Yang Shi is a molecular biologist known for work on epigenetic regulation, particularly histone and RNA methylation.[1] He is a Member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and a professor at the University of Oxford.[2] Shi is best known for his discovery of lysine-specific demethylase 1 (LSD1/KDM1A) in 2004, which demonstrated that histone methylation is reversible.[3] His work has identified multiple histone demethylases and clarified their roles in gene regulation, cancer, and human disease, and has contributed to the ongoing development of epigenetic cancer therapies.[4] He is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Medicine, and the Royal Society, and a recipient of the Leopold Griffuel Prize.
Yang Shi | |
|---|---|
| Education | New York University (PhD) |
| Known for | Discovery of LSD1 (KDM1A); histone demethylases; epigenetic regulation |
| Awards | Leopold Griffuel Prize; American Cancer Society Research Professorship; Ray Wu Award; SCBA Presidential Award; |
| Honors | Member of the National Academy of Sciences; Member of the National Academy of Medicine; Fellow of the Royal Society; Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Epigenetics; Molecular biology; Cancer research |
| Institutions | University of Oxford; Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research; Harvard Medical School; Boston Children's Hospital; Princeton University; |
| Eva Derman | |
Other academic advisors | Thomas Shenk |
| Website | https://www.ludwig.ox.ac.uk/team/yang-shi |
Early life and education
editYang Shi received his PhD from New York University in 1987, where his doctoral advisor was Eva Derman.[1] He then completed postdoctoral training in the laboratory of Thomas Shenk at Princeton University.[2]
Career
editShi began his independent research career at Harvard Medical School in 1991 as a tenure-track assistant professor and was promoted to full professor in the Department of Pathology in 2004. In 2009, he joined the Newborn Medicine Division at Boston Children's Hospital, where he held the Merton Bernfield Professorship.[5] In 2018, he was appointed the inaugural C. H. Waddington Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School.[6] In 2020, he joined the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research at the University of Oxford.[2]
Contributions and Impact
editShi’s work has advanced understanding of epigenetic regulation through the discovery of histone and RNA-modifying enzymes and proteins that recognize histone methylation states.[1] He is best known for identifying the first histone demethylase, LSD1 (KDM1A), in 2004, demonstrating that histone methylation is reversible.[3] His group subsequently identified a second family of histone demethylases[7] and contributed to the characterization of multiple demethylases and their roles in gene regulation, cancer, and human disease. His studies have also shown that LSD1 regulates tumor immunogenicity and that its inhibition can enhance responses to immune checkpoint therapies in various models and induce therapeutic differentiation, informing the ongoing development of epigenetic cancer treatments.[4] More recently, his work on RNA methylation has revealed roles for m6A in transcriptional regulation and the DNA damage response, and identified new enzymes involved in RNA methylation.[8]
Awards and honors
edit- Member of the National Academy of Sciences[5]
- Member of the National Academy of Medicine[9]
- Fellow of the Royal Society[10]
- Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences[11]
- Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences[12]
- Leopold Griffuel Prize[13]
- Fellow of the AACR Academy [14]
- Member of the European Molecular Biology Organization [15]
References
edit- 1 2 3 "The epigenetic explorer" (PDF). Ludwig Cancer Research. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- 1 2 3 "Yang Shi". www.ludwigcancerresearch.org. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
- 1 2 Shi, Yujiang (2004). "Histone demethylation mediated by the nuclear amine oxidase homolog LSD1". Cell. 119 (7): 941–953. PMID 15620353. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
- 1 2 Gray, Zach (2025). "20 years of histone lysine demethylases: From discovery to the clinic and beyond". Cell. 188 (7): 1747–1783. PMID 40185081. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
- 1 2 "Yang Shi". National Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- ↑ "Dr. Yang Shi honored with C.H. Waddington Professor of Pediatrics endowed chair". cellbio.hms.harvard.edu. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ Whetstine, Johnathan (2006). "Reversal of Histone Lysine Trimethylation by the JMJD2 Family of Histone Demethylases". Cell. 125 (3): 467–481. PMID 16603238. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- ↑ Sendic, Erdem (2023). "RNA m6A methylation across the transcriptome". Molecular Cell. 83 (3): 428–441. PMID 36736310. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "Ludwig Oxford's Yang Shi elected to National Academy of Medicine". www.ludwigcancerresearch.org. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "Yang Shi". royalsociety.org. Retrieved 4 May 2026.
- ↑ "Dr. Yang Shi". www.amacad.org. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "Professor Yang Shi FRS FMedSci". Academy of Medical Sciences. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "Professor Yang Shi wins 2025 Léopold Griffuel Prize for Fundamental Research". www.ludwig.ox.ac.uk. Retrieved 5 May 2026.
- ↑ "Yang Shi, PhD". AACR. Retrieved 7 May 2026.
- ↑ "Ludwig Oxford Member Yang Shi elected Member of the European Molecular Biology Organization". Ludwig Oxford. Retrieved 7 May 2026.