Hongying Shen, PhD

Metabolic pathways are vital for life. Lesions in these pathways are the direct cause of rare diseases known as inborn errors of metabolism, and the rewiring of metabolism is implicated in common diseases, including cancers, diabetes, immune disorders and neurological disorders. In the past, extensive biochemical and genetic studies have reconstructed pathways in the primary energy metabolism. They span major carbohydrate, amino acid, nucleotide and lipid metabolism. However, hundreds of metabolic enzymes and transporters remain orphans, yet might be implicated in human health and disease states. In addition, as the metabolic reactions are compartmentalized within a cell, we have limited understanding of how even some of the most essential metabolites are transported within a cell across the different membrane-bound organelles.

The Shen laboratory will take an integrated approach including biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, genomics and metabolomics to address key questions in cellular metabolism. The two main research directions of the laboratory lie at the interface between metabolic biochemistry and cell biology, including

• orphan metabolic enzymes and transporters
• cell biology of micronutrients and cofactors

We will guide these projects in the laboratory by their broader implications in physiology and human diseases.