About

Professor Guang Yao leads the Yao Systems Biology Lab at the University of Arizona, Tucson, within the Molecular & Cellular Biology department. His research focuses on gene network "switches" that regulate the dormancy and growth of both normal and cancer cells. A central theme of his work is the distinction and connection between two dormant cellular states: quiescence, which is reversible, and senescence, which is irreversible. These states are controlled by an Rb-E2F-Cdk gene network switch and its interacting pathways, including cell metabolism and circadian rhythm. Professor Yao's recent findings challenge the traditional view that quiescence protects cells from senescence linked to stress responses during aging. Instead, his work demonstrates that quiescent cells can gradually transition into senescence without undergoing proliferation, akin to a dimmer switch mechanism. The overarching goal of his research is to develop an integrated understanding of different cell dormancy states and their relationships to cancer and aging. His current focus is on elucidating the "dimmer" control mechanisms that underlie the deepening of quiescence toward senescence and exploring their potential applications in anti-cancer, anti-aging, and regenerative medicine. To achieve these aims, Professor Yao employs an integrated computational and experimental approach, combining single-cell and omics measurements with mathematical and machine-learning models to dissect complex and heterogeneous biological systems. His work highlights how cellular states and signal responses, such as dormancy, growth, and death, are determined by interacting gene network switches.

Research topics

• Biology
• Internal medicine
• Medicine
• Cancer research
• Gastroenterology
• Materials science
• Chemistry
• Biochemistry
• Physics
• Oncology
• Cell biology
• Quantum mechanics
• Condensed matter physics

Selected publications

• Global, Regional, and National Burden and Trends of Hypertensive Heart Disease Among Women of Childbearing Age from 1992 to 2021

  International Journal of Women s Health · 2026-03-01

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Background: Hypertensive heart disease (HHD) is an important contributor to cardiovascular morbidity among women of childbearing age (WCBA), yet long-term global trends in this population remain insufficiently characterized. We aimed to describe the prevalence, mortality, and disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) of HHD among WCBA at global, regional, and national levels and to assess temporal patterns from 1992 to 2021. Methods: Data were obtained from the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) 2021 study. We estimated numbers and age-standardized rates of prevalence, mortality, and DALYs for women aged 15-49 years. An age-period-cohort (APC) model was applied to disentangle age, period, and cohort effects on mortality trends. Results: From 1992 to 2021, the global burden of HHD among WCBA exhibited a divergent trend: while the prevalence rate increased steadily from 20.09% to 27.94%, mortality and DALY rates generally declined. In 2021, significant regional disparities existed, with the middle-SDI region recording the highest prevalence, whereas the high-middle SDI region achieved the lowest mortality and DALY rates. APC analyses for mortality further clarified these shifts: period-effect risks declined across most SDI groups but notably increased in high-SDI countries. Similarly, while cohort-effect risks significantly reduced in most regions, high-SDI countries exhibited a distinct pattern of an initial risk rise followed by a subsequent decline. Conclusion: Global HHD trends among WCBA are characterized by rising prevalence alongside declining mortality and DALY rates. Marked disparities persisted across SDI regions, with the highest prevalence in middle-SDI settings and more variable mortality patterns in high-SDI settings.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Modulus-adjustable and mechanically adaptive dry microneedle electrodes for personalized electrophysiological recording

  npj Flexible Electronics · 2025-07-31 · 9 citations

  articleOpen access

  Electrodes underpin electrophysiological signals recording, requiring stable skin contact and low impedance for high-quality, long-term acquisition. Dry microneedle electrodes penetrate the stratum corneum and bypass hair to ensure robust contact, but conventional rigid designs lack tissue conformity, risking discomfort and injury. This work introduces a modulus-adjustable, mechanically adaptive dry microneedle electrode (MDME) constructed from PEDOT: PSS and shape memory polymer. Submillimeter MDME penetrates skin barriers and, upon body temperature activation, softens to match tissue mechanics, minimizing invasiveness. The MDME exhibits low, stable interface impedance and enables high-quality electromyography, electrocardiography, electroencephalography, and electrocorticography recordings. After one month of usage, the electrophysiological root mean square noise increased by only 6 μV, compared to 63 μV of Ag/AgCl gel electrodes. Electroencephalogram signal-to-noise reached 8.12 dB versus 7.26 dB for the cranial screw electrodes. This work represents a notable advancement in MDME-based electrophysiological recording, expanding its potential applications in personalized healthcare and human-machine interaction.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• A Stretchable and Transparent Electrode for Visual Electrophysiological Acquisition

