Yuan-Xiang Pan

Assistant Professor of Nutrition

Research Interests

Nutrient-gene Interaction and Cancer; Development programming of Chronic Diseases

As a molecular nutritionist, Dr. Pan’s research focus is in evaluating the impact of nutrients on the gene expression profiling and identifying the transcriptional and translational processes involved in development and growth. There are both basic and translational projects currently in his laboratory. 1) Investigate the function and regulation of transcription factors in the nutrient sensing pathways; 2) Using animal model to identify genes that are modified by maternal nutrition. Once identified, these genes will provide a better understanding of the role of modifier genes in chronic disease risk, become novel biomarkers for disease risk, and also provide novel targets for nutritional or pharmaceutical intervention. 

Selected Publications
Thiaville, M.M., Pan, Y-X., Gjymishka, A., Zhong, C., Kilberg, M.S. 2008. MEK signaling is required for phosphorylation of elF2alpha following amino acid limitation of HepG2 human hepatoma cells J. Biol. Chem. Feb 20

Thiaville, M.M. Dudenhausen, E.E. Zhong, C. Pan, Y-X., Kilberg, M.S. 2008. Deprivation of protein or amino acid induces C/EBP synthesis and binding to amino acid response elements but its action is not an absolute requirement for enhanced transcription. Biochem. J. 410 (3): 473-84.

Su N., Pan Y-X., Zhou M. Harvey R.C>, Hunger S.P., Kilberg M.S. 2008. Correlation between asparaginase sensitivity and asparagines sythetase protein content, but not mRNA, in acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell lines. Pediatr Blood Cancer. 50 (2): 274-7.

Pan, Y-X., H. Chen, M.M. Thiaville, and M.S. Kilberg. (2007) Activation of the ATF3 gene through a co-ordinated amino acid-sensing response programme that controls transcriptional regulation of responsive genes following amino acid limitation. Biochem. J. 401:299-307. Zhong, S., C.R. Fields, N. Su, Y-X. Pan, and K.D. Robertson. (2006)

Pharmacologic inhibition of epigenetic modifications, coupled with gene expression profiling, reveals novel targets of aberrant DNA methylation and histone deacetylation in lung cancer. Oncogene Oct 9.

Teaching

Courses recently taught:

FSHN 510 -Current Topics in Nutritional Research

FSHN 420 -  Nutritional Aspects of Disease

FSHN 511 -  Regulation of Metabolism

FSHN 426 - Nutritional Biochemistry I

Latest Degree

Ph.D., Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA, USA

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Pan graduated with a B.S. in Cell Biology at the Lanzhou University in Gansu, China. He received both M.S. and Ph.D. in Animal Nutrition with emphasis on Molecular Biology at Virginia Tech. Dr. Pan also received postdoctoral training in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Florida, College of Medicine in Gainesville, FL. In June of 2006 Dr. Pan joined the University of Illinois faculty.