People

Meet the Principal Investigator

Dayoung Oh

Dayoung Oh, Ph.D.

Dr. Oh is an Assistant Professor in Touchstone Diabetes Center at UTSW. She received Ph.D. in Molecular Neuroendocrinology from Chonnam National University under the supervision of Dr. Jae Young Seong, where she made several important contributions to understanding the diverse signaling pathways of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and ligand identification for orphan GPCRs using a high throughput system.

In 2007, she joined the laboratory of Dr. Jerrold Olefsky as a postdoctoral fellow at UC San Diego in La Jolla, CA. There she discovered GPR120 as an omega-3 fatty acid receptor that mediates anti-inflammatory and insulin sensitizing effects, and has published a number of high impact papers on the subjects.

In 2016, she joined the faculty at UTSW as an assistant professor. Her lab has had a sharp focus on the role of various GPCRs in the fields of obesity, inflammation, type 2 diabetes, and aging-related metabolic syndromes. The Oh Lab has been using various biochemical and physiological approaches including using GPCR KO animals (global, constitutive and inducible tissue-specific), molecular biology, nucleic acid/protein biochemistry, and eukaryotic cell-based studies with the long term goal to not only elucidate how GPCRs work in regulating metabolism, but also to identify new avenues for developing therapeutics to treat metabolic syndrome.

In her very limited free time, she enjoys spending time with her family (her husband, a teen-age son, and four furry babies) and doing her new hobby, abstract painting.

Current Lab Members

Xuenan Nancy Sun

Xuenan (Nancy) Sun, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

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Nancy joined the Oh Lab in 2018, and concentrates on functional characterization of GPR84 in various aspects of metabolism. Xuenan received her Ph.D in Biochemistry and molecular biology from Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2018, where she was involved in the role of nuclear receptors in immune cells on cardiovascular disease.

In her free time, she enjoys music, swimming, and watching movies.

Ayanna Cobb portrait

Ayanna Cobb

Lab Manager/Staff Scientist

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Ayanna explored the ins and outs of animal care with a variety species in the Animal Resource Center in UTSW for 7 years. She worked her way up as a Chief Animal Technician before transitioning to the Oh lab in 2021. Currently, she oversees both lab maintenance and basic research techniques, deepening her understanding of the field.

On her time off, Ayanna enjoys fitness activities, art, live music, and entertaining her two cats, Niko and Coi.

Alumni

Camila O. de Souza photo

Camila O. de Souza, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow (2018 - 2022)

Camila is currently a Scientist II at Takeda Pharmaceuticals, Liver research, San Diego, CA.

 

Vivian A. Paschoal

Vivian A. Paschoal, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow (2016 - 2021)

Vivian is currently a Scientist at Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson and Johnson, San Diego, CA.

 

Madison Ibe portrait

Madison Ibe

Green Fellow Student (January - June, 2023)

 

Angela Morka portrait

Angela Morka

UTSW SURF Program Fellow (June - August, 2023)

 

Danielle Ramos portrait

Danielle Ramos

UTSW NORC Summer Intern (June - August, 2023)

 

Joseph Carrion portrait

Joseph Nieto Carrion

UTSW SURF/AMGEN Scholar (June - August, 2022)