  Biosensors · 2025-10-17 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  Visual impairments pose a significant global health challenge, and visual electrophysiological (EP) acquisition plays a pivotal role in diagnosing ophthalmic diseases. However, traditional electrodes still encounter limitations such as inadequate mechanical adaptability and reusability. This study proposes a stretchable and transparent electrode (STE) consisting of a conductive paste/indium tin oxide layer on a polymethyl methacrylate substrate. Leveraging an island-bridge design, the STE renders reliable performance even after being subjected to 1000 cycles of 25% lateral strain and 18% diagonal strain, exhibiting exceptional mechanical flexibility and realizing seamless attachment to soft tissue. Furthermore, optimized conductive paste layer thickness yields a signal-to-noise ratio comparable to commercial electrodes, achieving equivalent performance to Ag/AgCl electrodes in electroretinogram (ERG), electrooculography (EOG), and visual evoked potential (VEP) acquisition. The STE's mechanical suitability and inconspicuous features hold significant potential for widespread clinical adoption in ophthalmic diagnostics and personalized eye healthcare, offering improved comfort, reusability, and diagnostic precision.

  PublisherDOI

• Origin of Nonlinear Circular Photocurrent in 2D Semiconductor <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><mml:mrow><mml:msub><mml:mrow><mml:mi>MoS</mml:mi></mml:mrow><mml:mn>2</mml:mn></mml:msub></mml:mrow></mml:math>

  Physical Review Letters · 2025-02-26 · 6 citations

  articleOpen access

  Nonlinear photogalvanic effects in two-dimensional materials, particularly the nonlinear circular photocurrents (NCPs) that belong to the helicity-dependent spin photocurrents, have sparked enormous research interest. Although notable progress has been witnessed, the underling origin of NCPs remains elusive. Here, we present systematic photocurrent characteristics, symmetry analysis and theoretical calculations to uncover the physical origin of NCPs in MoS_{2}, a prototypical 2D semiconductor. Our results show that the NCP responses in 2D semiconductor MoS_{2} result from the circular photon drag effect (CPDE), rather than the generally believed circular photogalvanic effect. Furthermore, we demonstrate that the NCPs are highly tunable with electrostatic doping and increase progressively with MoS_{2} thickness, evidencing the interlayer constructive nature of CPDE responses. Our Letter unravels the critical role of the previously overlooked CPDE contribution to NCPs, revolutionizing previous understanding and thus providing deep insights into further fundamental studies and technological advances in nonlinear photovoltaic and opto-spintronic devices.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Transluminal attenuation gradient derived from coronary CT angiography predicts anastomosis occlusion in coronary artery bypass grafts: a retrospective cohort study

  BMC Medical Imaging · 2025-12-01

  articleOpen access

  Predicting anastomotic occlusion remains a major challenge in the management of patients after coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). This study aimed to evaluate the prognostic value of the transluminal attenuation gradient (TAG), a parameter derived from coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA), for this complication. In this retrospective cohort study, data from 160 patients with 327 anastomoses were analyzed. Postoperative CCTA was performed to assess graft characteristics and TAG. The primary endpoint was anastomosis occlusion, as confirmed by follow-up CCTA. Predictors of occlusion were identified through univariate and multivariate analyses. During follow-up, 57 (17.4%) anastomoses occluded. Compared with patent anastomoses, occluded grafts exhibited significantly more negative TAG values, shorter lengths, and smaller anastomotic diameters—including both proximal and distal dimensions. Multivariable analysis identified higher TAG (OR 0.892), longer graft length (OR 0.989), and larger distal anastomotic diameter (OR 0.157) as independent protective factors, whereas elevated total cholesterol (OR 9.404) and HbA1c (OR 1.672) emerged as independent risk factors. The predictive performance improved sequentially across models: a clinical model (AUC = 0.746), a model enhanced with anatomical variables (AUC = 0.864), and the final model incorporating TAG, which achieved the highest discriminatory power (AUC = 0.886). Nomograms were constructed to facilitate individualized risk prediction. TAG is a potent, independent predictor of anastomosis patency after CABG. Its integration into models combining clinical and anatomical variables significantly enhances risk stratification, offering a potential strategy for the early identification of high-risk patients who may benefit from targeted interventions to prolong graft patency. 1st Key Point: TAG was associated with a significant risk reduction of anastomosis occlusion after CABG. 2nd Key Point: The addition of TAG into the integrated model including clinical (age + sex + TC + LDL-C + HbA1c) and anatomical CCTA indicators (graft length + distal diameter of anastomosis) improved the model performance with an AUC of 0.886. The combination of TAG with conventional postoperative risk factors is beneficial to risk stratification and prognostic prediction of patients after CABG and contributes to early detection of high-risk patient disease for timely interventions.

