P. Jeremy Wang

P. Jeremy Wang, MD, PhD is the Ralph L. Brinster President's Distinguished Professor and Professor of Developmental Biology in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Pennsylvania. He serves as Director of the Center for Animal Transgenesis & Germ Cell Research and leads an active laboratory focused on reproductive biology and genetics.

Dr. Wang received his MD from Peking University Health Science Center in 1990 and his PhD in Molecular Biology and Genetics from Cornell University in 1997. He completed postdoctoral training at the Whitehead Institute/M.I.T. from 1997 to 2002 before joining the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania.

His research focuses on the study of spermatogonial stem cells and meiosis. Spermatogonial stem cells are the adult germline stem cells responsible for life-long production of sperm. Meiosis, a cell division unique to germ cells, allows the reciprocal exchange of genetic material between paternal and maternal genomes. Dr. Wang's laboratory has performed two innovative genome-wide screens that have made significant contributions to the field of reproduction. The first screen identified 36 germ cell-specific genes expressed in mouse spermatogonia, while the second screen identified 51 meiotic chromatin-associated proteins in mouse. His work has demonstrated that the X chromosome plays a disproportionately eminent role in male fertility, challenging the dogma that the X chromosome is a female chromosome.

Dr. Wang's laboratory focuses on epigenetics in reproduction, spermatogonial stem cell self-renewal, silencing of transposable elements, regulation of meiosis, DNA double-strand break repair, piRNA biogenesis, and male infertility in humans. His research has important implications for understanding the genetic causes of male infertility and developing novel male contraceptives.

Dr. Wang has received numerous honors including the Ralph L. Brinster President's Distinguished Professorship, which is the highest honor bestowed upon a faculty member at the University of Pennsylvania and reflects a commitment to scientific discovery and mentorship.

His laboratory has been consistently funded, including a $5.95 million NIH grant renewal in 2024 to study epigenetics of reproduction in animals and humans. Dr. Wang has mentored numerous postdoctoral fellows, graduate students, and undergraduate researchers who have contributed to his laboratory's significant scientific output.