Yinu Wang, PhD

Yinu Wang, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Daniela Matei’s laboratory in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Northwestern University. Yinu received her BS degree in Pharmacy from Shenyang Pharmaceutical University in 2006, an MS in Biology from Western Kentucky University in 2011 and a PhD in Pharmacology in 2017 from Indiana University.  As a graduate student working with Dr. Ken Nephew, she studied the mechanisms contributing to the emergence of chemoresistant recurrent tumors and focused on the functions of cancer stem cells (CSCs) driving tumor relapse. This work defined key signaling pathways contributing to the maintenance of ovarian CSCs. She also laid the groundwork for investigating epigenetic targeting of ovarian CSCs, by using DNMT methytransferase inhibitors. At Northwestern University, her research focuses on defining epigenetic signatures and the 3D chromatin nanoarchitecture of ovarian CSCs. She will link the physical properties of chromatin in ovarian CSCs with epigenetic mechanisms regulating gene transcription, to discover specific vulnerabilities of OCSCs.  The ultimate goal is to target and eradicate CSCs, prevent tumor relapse, and improve survival rates of women with ovarian cancer.