Generate a tailored SOP for Dr. Yick Fong. Improve your application with a focused, well-structured draft.
Yick Fong's research aims to elucidate the full repertoire of transcription factors operating in stem cells and to realize their full potential in tissue regeneration and replacement therapy. He studies key transcriptional and gene regulatory events that lead to the acquisition and maintenance of pluripotency in embryonic stem cells (ESCs). ESCs have the unique ability to self-renew and differentiate into various cell types of the body. Distinct, developmentally relevant cell fates are defined by unique gene expression signatures, and the proper execution of developmental programs requires precise tuning of gene expression via transcription factors, coactivators, and corepressors. Aberrant transcriptional regulation can lead to human diseases, including developmental disorders, cancers, and degenerative diseases. To address these challenges, he has devised strategies to isolate the critical cellular machinery responsible for transcription and to reconstruct the complex processes of gene activation in vitro. His techniques, which combine in vivo systems, provide powerful tools to dissect the molecular mechanisms of pluripotency, self-renewal of ESCs, lineage commitment, differentiation, and transcriptional regulation related to diseases.
Administered by the Division of Medical Sciences (DMS). GRE is not required and will not be considered for BBS, Immunology, and Neuroscience.