Chang-Zheng Chen

Honors and Awards

• NIH Director's Pioneer Award, NIH (2009-2014)
• W.M. Keck Distinguished Young Scholar in Medical Research, W.M. Keck Foundation (2009-2014)
• Presidential Symposium, American Society of Hematology (2006)
• Terman Fellow Award, Stanford University (2005–2008)
• Baxter Scholar Award, Stanford University School of Medicine (2006)

Postdoctoral Advisees

Ana Rita Freitas Martins Matos Fragoso , Sibiao Yue

Graduate & Fellowship Program Affiliations

• Immunology
• Microbiology and Immunology

Web Site Links

• Lab website

Research Interests

We study the genetic networks controlled by regulatory RNAs, such as microRNAs (miRNAs), and currently focus on two complementary aspects of miRNA biology: (1) The roles of miRNAs in modulating the development, function, and pathogenesis of vertebrate immune systems and (2) the mechanisms by which these regulatory RNAs control gene expression.

[Mechanisms of Action by MicroRNA Genes]
We have found that miRNA genes encoding identical or nearly identical mature miRNAs can have distinct biological activities that are determined by their pre-miRNA loop nucleotides. These findings demonstrate that mature miRNAs and their corresponding coding genes are not functionally equivalent and reveal the previously unappreciated regulatory complexities encoded in miRNA genes. We will characterize regulatory controls encoded in the miRNA genes and investigate the mechanisms by which these regulatory elements control the activity of miRNA genes using integrated genetic, biochemical, and bioinformatics approaches.

[Immune Regulation by MicroRNA Genes]
The homeostasis of the immune system is under exquisite quantitative regulation: The number of stem/progenitor cells, the cell cycle progression, the rate of cell division, and the kinetics of lineage differentiation are all closely regulated. We have found that miRNAs may play important roles in controlling many of these quantitative processes, such as lineage differentiation and antigen receptor signaling. We study the function of miRNA genes in the development and function of immune cells and the maintenance of central and peripheral tolerance. We hope that our studies will ultimately shed light on how to modulate immune cell development and function by “dialing” the miRNA rheostats.

[Regulation of Stem Cells by MicroRNA Genes]
Little is known about the role of post-transcriptional regulation in stem cell self-renewal and fate determination. Recent discoveries suggest that miRNAs play a key...

Publications

• Identification of the human mature B cell miRNome. Basso K, Sumazin P, Morozov P, Schneider C, Maute RL, Kitagawa Y, Mandelbaum J, Haddad J, Chen CZ, Califano A, Dalla-Favera R. Immunity. 2009; 30 (5): 744-52
• Attribution of vascular phenotypes of the murine Egfl7 locus to the microRNA miR-126. Kuhnert F, Mancuso MR, Hampton J, Stankunas K, Asano T, Chen CZ, Kuo CJ. Development. 2008; 135 (24): 3989-93
• Pre-miRNA loop nucleotides control the distinct activities of mir-181a-1 and mir-181c in early T cell development. Liu G, Min H, Yue S, Chen CZ. PLoS One. 2008; 3 (10): e3592
• Micromanagement of the immune system by microRNAs. Lodish HF, Zhou B, Liu G, Chen CZ. Nat Rev Immunol. 2008; 8 (2): 120-30
• Dissecting microRNA-mediated gene regulation and function in T-cell development. Mao TK, Chen CZ. Methods Enzymol. 2007: 427 171-89