Yang Zhou, PhD
Yang Zhou is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neurology & Neurosurgery at McGill University and a researcher at the Montreal Neurological Institute-Hospital (The Neuro). He obtained his Ph.D. from the Institute of Neuroscience, CAS. He joined The Neuro in 2019 after completing post-doctoral training at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
At The Neuro, Zhou and his lab members aim to deepen the understanding of Autism and severe forms of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (NDDs), including intellectual disabilities and epilepsy. Learning from clinical and genetic discoveries, his group applies experimental models to characterize gene mutations associated with NDDs. Through extensive collaboration, his group carries out research utilizing molecular, genetic, genomic, and neurobiological approaches. Their work is concentrated on (1) uncovering the function of risk genes in developmental and adult brains, (2) identifying novel mechanisms/pathophysiology underlying NDDs, and (3) correcting mutated genes and examining the reversibility of impaired neural and behavioral functions. The ultimate goal of his group is to provide findings and knowledge that may accelerate the development of therapies for affected individuals.
Yang Zhou and his lab members thank the funding support from The Neuro, Integrated Program in Neuroscience (IPN), Healthy Brains, Healthy Lives (HBHL) Program, Azrieli Centre for Autism Research (ACAR), NSERC, Canada Research Chair (CRC)/CIHR, CFI-John R. Evans Leaders Fund (JELF), SickKids Foundation, Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, and Djavad Mowafaghian Foundation.
Megagiannis P, Suresh R, Rouleau G, Zhou Y. (2022). Reversibility and Therapeutic Development for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, Insights from Genetic Animal Models. Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews.
Suresh R, Megagiannis P, Chen H, Landman R, Sharma J, Zhou Y. (2022). Genetic Engineering of Nonhuman Primate Models for Studying Neurodevelopmental Disorders. In: Martin, S., Laumonnier, F. (eds) Translational Research Methods in Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Neuromethods, Vol 185. Humana, New York, NY.
Zhou Y*, Sharma J*, Ke Q*, Landman R*, Yuan JL, Chen H, Hayden DS, Fisher III JW, Jiang MQ, Menegas W, Aida T, Yang T, Zou Y, Parmar S, Hyman JB, Fnucci-Kiss A, Meisner O, Wang DQ, Huang Y, Li YQ, Bai YY, Ji WJ, Lai XQ, Li WQ, Huang LH, Lu ZH, Wang LP, Anteraper SH, Sur M, Zhou HH#, Xiang AP#, Desimone R, Feng GP#, Yang SH#. (2019). Atypical behaviour and connectivity in SHANK3-mutant macaques. Nature.
Platt RJ*, Zhou Y*, Slaymaker IM*, Shetty AS, Weisbach NR, Kim JA, Sharma J, Desai M, Sood S, Kempton HR, Crabtree GR, Feng G, Zhang F. (2017). Chd8 mutation leads to autistic-like behaviors and impaired striatal circuits. Cell Reports.
Mei Y*, Monteiro P*, Zhou Y, Kim JH, Gao X, Fu ZY, Feng GP. (2016). Adult restoration of Shank3 expression rescues selective autistic-like phenotypes. Nature.
Zhou Y, Kaiser T, Monteiro P, Zhang XY, Marie SV, Wang DQ, Barak B, Zeng ML, Li CC, Lu CY, Wells M, Amaya A, Lewis M, Sanjana N, Zhou YD, Zhang MJ, Zhang F, Fu ZY, Feng GP. (2016). Mice with Shank3 mutations associated with ASD and schizophrenia display both shared and distinct defects. Neuron.
Jennings C, Landman R, Zhou Y, Sharma J, Hyman J, Movshon AJ, Qiu ZL, Roberts A, Wang AR, Wang XQ, Zhou HH, Wang LP, Zhang F, Desimone R, Feng GP. (2016). Opportunities and challenges in modeling human brain disorders in transgenic primates. Nature Neuroscience.
Platt RJ*, Chen SD*, Zhou Y, Yim MJ, Swiech L, Kempton HR, Dahlman JE, Parnas O, Eisenhaure TM, Jovanovic M, Graham DB, Jhunjhunwala S, Heidenreich M, Xavier RJ, Langer R, Anderson DG, Hacohen N, Regev A, Feng GP, Sharp PA, Zhang F. (2014). CRISPR-Cas9 knock-in mice for genome editing and cancer modeling. Cell.
Sanjana NE*, Cong L*, Zhou Y*, Cunniff MM, Feng GP, Zhang F. (2012). A transcription activator-like effector toolbox for genome engineering. Nature Protocols
