Yan  Xiang, Ph.D.

The primary interest of Dr. Xiang's laboratory is host-pathogen interactions, with poxviruses as the model systems. Poxviruses include some dangerous emerging or re-emerging pathogens as well as some promising vaccine vectors for infectious diseases and cancers.

Relevant Diseases: Infectious diseases and cancers

• Professional Background

  Education

  • 1997 - PhD - Biochemistry - Case Western Reserve University
  • 1992 - BS - Molecular Biology - University of Science and Technology of China
  • Postdoctoral Training - Virology - Case Western Reserve University
  • Postdoctoral Training - Virology - NIAID, NIH

  Appointments

  • 9/2018 - Professor - University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, Microbiology, Immunology and Molecular Genetics, San Antonio

• Instruction & Training

  • 9/2016 - Present, Intro to Virology, The University of Texas Health Science Center
  • 3/2016 - Present, Post-Doctoral Student Supervision, University of Texas HSC at San Antonio
  • 10/2015 - Present, IBMS 5000- Fundamentals of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Texas Health Science Center
  • 1/2015 - Present, Pathogenic Microbiology, The University of Texas Health Science Center
  • 11/2014 - Present, Attack and Defense, The University of Texas Health Science Center
  • 9/2011 - Present, Acquiring Presentation Skills, The University of Texas Health Science Center
  • 2/2004 - Present, Microbiology, The University of Texas Health Science Center
  • 10/2002 - Present, Membership on Supervising Committee, University of Texas HSC at San Antonio
  • 10/2002 - Present, Membership on Supervising Committee, University of Texas HSC at San Antonio

• Research & Grants

  The primary interest of Dr. Xiang’s laboratory is host-pathogen interactions, with poxviruses as the model systems. Poxviruses include some dangerous emerging or re-emerging pathogens as well as some promising vaccine vectors for infectious diseases and cancers.

  Related diseases: Infectious diseases; cancer

  Techniques: The research approaches are distinctly multi-disciplinary, engaging the collaborations with cancer biologists, immunologists and structural biologists.

  Research profile

  Grants

  Federal

  Funding Agency National Institutes of Health Title Non-vesicular lipid transport by poxvirus A6 protein Status Active Period 6/2017 - 5/2019 Role Principal Investigator Grant Detail Enveloped viruses typically acquire their outer lipid bilayer by budding from cellular membranes, a process that is similar to the formation of cellular transport vesicles. Poxviruses, however, are unusual in that their primary envelope is not acquired by budding but through extending of open-ended crescent membranes. The origin and biogenesis of the crescent membranes have puzzled virologists for over half a century. Five viral proteins, conserved in all vertebrate poxviruses and collectively termed viral membrane assembly proteins (VMAPs), have been found to be essential for the biogenesis of crescent membranes. The A6 protein of vaccinia virus (VACV) is a key member of the VMAPs, which we discovered and have studied intensively over the years. The goal of this project is to test the innovative hypotheses that A6 is a lipid-transfer protein (LTP) and that poxviruses obtain their primary envelope by mimicking or hijacking the cellular LTP-mediated nonvesicular lipid transport process. Funding Agency National Institutes of Health Title Poxvirus Immune Evasion Mechanisms Status Active Period 4/2014 - 3/2019 Role Principal Investigator Grant Detail Poxviruses include some dangerous emerging or re-emerging pathogens as well as some promising vaccine vectors for infectious diseases and cancers. They are unique among viruses in that they encode a large number of proteins that are dedicated to evading host immune responses. These proteins include secreted inhibitors of cytokines as well as intracellular inhibitors of immune signaling or antiviral factors. The long-term goal of our project is to uncover the mechanisms of poxvirus immune evasion, which will reveal fundamental principles about virus-host interactions and provide knowledge for the development of vaccines and antivirals.

  State

  Funding Agency UTHSCSA Title Identification of factors that determine the host range of Zika virus through a human genome wide knockout screening Status Active Period 10/2016 - 9/2017 Role Co-Investigator Grant Detail Univ. of Texas HSC at San Antonio Internal Project. The major goal of this project is to determine the genetic factors that influence the host range of Zika virus. Dr. Xiang is the co-PI. Funding Agency UTHSCSA Title Novel oncolytic viral therapy targeting cancers defective in SAMD9 pathway Status Complete Period 4/2016 - 3/2017 Role Principal Investigator Grant Detail Univ. of Texas HSC at San Antonio Pilot Project

• Publications

  Abstract

  Meng X, Deng J, Xiang Y. Vaccinia Virus A6 is a multidomain protein that functions at multiple steps of virion assembly; 2016 Jul. (XXI International Poxvirus Asfarvirus and Iridovirus Conference, Strasbourg, France). Meng X, Deng J, Xiang Y. Poxviruses use a conserved 'molecular claw' in a C7-like protein to target SAMD9 and overcome host restriction; 2016 Jul. (XXI International Poxvirus Asfarvirus and Iridovirus Conference, Strasbourg, France). Meng X, Deng J, Xiang Y. NOVEL INSIGHTS ON THE STRUCTURES OF AND THE MOLECULAR INTERACTIONS AMONG VACCINIA VIRUS VIRAL-MEMBRANE ASSEMBLY PROTEINS (VMAPS); 2014 Sep. (XX International Poxvirus, Asfarvirus and Iridovirus Conference, Victoria, Canada). Meng X, Xiang Y. The role of cytoplasmic stress granules in restricting vaccinia virus replication; 2014 Sep. (XX International Poxvirus, Asfarvirus and Iridovirus Conference, Victoria, Canada).

