معرفی
Dr. Ke Yuan is an Assistant Professor at Harvard Medical School and leads the Ke Yuan Lab at Boston Children's Hospital. She is a recognized researcher in pulmonary vascular biology with a specific focus on pericytes and their role in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and vascular remodeling. Her laboratory is part of the Department of Pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital.
Dr. Yuan received her PhD in Biology from Temple University, PA, and completed her postdoctoral fellowship at the Division of Pulmonary Critical Care Medicine at Stanford University before joining the faculty. Her research program has established her as a leading investigator in understanding the cellular mechanisms of vascular remodeling in pulmonary diseases.
Dr. Yuan's research primarily focuses on the critical role of pericytes during angiogenesis and abnormal vascular remodeling in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and other pulmonary vascular diseases. Her work examines how pericytes interact with endothelial cells and other vascular components to maintain vascular integrity and how these interactions become dysregulated in disease states. The lab employs cutting-edge techniques including murine pneumonectomy models, lineage tracing, confocal imaging, single-cell sequencing, and CRISPR-mediated genome editing to investigate these processes. Current work is particularly focused on understanding how hypoxia-inducible factor 2-alpha signaling pathways and RNA-editing in smooth muscle cells contribute to immune responses during pulmonary vascular remodeling.
Analysis of Dr. Yuan's publication record reveals a consistent focus on pericyte biology and pulmonary vascular diseases. Her research has evolved from basic mechanisms of pericyte-endothelial interactions to more complex investigations of cellular signaling pathways in vascular remodeling. Recent publications demonstrate increasing sophistication in methodologies, with greater emphasis on single-cell analysis, genetic models, and translational applications. A notable trend is the expansion of her research scope to include connections between vascular biology and other disease processes, such as viral infections (particularly SARS-CoV-2) and neurogenic inflammation.
- Parker B Francis Fellow (2017 Class)
- Fellow of American Heart Association (AHA)
- AHA Scientist Development Grant recipient
- Cournand and Comroe Young Investigator Award
Dr. Yuan has mentored numerous researchers including clinical fellows, postdoctoral fellows, research assistants, and undergraduate students. Her lab has received funding from prestigious sources including the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, Parker B. Francis Fellowship Program, American Heart Association, Pulmonary Hypertension Association, ATS Foundation, and Bayer. Current research projects investigate pericyte lineage tracing in severe pulmonary hypertension, RNA-editing in smooth muscle cells, and the role of pericytes in early onset connective tissue disease-associated PAH.
The Ke Yuan Lab operates within Boston Children's Hospital's research infrastructure, utilizing specialized equipment including the ProOx 360 and A-Chamber from BioSpherix Ltd for controlled hypoxic conditions during vascular experiments. The lab maintains active collaborations with other research groups at Harvard Medical School and beyond, particularly in pulmonary medicine and vascular biology. Current research directions include understanding how interferon signaling facilitates SARS-CoV-2 pulmonary vascular infection, investigating specialized pericyte subtypes in pulmonary capillaries, and developing stem cell-based approaches for vascular regeneration.
