Yan Xu, PhD

Professor of Anesthesiology
Professor of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology
Professor of Structural Biology
Vice Chairman for Basic Sciences, Department of Anesthesiology
Program Director of Research Training in Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine

Dr. Xu received his undergraduate and graduate educations in physics and chemistry at University of Science and Technology of China. He completed his Ph.D. studies in chemistry (biochemistry) at SUNY Stony Brook and postdoctoral fellowship training in pharmaceutical chemistry and anesthesiology at UCSF. In 1992, he joined the faculty of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, where he was promoted to full professor with tenure. He has served as the Vice Chairman for Basic Sciences and Chairman of Scientific Affairs Committee in the Department of Anesthesiology since 2002. His research ranges from the studies of molecular mechanisms of general anesthesia to cellular mapping of sensory processes in unconscious brains and receptor engineering as novel strategies for pain management. He is an elected member of Association of University Anesthesiologists, a member of FAER Academy of Research Mentors in Anesthesiology, and Fellow of International Chinese Academy of Anesthesiology. He is a recipient of the US National Institutes of Health (NIH) MERIT award, Sigma XI Award for Excellence in Research, James A Shannon NIH DIrector's Award, and Epilepsy Foundation of America Research Award. He is a member of the NIH College of Reviewers and served on the selection panels to recommend the NIH Director's Innovators' Awards in 2010, 2011, and 2012.