  Journal Article

  Matho MH, Schlossman A, Gilchuk IM, Miller G, Mikulski Z, Hupfer M, Wang J, Bitra A, Meng X, Xiang Y, Kaever T, Doukov T, Ley K, Crotty S, Peters B, Hsieh-Wilson LC, Crowe JE Jr, Zajonc DM. Structure and function of three human antibodies targeting the vaccinia virus adhesion molecule D8 The Journal of biological chemistry 2018 Jan;293(1):390-401. Weisberg AS, Maruri-Avidal L, Bisht H, Hansen BT, Schwartz CL, Fischer ER, Meng X, Xiang Y, Moss B. Enigmatic origin of the poxvirus membrane from the endoplasmic reticulum shown by 3D imaging of vaccinia virus assembly mutants Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2017 Dec;114(51):E11001-E11009. Zaitseva M, Thomas A, Meseda CA, Cheung CYK, Diaz CG, Xiang Y, Crotty S, Golding H. Development of an animal model of progressive vaccinia in nu/nu mice and the use of bioluminescence imaging for assessment of the efficacy of monoclonal antibodies against vaccinial B5 and L1 proteins Antiviral Research 2017 May;144:8-20. Meng X, Rose L, Han Y, Deng J, Xiang Y. Vaccinia virus A6 is a two-domain protein requiring a cognate N-terminal domain for full viral membrane assembly activity Journal of Virology 2017 May;91(10). Krumm B, Meng X, Xiang Y, Deng J. Identification of small molecule inhibitors of Interleukin-18 Scientific Reports 2017 Mar;7(483). Thomas Kaever, Michael H. Matho, Xiangzhi Meng, Lindsay Crickard, Andrew Schlossman, Yan Xiang, Shane Crotty, Bjoern Peters and Dirk M. Zajonc. Linear Epitopes in Vaccinia Virus A27 Are Targets of Protective Antibodies Induced by Vaccination against Smallpox Journal of Virology 2016 Apr;90(9):4334-4345. Meng X, Krumm B, Li Y, Deng J, Xiang Y. Structural basis for antagonizing a host restriction factor by C7 family of poxvirus host-range proteins Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2015 Nov;. Matho MH, Schlossman A, Meng X, Benhnia MR, Kaever T, Buller M, Doronin K, Parker S, Peters B, Crotty S, Xiang Y, Zajonc DM. Structural and Functional Characterization of Anti-A33 Antibodies Reveal a Potent Cross-Species Orthopoxviruses Neutralizer PLoS Pathog 2015 Sep;11(9):1005148-1005148. Krumm B, Meng X, Xiang Y, Deng J. Crystallization of interleukin-18 for structure-based inhibitor design Acta Crystallogr F Struct Biol Commun 2015 Jun;71:710-717. Kolli S, Meng X, Wu X, Shengjuler D, Cameron CE, Xiang Y*, Deng J*. (*co-corresponding author). Structure-function analysis of vaccinia virus H7 protein reveals a novel phosphoinositide binding fold essential for poxvirus replication Journal of Virology 2015 Feb;89(4):2209-2219. Matho MH, de Val N, Miller GM, Brown J, Schlossman A, Meng X, Crotty S, Peters B, Xiang Y, Hsieh-Wilson LC, Ward AB, Zajonc DM. Murine anti-vaccinia virus D8 antibodies target different epitopes and differ in their ability to block D8 binding to CS-E PLoS Pathog 2014 Dec;10(12):1004495-1004495. Kaever T, Meng X, Matho MH, Schlossman A, Li S, Sela-Culang I, Ofran Y, Buller M, Crump RW, Parker S, Frazier A, Crotty S, Zajonc DM, Peters B, Xiang Y. Potent neutralization of vaccinia virus by divergent murine antibodies targeting a common site of vulnerability in L1 protein Journal of Virology 2014 Oct;88(19):11339-11355. Krumm B, Meng X, Wang Z, Xiang Y* and Deng J*(*corresponding authors). A Unique Bivalent Binding and Inhibition Mechanism by the Yatapoxvirus Interleukin 18 Binding Protein PLos Pathogens 2012 Aug;8(8). Wu X, Meng X*, Yan B, Rose L, Deng J and Xiang Y* (*corresponding author). Vaccinia virus virion membrane biogenesis protein A11 associates with viral membranes in a manner that requires the expression of another membrane biogenesis protein A6 Journal of Virology 2012 Aug;86(20):11276-11286. Meng X, Embry A, Rose L, Yan B, Xu C, Xiang Y. Vaccinia Virus A6 is Essential for Trafficking of Primary Virion Membrane Proteins to Sites of Virion Assembly Journal of Virology 2012 May;86(10):5603-5613. Xu C, Meng X*, Yan B, Crotty S, Deng J, and Xiang Y* (*corresponding author). An epitope conserved in orthopoxvirus A13 envelope protein is the target of neutralizing and protective antibodies Virology 2011 Sep;418(1):67-73. Embry A, Meng X, Cantwell A, Dube PH, Xiang Y. Enhancement of immune response to an antigen delivered by vaccinia virus by displaying the antigen on the surface of intracellular mature virion Vaccine 2011 Jun;29(33):5331-5339. Sabbah A, Chang TH, Harnack R, Frohlich V, Tominaga K, Dube PH, Xiang Y, Bose S. Activation of innate immune antiviral responses by Nod2 Nat Immunol 2009 Oct;10(10):1073-1080.

  Not Specified

  Meng X, Zhang F, Yan B, Si C, Honda H, Nagamachi A, Sun LZ, Xiang Y. A paralogous pair of mammalian host restriction factors form a critical host barrier against poxvirus infection PloS Pathogens 2018 Feb;14(2).