Chun-Li Zhang

Chun-Li Zhang, Ph.D., is a Professor of Molecular Biology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He holds the W.W. Caruth, Jr. Scholar in Biomedical Research title. His laboratory focuses on cellular plasticity in the adult nervous system, including neuroregeneration and neurodegeneration, using molecular, cellular, and genetic approaches. Key research areas include in vivo reprogramming of glial cells to neurons for spinal cord repair, modeling neurodegenerative diseases using patient-derived neurons, and understanding epigenetic regulation of neural stem cells. Dr. Zhang joined UT Southwestern as an Assistant Professor in 2008, was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 2014, and became Full Professor in 2018.

Education:

• Ph.D. in Genetics and Development, UT Southwestern Medical Center
• Postdoctoral Fellow at Salk Institute (HHMI Fellowship)

Research Interests:

• In vivo cell fate reprogramming for neural repair
• Neurodegenerative disease modeling (ALS, Alzheimer’s, dystonia)
• Glial biology and reactive gliosis
• Age-related neuronal dysfunction

Key Achievements:

• Pioneered in vivo astrocyte-to-neuron conversion for spinal cord repair
• Developed aging-relevant motor neuron models from patient fibroblasts
• Identified MAP4Ks as therapeutic targets for ALS

Lab Members:

• Current: Pamela Jackson (Admin), Yuhua Zou (Research Scientist), postdocs including Xiaoling Zhong, Sergio Cananzi, and Shuaipeng Ma
• Former: Meng-Lu Liu (now Professor at Ningbo University), Tong Zang (Industry), Saidan Ding (Wenzhou Medical University)

Contact:

• Office: 6000 Harry Hines Blvd, Dallas, TX 75390
• Phone: (214) 648-1670 (Office) | (214) 648-4946 (Lab)