  PublisherDOI

• Single-cell RNA sequencing reveals intrahepatic signature related to pathobiology of duck hepatitis A virus type 3 (DHAV-3) infection

  Poultry Science · 2025-01-08 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  DHAV-3 is one of the main causative agents of duck viral hepatitis (DVH), an acute and highly lethal infectious disease in duck industry. However, the understanding of the pathogenesis of this virus in ducklings is limited. To dissect the molecular characteristics associated with pathobiology of ducklings to DHAV-3, we applied single-cell RNA-sequencing approach to profile the transcriptome of 1.4 million cells from 14 livers of DHAV-3 susceptible (S) and resistant (R) ducklings during viral infection and 4 uninfected healthy controls. We found that infected S ducks exhibited the activation of type I and II interferon pathways with elevated expression of interferon-stimulated genes (ISGs) compared to infected R ducks and healthy controls. DHAV-3 promoted proinflammatory phenotype and inhibited the cell apoptosis pathway of Kupffer cells of S ducks. Furthermore, we observed the elevated expression of host factor PLAC8 in S ducks and validated its ability to facilitate the infection of DHAV-3. We identified significant dysregulation of various genes in complement and coagulation cascades in hepatocytes2 exclusive to S ducks, together with over-secretion of ANGPTL4 from endothelial cells in S ducks which is confirmed to promote cellular migration, suggesting etiology of coagulopathic complications in ducks with severe DVH. Collectively, this study provides a rich resource for understanding the inflammatory immune signatures and cell communications underlying the pathogenesis of DHAV-3 infection, which may accelerate the development of better diagnostic methods and strategies for controlling this disease.

  PublisherDOI

• Confined antiskyrmion motion driven by electric current excitations

  Nature Communications · 2024-09-04 · 15 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Current-driven dynamics of topological spin textures, such as skyrmions and antiskyrmions, have garnered considerable attention in condensed matter physics and spintronics. As compared with skyrmions, the current-driven dynamics of their antiparticles – antiskyrmions − remain less explored due to the increased complexity of antiskyrmions. Here, we design and employ fabricated microdevices of a prototypical antiskyrmion host, (Fe0.63Ni0.3Pd0.07)3P, to allow in situ current application with Lorentz transmission electron microscopy observations. The experimental results and related micromagnetic simulations demonstrate current-driven antiskyrmion dynamics confined within stripe domains. Under nanosecond-long current pulses, antiskyrmions exhibit directional motion along the stripe regardless of the current direction, while the antiskyrmion velocity is linearly proportional to the current density. Significantly, the antiskyrmion mobility could be enhanced when the current flow is perpendicular to the stripe direction. Our findings provide novel and reliable insights on dynamical antiskyrmions and their potential implications on spintronics. Antiskyrmions, like skyrmions, are a form of topological spin texture, with a topological charge of opposite sign to the equivalent skyrmion with the same polarity. While antiskyrmions have been less explored, they offer some potential advantages for applications, and here, Guang et al demonstrate antiskyrmion motion within stripe domains.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• miR-449, identified through antiandrogen exposure, mitigates functional biomarkers associated with ovarian cancer risk

  Scientific Reports · 2024-12-02 · 4 citations

  articleOpen access

  The involvement of the androgen receptor (AR) pathway in developing epithelial ovarian cancer is increasingly acknowledged. However, the specific mechanisms by which anti-androgen agents, such as flutamide, may prevent ovarian cancer and their efficacy remain unknown. This study was initiated by investigating the impact of flutamide on miRNA expression in women at high risk (HR) for ovarian cancer. Ovarian and tubal tissues, free from ovarian, tubal, peritoneal cancers, and serous tubal intraepithelial carcinoma (STIC), were collected from untreated and flutamide-treated HR women as well as low-risk (LR) women controls. We performed miRNA sequencing on these 3 sample cohorts and observed that flutamide normalized miRNA levels in HR tissues, notably upregulating the miR-449 family to levels seen in LR tissues. In subsequent tests in primary ovarian epithelial cells and ovarian cancer cell lines (SKOV3 and Hey), flutamide also increased miR-449a and miR-449b-5p levels. Introducing mimics of these miRNAs reduced the mRNA and protein levels of AR and colony-stimulating factor 1 receptor (CSF1R, also known as c-fms), both of which are known contributors to ovarian cancer progression, with emerging evidence also supporting their roles in ovarian cancer initiation. Ovarian cancer cell migration was inhibited upon introducing miR-449a and miR-449b-5p mimics. Together, our study suggests a novel dual-inhibitory mechanism of flutamide on the AR pathway (AR expression suppression in addition to direct androgen antagonism) and supports its chemopreventive potential in ovarian cancer, especially for HR patients with low miR-449 expression.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Topological stability of spin textures in Si/Co-doped helimagnet FeGe

