Jun Yang

Jun Yang, PhD

Languages spoken: English, Mandarin Chinese

Academic Information

Departments Adjunct - Neurobiology , Primary - Ophthalmology & Visual Sciences

Academic Office Information

Jun.Yang@hsc.utah.edu

Dr. Yang’s laboratory research focuses on the disease mechanisms and therapeutic treatments for retinal degenerative diseases. Her research group investigates the biological functions of genes whose mutations are known to cause human retinal diseases. The group also studies how to treat these diseases utilizing gene therapy.

Dr. Yang’s team is also interested in the cell biology of photoreceptors, especially the cellular processes of intracellular trafficking and structural maintenance. The research led by Dr. Yang is attempting to understand more about retinal degenerative diseases, identify more candidate causative genes, and provide tactics to design various therapies. Dr. Yang’s laboratory uses a combination of experimental approaches, including molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry, and bioinformatics approaches.


NIH Funding FY25:
Disease Mechanism of Usher Syndrome 2 ($469,144); The Role of Centriole Linkage in Retinal Degeneration and Hearing Loss ($462,430); Core Vision Research Grant ($150,861)

Education History

Undergraduate Nankai University
 BS
Doctoral Training University of Massachusetts
 PhD
Research Fellow Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary
 Research Fellow

Selected Publications

Journal Article

  1. Zou J, Li R, Wang Z, Yang J (In press). Studies of the periciliary membrane complex in the Syrian hamster photoreceptor. Adv Exp Med Biol.
  2. Sharif AS, Yu D, Loertscher S, Austin R, Nguyen K, Mathur PD, Clark AM, Zou J, Lobanova ES, Arshavsky VY, Yang (2018). C8ORF37 is required for photoreceptor outer segment disc morphogenesis by maintaining outer segment membrane protein homeostasis. The Journal of neuroscience, 38(13), 3160-3176.
  3. Tadenev ALD, Akturk A, Devanney N, Mathur PD, Clark AM, Yang J, Tarchini (2019). GPSM2-GNAI specify the tallest stereocilia and define hair bundle row identity. Current biology, 29, 921-934.
  4. Clark AM, Yu D, Neiswanger G, Zhu D, Zou J, Maschek JA, Burgoyne T, Yang (2024). Disruption of CFAP418 interaction with lipids causes widespread abnormal membrane-associated cellular processes in retinal degenerations. JCI insight, 9(1), (Read full article)
  5. Fry LE, Major L, Salman A, McDermott LA, Yang J, King AJ, McClements ME, MacLaren R (2025). Comparison of CRISPR-Cas13b RNA base editing approaches for USH2A-associated inherited retinal degeneration. Communications biology, 8(1), 200. (Read full article)
  6. Junhuang Zou, Dongmei Yu, Pranav Dinesh Mathur, Cade Paul Nordhagen, Xinyue Zou, Paolo Bonaldo, Jun Yan (2026). Characterization of Usher Syndrome Type 2-Associated Proteins in the Retina via Affinity Purification-Mass Spectrometry. Molecular & cellular proteomics,
  7. Ma H, York LR, Li S, Gagnon G, Zou J, Yu H, Yang J, Le Y, Eminhizer M, Mascari I, Du J, Ding X (2026). Photoreceptor deletion of pyruvate dehydrogenase E1 subunit alpha1 induces retinal degeneration and reprograms retinal metabolism. Molecular metabolism,

Review

  1. Mathur PD, Yang (2019). Usher syndrome and non-syndromic deafness: functions of different whirlin isoforms in the cohclea, vestibular organs, and retina. Hearing research, 375, 14-24.

Abstract

  1. Yu D, Zou J, Yang (2018). Functional studies on USH2A and ADGRV1 in photoreceptors.
  2. Goldberg H, Asai Y, Pan B, Chien WW, Yang J, Holt JR, Geleoc G (2018). AAV mediated gene therapy restores partial auditory sensitivity in mouse models of autosomal recessive non syndromic deafness DFNB31 and Usher syndrome type IID.
  3. Mathur PD, Almishaal AA, Vijaykumar S, Jones TA, Jones SM, Yang J, Firpo MA, Park A (2018). Murine congenital cytomegalovirus infection leads to vestibular dysfunction.
  4. Almishaal A, Mathur PD, Franklin L, Martinovic AM, Sivas KS, Jennings S, Yang J, Firpo M, Park (2019). Synaptopathy may precede hearing loss in mice and humans post congenital cytomegalovirus infection.
  5. Tadenev A, Akturk A, Devanney N, Mathur PD, Clark A, Yang J, Tarchini (2019). GPSM2-GNAI specify the tallest stereocilia and define row identity in the hair bundle.
  6. Goldberg H, Asai Y, Pan B, Isgrig K, Yang J, Chien WW, Geleoc G (2019). AAV mediatedd gene therapy restores partial auditory sensitivity in mouse models of autosomal recessive non-syndromic deafness DFNB31 and Usher syndrome type IID.
  7. Goldberg H, Asai Y, Pan B, Isgrig K, Yang J, Chien WW, Geleoc (2019). AAV-mediated whirlin gene therapy for the treatment of DFNB31 and USH2D.