Skip to main content

Lab Members

Meet the lab team members and see our Alumni page for past members. We welcome requests for information about our work and collaboration opportunities. Contact the lab to learn more.

Lab members pose along a staircase

Principal Investigator

Shi-Yuan Cheng

Shi-Yuan Cheng, PhD

shiyuan.cheng( at )northwestern.edu
312-503-3043

Postdoctoral Fellowship, UCSD & LICR, Signal Transduction & Tumor Angiogenesis (1999)

View Cheng's Faculty Profile

I love creative research and collaborating with colleagues within Northwestern and throughout the world. I also enjoy interacting with students and postdoctoral fellows. Outside my office, I enjoy my family, friendships and traveling.

Research Professor

Bo Hu

Bo Hu, PhD

Research Associated Professor

bo.hu( at )northwestern.edu
312-503-1031

Postdoctoral Fellowship, UCSD, Biochemistry (1997)

View Hu's Faculty Profile

I love what I do everyday in the lab and my office. I enjoy my family and traveling.

Xiao (Lisa)  Song

Xiao (Lisa) Song, MD, PhD

Research Assistant Professor

xiao.song( at )northwestern.edu

PhD, Peking University (2016)

My research is focused on studying the roles of RNA alternative splicing in brain tumor development and the intricate interactions between tumors and the immune system, with the objective of developing novel RNA-based therapies for brain cancer. I am also interested in establishing human iPSC-derived glioma models and improving the three-dimensional organoid culture system for studying glioma biology and screening anti-glioma therapeutics.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Qiu He

Qiu He, PhD

he.qiu( at )northwestern.edu

PhD, Fujian Medical University (2024)

My research is focused on the heterogeneity in glioma and tumor microenvironment. I am also dedicated to discovering the novel therapeutic targets for glioma.

Deanna Tiek

Deanna Tiek, PhD

deanna.tiek( at )northwestern.edu
PhD, Georgetown University (2019)

I'm curious to learn how post-translational modifications, specifically PAR, regulate the localization and aggregation of RNA binding proteins in drug resistant GBM. Once better understood, it would be interesting to see how specific inhibitors of PTM regulators affect both RBP localization and splicing. In my free time I love exploring new restaurants/coffee shops, and baking/cooking!

Xiaozhou Yu

Xiaozhou Yu, PhD

xiaozhou.yu( at )northwestern.edu

PhD, Tianjin Medical University (2022)

I am a nuclear medicine and oncology doctor from China. The focus of my present research is the epigenetic regulation of gliomas. The study of the tumor microenvironment is an area that interests me.

Research Associate

Mansi Gandhi

Mansi Gandhi

Student intern

As a premedical student at Nova Southeastern University studying Health Informatics, I am eager to apply my bioinformatics knowledge to the vast amount of glioma data collected. I am looking forward to utilizing various data analysis tools and visualization techniques to create a widely accessible database. I enjoy spending my free time with family and friends, as well as baking and painting!

Derek  Sisbarro

Derek Sisbarro

dereksisbarro2027( at )u.northwestern.edu

I am an undergraduate student at Northwestern studying biomedical engineering. My research has been focused on the effects of cysteine redox changes on cytoskeletal proteins in glioma cells. In my free time, I enjoy playing soccer and pickleball with my friends.

Runxin Wu

Runxin Wu

runxin.wu( at )northwestern.edu

Being a research associate, I study the role of alternative splicing and circular RNA in the tumor microenvironment. I am interested in exploring how these RNA molecules affect the tumor cells and their interactions with the surrounding tissues. I use various bioinformatic skills and experimental techniques to analyze the RNA expression and function in tumor models.

PhD-student

Maya Walker

Maya Walker

maya.walker( at )northwestern.edu

I am a PhD student in the Driskill Graduate Program at Northwestern University. I am focused on investigating the role of tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) in glioblastoma and their potential modulation through alternative splicing events. In addition, I am investigating how alternative splicing impacts the development and progression of IDH-mutant gliomas. My ultimate goal is to uncover new therapeutic targets by better understanding how alternative splicing shapes the tumor landscape. Outside of the lab, I enjoy going to concerts, reading on my kindle, and playing volleyball!