  Journal of Physics Materials · 2024-02-29 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Abstract Element substitutions with magnetic or non-magnetic atoms are known to significantly impact the magnetic structure and related transport properties of magnets. To clarify the change of magnetic structure of B20-type magnets with element doping, we conduct real-space observations of spin textures and their temperature ( T )-magnetic field ( H ) phase diagrams of a helimagnet FeGe with partially substituting Fe and Ge with Co and Si, respectively. The helical period ( λ ) changes dramatically by the element doping: λ increases by 147% to 103 nm in 30% Co-doped FeGe, whereas it decreases by around 70% to 49 nm in 30% Si-doped FeGe, compared to the λ = 70 nm in FeGe. Upon applying the magnetic field normally to (001), (110), and (111) thin plates of both FeSi 0.3 Ge 0.7 and Fe 0.7 Co 0.3 Ge, the hexagonal skyrmion crystal (SkX) state emerges. The magnetic phase diagrams observed through the real-space imaging reveal that (1) the SkX can extend to a larger T-H window by reducing the sample thickness or by cooling the sample under specific magnetic fields from temperatures above the transition temperature ( T C ); (2) the stability of the SkX phase differs between Si-doped and Co-doped FeGe: the SkX phase is most unstable in the (111) FeSi 0.3 Ge 0.7 , while it remains robust in the (111) Fe 0.7 Co 0.3 Ge. These differences indicate distinct anisotropic behavior in FeGe with magnetic (Co) and non-magnetic-element (Si) dopants.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Identification of an Allele-Specific Transcription Factor Binding Interaction that May Regulate PLA2G2A Gene Expression

  Bioinformatics and Biology Insights · 2024-01-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen accessCorresponding

  The secreted phospholipase A 2 (sPLA 2 ) isoform, sPLA 2 -IIA, has been implicated in a variety of diseases and conditions, including bacteremia, cardiovascular disease, COVID-19, sepsis, adult respiratory distress syndrome, and certain cancers. Given its significant role in these conditions, understanding the regulatory mechanisms impacting its levels is crucial. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have identified several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), including rs11573156, that are associated with circulating levels of sPLA 2 -IIA. The work in the manuscript leveraged 4 publicly available datasets to investigate the mechanism by which rs11573156 influences sPLA 2 -IIA levels via bioinformatics and modeling analysis. Through genotype-tissue expression (GTEx), 234 expression quantitative trait loci (eQTLs) were identified for the gene that encodes for sPLA 2 -IIA, PLA2G2A. SNP2TFBS was used to ascertain the binding affinities between transcription factors (TFs) to both the reference and alternative alleles of identified eQTL SNPs. Subsequently, candidate TF-SNP interactions were cross-referenced with the ChIP-seq results in matched tissues from ENCODE. SP1-rs11573156 emerged as the significant TF-SNP pair in the liver. Further analysis revealed that the upregulation of PLA2G2A transcript levels through the rs11573156 variant was likely affected by tissue SP1 protein levels. Using an ordinary differential equation based on Michaelis-Menten kinetic assumptions, we modeled the dependence of PLA2G2A transcription on SP1 protein levels, incorporating the SNP influence. Collectively, our analysis strongly suggests that the difference in the binding dynamics of SP1 to different rs11573156 alleles may underlie the allele-specific PLA2G2A expression in different tissues, a mechanistic model that awaits future direct experimental validation. This mechanism likely contributes to the variation in circulating sPLA 2 -IIA protein levels in the human population, with implications for a wide range of human diseases.

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• Collaborative Research: Semiparametric ODE Models for Complex Gene Regulatory Networks

  NSF · $164k · 2014–2018

• Collaborative Research: Modeling the Coupling of Epigenetic and Transcriptional Regulation

  NSF · $566k · 2015–2020

Frequent coauthors

• Guoqiang Yu

  Zhejiang Sci-Tech University

  204 shared

• Xiufeng Han

  University of Chinese Academy of Sciences

  149 shared

• Yizhou Liu

  Washington University in St. Louis

  119 shared

• Jiafeng Feng

  95 shared

• Jinwu Wei

  Lanzhou University

  77 shared

• Hongjun Xu

  Lanzhou University

  77 shared

• Caihua Wan

  University of Chinese Academy of Sciences

  54 shared

• Xiao Wang

  Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics

  54 shared

Education

• Doctor of philosophy in condensed matter physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences

  Institute of Physics

  2021

• Bachelor, College of physical science and technology

  Sichuan University

  2016