Liming Li

Liming Li, PhD is an Associate Professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Genetics at the Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University. Her research focuses on prion protein conformations and neurodegenerative mechanisms using yeast models.

Dr. Li earned her PhD from the University of California, Davis (1992), followed by postdoctoral training at Harvard University in Circadian biology (1997) and the University of Chicago in Prion biology (2002). Her laboratory investigates how prion proteins acquire infectious conformations and maintain propagation in vivo, with implications for transmissible spongiform encephalopathies. Key research areas include protein aggregation dynamics, cellular stress responses, molecular chaperone functions, and the role of iron metabolism in neurodegeneration.

Recent publications reveal evolving research trends spanning prion domain characterization (2021), cellular protein interactions affecting prion propagation (2022), iron-driven metabolic regulation (2023), and cancer-related protein aggregation (2025), demonstrating interdisciplinary expansion into cancer biology while maintaining core prion research.

Her honors include the Ellison Medical Foundation New Scholar award (2004). Professional service encompasses editorial roles for Prion and PLoS Genetics, plus co-chairing the Midwest Stress Response and Molecular Chaperone Meeting (2011-2012, 2023-2024).

Dr. Li leads an active research program within Northwestern's Center for Genetic Medicine, Northwestern University Institute of Neuroscience (NUIN), and Simpson Querrey Institute for Epigenetics. Her laboratory investigates initiation and propagation mechanisms of prionogenesis while identifying critical cellular factors, with recent work connecting protein misfolding to cancer pathways and metabolic regulation.