Decoding the role of extracellular vesicles in liver diseases.. Liver research, 1 (3), 147-155
  • Magee, N, Zou, A, Zhang, Y. 2016. Pathogenesis of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis: interactions between liver parenchymal and nonparenchymal cells.. BioMed research international, 2016, 5170402
  • Zou, A, Lehn, S, Magee, N, Zhang, Y. 2015. New insights into orphan nuclear receptor SHP in liver cancer.. Nuclear receptor research, 2
  • Zhang, Y, Liu, C, Barbier, O, Smalling, R, Tsuchiya, H, Lee, S, Delker, D, Zou, A, Hagedorn, C., H, Wang, L. 2016. Bcl2 is a critical regulator of bile acid homeostasis by dictating Shp and lncRNA H19 function.. Scientific reports, 6, 20559
  • Lee, S., M, Zhang, Y, Tsuchiya, H, Smalling, R, Jetten, A., M, Wang, L. 2015. Small heterodimer partner/neuronal PAS domain protein 2 axis regulates the oscillation of liver lipid metabolism.. Hepatology, 61 (2), 497-505
  • Zhang, Y, Xu, N, Xu, J, Kong, B, Copple, B, Guo, G., L, Wang, L. 2014. E2F1 is a novel fibrogenic gene that regulates cholestatic liver fibrosis through the Egr-1/SHP/EID1 network.. Hepatology, 60 (3), 919-30