Education
B.S. Biotechnology, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, 2006;
Ph.D. Cell biology, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 2011;
Professional Experience
Visiting scholar,University of Michigan, 2007-2008;
Postdoctoral Fellow, Baylor College of Medicine, 2011-2019;
Principal Investigator, School of Life Sciences, Xiamen University, 2019-present.
Research Area
Obesity has become a real threat in China, resulting serious health problems. Studying lipid metabolism holds the key to solve obesity threat. However, studying lipid is challenging due to its invisibility under regular optical microscopes and the complexity of its metabolism. Our group use stimulated Raman scattering (SRS) microscopy to label-free chemically image and quantify lipid molecules in vivo, by capturing Raman scattering signal of CH2 bonds in lipids. We take advantage of our home-built SRS system and together with C.elegans as a model to efficiently study lipid metabolism and its dynamic changes during aging. Our works will advance our understanding of conserved lipid metabolic regulations in higher organisms, and shed new light on the control and treatment of obesity.
Selected Publications(# co-first author, * Corresponding author）
1.C Zhao, J Luo*, Y Zhang, Y Yu*. Temperature-dependent lifespan extension is achieved in miR-80-deleted Caenorhabditis elegans by NLP-45 to modulate endoplasmic reticulum unfolded protein responses. Aging Cell. 2024 Sep 25:e14345.
2.K Shi, B Jing, Y Feng*, Y Yu*. Anemarrhena asphodeloides Bunge total saponins lower lipid via modulating MAOA activity to enhance defense mechanisms in mice and C. elegans. Journal of Ethnopharmacology. 2025 Jan 30;337(Pt 1):118814.
3.C Xu, J Luo, Y Yu*. A fluorescence lifetime-based novel method for accurate lipid quantification of BODIPY vital-stained C. elegans. Journal of Lipid Research. 2024 Oct;65(10):100646.
4.Y Yu#,*, SM Gao#, Y Guan#, PW Hu, Q Zhang, J Liu, B Jing, Q Zhao, DM Sabatini, M Abu-Remaileh, SY Jung, MC Wang*. Organelle proteomic profiling reveals lysosomal heterogeneity in association with longevity. eLife. 2024 Jan 19;13:e85214.
5.Y Yu, AS Mutlu, H Liu, MC Wang*. High-throughput screens using photo-highlighting discover BMP signaling in mitochondrial lipid oxidation. Nature Communications. 2017 Oct, 8:865
6.D Fu#,Y Yu#, A Folick, et al. In vivo metabolic fingerprinting of neutral lipids with hyperspectral stimulated Raman scattering microscopy. Journal of the American Chemical Society (JACS) . 2014 May, 136(24):8820-8828
7.Y Yu, PV. Ramachandran, and MC Wang*. Shedding new light on lipid functions with CARS and SRS microscopy. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA)-Molecular and Cell Biology of Lipids. 2014 Aug, 1841(8):1120-1129
8.M Han#, W Zou#, H Chang#,Y Yu#, et al. A Systematic RNAi Screen Reveals a Novel Role of a Spindle Assembly Checkpoint Protein BuGZ in Synaptic Transmission in C. elegans. Frontiers in molecular neuroscience. 2017 May, 10:141
9.Y Yu#, L Wang#, Y Jiu#, et al. HID-1 is a novel player in the regulation of neuropeptide sorting. Biochemical Journal. 2011 Feb, 434: 383–90
10.L Wei, Y Yu, Y Shen, et al. Vibrational imaging of newly synthesized proteins in live cells by stimulated Raman scattering microscopy. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) . 2013 Jul, 110(28):11226-31
11.X Jiang, Y Yu, J Chen, M Zhao, et al. Quantitative Imaging of Glutathione in Live Cells Using a Reversible Reaction-Based Ratiometric Fluorescent Probe. ACS chemical biology. 2015 Jan, 10 (3), pp 864–874
12.A Folick, HD Oakley, Y Yu, et al. Lysosomal Signaling Molecules Regulate Longevity in Caenorhabditis elegans. Science. 2015 Jan: Vol. 347 no. 6217 pp. 83-86
13.L Wei, F Hu, Y Shen, Z Chen, Y Yu, et al. Live-cell imaging of alkyne-tagged small biomolecules by stimulated Raman scattering. Nature methods. 2014 Apr, 11(4):410-2
14.L Huo#, Y Yue#, J Ren, J Yu, J Liu, Y Yu, et al. The CC1-FHA tandem as a central hub for controlling the dimerization and activation of kinesin-3 KIF1A. Structure. 2012 Sep, 20(9):1550-61
15.Y Yue#, Y Sheng#, H Zhang#, Y Yu, et al. The CC1-FHA dimer is essential for KIF1A-mediated axonal transport of synaptic vesicles in C. elegans. Biochemical and biophysical research communications (BBRC) . 2013 Jun, 435(3):441-6
16.J Liu#, A Ward#, J Gao, Y Dong, N Nishio, H Inada, L Kang, Y Yu, et al. C. elegans phototransduction requires a G protein-dependent cGMP pathway and a taste receptor homolog. Nature Neuroscience. 2010 Jun, 13(6):715-22.
17.L Wang#, Y Zhan#, E Song#, Y Yu, et al. HID-1 is a peripheral membrane protein primarily associated with the medial- and trans-Golgi apparatus. Protein & Cell. 2011 Feb, 2(1):74-85
