Yuanyi Feng, PhD
Assistant Professor of Neurology

303 East Superior Street, Lurie7-111
Chicago, IL 60611
(312) 503-1046

Research Profile

Dr. Feng had medical training at Peking University, Health Science Center, P. R. China. She obtained graduate training and a Ph.D. in Biophysics from the Johns Hopkins University, and continued her research as a postdoctoral fellow at the Harvard Medical School. Dr. Feng joined the Northwestern faculty in the spring of 2006.

Research in Dr. Feng’s laboratory is aimed at understanding the molecular and cellular mechanisms that control the cell division and differentiation of neural progenitors, as well as mechanisms that regulate the migrations of cortical neurons in the developing cerebral cortex. Using combined molecular cell biology and mouse genetics, Dr. Feng’s lab is studying severe genes of which mutations cause human neurogenetic brain malformation, such as Lissencephaly, Microcephaly and Periventricular Heterotopia.

Dr. Feng’s research has been supported by career development awards from the NIMH and the Schweppe Foundation

• Feng, Y., Olson, E.C., Stukenberg, P.T., Flanagan, L.A., Kirschner, M.W. and Walsh, C.A. 2000. Interactions Between LIS1 and mNudE, a Central Component of the Centrosome, are Required for CNS Lamination. Neuron 28: 665-679
• Feng, Y. and Walsh, C.A. 2001.  Protein-protein Interactions, Cytoskeletal Regulation, and Neuronal Migration. Nat. Rev. Neurosci. 2: 408-416
  Sheen, V.,* Feng, Y.,* Graham, D., Takafuta, T., Shapiro, S.S. and Walsh, C.A. 2002  Filamin A and Filamin B are Co-expressed within Neurons during Periods of Neuronal Migration and Can Physically Interact. Hum Mol Genet. 11: 2845-54  * These authors contributed equally
• Feng, Y. and Walsh, C.A. 2004. Mitotic Spindle Regulation by Nde1 (mNudE) Controls Cerebral Cortical Size. Neuron, 44: 279-93
• Feng, Y. and Walsh, C.A. 2004. The Many Faces of Filamin: a Versatile Molecular Scaffold for Cell Motility and Signaling. Nat. Cell Biol. 6: 1034-38
• Feng, Y., Chen, M.H., Moskowitz, I., Mendonza, A.M., Vidali, L., Nakanura, F., Kwiatkowski D.J., and Walsh, C.A. 2006. Filamin A is Required for Cell-Cell Contact in Vascular Development and Cardiac Morphogenesis. Proc Natl Acad Sci. 103: 19836-41
• Feng, Y,* van der Reijden, B.A.*, Lee, B.H., Massop, M, de Witte, T.M., Williams, I.R., Gilliland , D.G., Jansen, J.H. and Walsh, CA. Disruption of NDE1 occurs in inv(16) positive acute myeloid leukemia and causes a myeloproliferative syndrome in mice. Manuscript under revision. *, these authors contributed equally
• Pawlisz, AS, Wynshaw-Boris, A.  Walsh, CA, and Feng, Y.  LIS1-Nde1 Dependent Neuronal Fate Control  Determines Cerebral Cortical Size and Lamination. Submitted.