Yang Yang

Yang Yang is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB). His research focuses on biocatalytic strategies, protein engineering, and machine learning to address challenges in synthetic organic chemistry. He leads the Yang Lab, which integrates organic chemistry, enzymology, and computational methods to develop novel enzymatic catalytic platforms and chemoenzymatic syntheses of natural products. Key areas include directed evolution of enzymes for radical reactions, ML-guided enzyme discovery, and sustainable catalytic processes.

• Education:
  • B.S. in Chemistry, Peking University (2011)
  • Ph.D. in Organic Chemistry, MIT (2016), under Prof. Stephen L. Buchwald
  • NIH Postdoctoral Fellow with Prof. Frances H. Arnold at Caltech (2016–2020)

Research Interests: The lab pioneers metalloredox radical biocatalysis, pyridoxal radical systems, and de novo enzyme design. Projects include stereoselective amino acid synthesis via photobiocatalysis, engineering P450 enzymes for C-H amination, and ML-driven directed evolution. The lab emphasizes interdisciplinary training in organic synthesis, protein biochemistry, and catalytic innovation.

Publications & Impact: Recent work includes landmark studies in Science, Nature Catalysis, and Journal of the American Chemical Society, focusing on radical cyclization, enzyme engineering, and sustainable catalytic methods. Over 30 peer-reviewed articles highlight contributions to biocatalysis and synthetic chemistry.

• Awards:
  • Novartis Early Career Award (2025)
  • DOE Early Career Award (2024)
  • Sloan Research Fellowship (2024)
  • Packard Fellowship (2023)
  • NSF CAREER Award (2022)

Advising & Grants: Mentors graduate students (e.g., Michael Chin, Betty Chen) and undergraduates (e.g., Yunlong Zhao, Lida Cheng). Secured funding from NSF, DOE, and industrial partnerships. Active collaborations with Pfizer, Merck, and Gilead.

Labs & Teams: The Yang Lab operates in UCSB’s Chemistry Building, with labs in PSBN 2608, 2624, and CHEM 2102-2104. Focus areas include radical biocatalysis, enzyme design, and computational chemistry tools for catalyst discovery.