Under the guidance of director Dr. Daolin Tang, the research group focuses on basic, translational and clinical application research on damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) signaling pathways. Inflammation is a fundamental response to infection and injury in all multicellular organisms. The danger hypothesis states that endogenous molecules (protein and non-protein) released during cell death or tissue damage can trigger inflammation in the absence of infection, collectively referred to as DAMPs. We are particularly interested in elucidating the molecular mechanisms underlying stress-induced cellular defense and cell death signaling in normal and cancer cells, and how release of DAMPs modulates immune responses in disease.

Yu Lab is interested in the molecular and cellular basis of Alzheimer’s disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, frontotemporal dementia, and related neurodegenerative disorders.

Our mission is to improve the care of breast cancer patients through cutting-edge translational research at the interface of clinical oncology, cancer biology, molecular genetics, and translational genomics.