Dr. Ying Jia

Dr. Ying Jia
Biology Department University of Texas Rio Grande Valley One West University Blvd Brownsville, USA, Email: ying.jia@utrgv.edu

Biography

I am a lecturer in the Department of Biology at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. I have been actively engaged in genetics and molecular biology research for nearly 20 years, published more than 30 peer-reviewed papers and have taught more than 500 students. After obtaining M.S and Ph.D. in the field of plant genetics and breeding from Nanjing Agricultural University (China), I come to the U.S. as a postdoctoral research associate in Texas A&M University and then in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). After working in National Natural Toxins Research Center (NNTRC) as a research scientist for nearly 6 years, I joined the faculty at University of Texas Rio Grande valley as lecturer in 2014.

Research Interest

The major goal of my research interest is to elucidate the biological mechanism of venom on prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells using broad, interdisciplinary advances and tools, including direct isolation of single molecules from crude venom as well as cloning genes for recombinant protein production. The purified multifunctional venom molecules such as PLA2 and metalloproteinase have been used to study the synergistic interactions with each other and with other venom components (site-directed mutagenesis, yeast two-hybrid system, etc.) to elucidate their cytotoxic effects such as bactericide and anticoagulation. From our studies we hope to gain a better understanding the physiological and pathological characteristics of individual venom molecules as well as molecule-molecule interaction. Additionally, we interact extensively with the community of scientists, companies and business interest that is developing new commercial uses of venom components, especially as a sources of biological molecules in the applications of biological and biomedical research.