Yubin Zhou, MD

Education and Training

RESEARCH INTERESTS

At Texas A&M University, the Zhou Lab operates at the intersection of biology, chemistry, engineering, and medicine. Our research spans calcium channels, synthetic immunology, optogenetics, chemogenetics, epigenetics, and immunotherapy. As a bioengineering and synthetic biology laboratory, we develop innovative technologies for remote, programmable control of protein activity, signal transduction, and cell physiology. Our cellular and molecular engineering efforts focus on creating conditionally active biologics and programmable, cell-based therapies for disease treatment. We are particularly interested in:

(i) Illuminating novel regulatory mechanisms of signal transduction that remain unresolved in calcium/phospholipid signaling and inter-organelle communications (Nature Structural & Molecular Biology ’10 & ’13; Nature Cell Biology ’15; Nature Communications (x5) ’15, ’20, ’21; ’23 & ’25; Nature Chemical Biology ’23);

(ii) Pioneering innovative molecular tools for precise control of cellular events, genome engineering, epigenetic remodeling, and gene transcription (Physiological Reviews ’22; Nature Methods ’23; Nature Genetics ’22; Trends in Genetics ’22; Advanced Science ’21 & ’22; Science Advances ’23; Nature Aging ’23; Nature Cell Biology ’24);

(iii) Developing innovative theranostic devices, programmable antibody-based drugs, and intelligent cell-based immunotherapies (CAR-T and CAR-NK) for cancer, metabolic and neurodegenerative diseases (ACS Nano ’17; JACS ’17 & ’21; Trends in Biotechnology ’17; Nature Reviews Bioengineering ’23; Nature Nanotechnology ’21; Nature Chemical Biology ’21; Trends in Genetics ’22; Nature Chemical Biology ’25).

An integrated approach that combines mechanistic studies, biomedical engineering, and translational science defines Dr. Zhou’s research program, as demonstrated by 10+ patents/inventions and successful commercial licensing agreements with biotech and pharmaceutical companies. Our molecular tools and inventions—shared with over 300 laboratories worldwide—have laid the preclinical foundation for several clinical trials and spurred multiple commercialization ventures. This translational focus has fueled our lab’s sustained innovation for over two decades. Dr. Zhou was the recipient of the Fellow Award and Special Fellow Award from the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the Research Excellence Award from TAMU-COM, the Research Scholar Award from the American Cancer Society, the Innovative Research in Cancer Nanotechnology Award from National Cancer Institute, Protégé member the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science & Technology (TAMEST), and elected Fellow of the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering (FAIMBE). Dr. Zhou has published over 160 publications in high-impact journals with over 23,000 citations (among the Stanford’s world most-cited scientists list). His work has been featured in many

journal covers and also highlight by multiple media outlets, including the NIH Biomedical Beat, STAT news, BioPhotonics Media, BioTechniques, JACS Spotlight, and the Royal Society of Chemistry. See highlights in: “Let there be light” (Scientia); “Optogenetics sparks new research tool” (NIH Biomedical Beat).

SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

• Repurposing salicylic acid as a versatile inducer of proximity for biomedical applications. Nature Chemical Biology 2025 (AIP)
• Optogenetic engineering for ion channel modulation. Current Opinion in Chemical Biology. 2025,85:102569.
• Perturbing TET2 condensation promotes aberrant genome-wide DNA methylation and curtails leukaemia cell growth. Nature Cell Biology. 2024,26:2154-67.
• A PASS for protein secretion. Nature Chemical Biology. 2024,20:396–398.
• Remote control of cellular immunotherapy. Nature Reviews Bioengineering. 2023,1:440-455.
• Optogenetic engineering of STING signaling allows remote immunomodulation to enhance cancer immunotherapy. Nature Communications 2023,14:5461.
• Expanding PROTACtable genome universe of E3 ligases. Nature Communications. 2023,14(1):6509.
• Tet2 modulates spatial relocalization of heterochromatin in aged hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. Nature Aging 2023,3:1387-1400.
• Engineering of NEMO as Ca²⁺ indicators with large dynamics and high sensitivity. Nature Methods. 2023.
• Light activated macromolecular phase separation modulates gene transcription by reconfiguring chromatin interactions. Science Advances. 2023,9(13):eadg1123.
• Optophysiology: illuminating cell physiology with optogenetics. Physiological Reviews. 2022,102(31):1263-1325. (Featured as cover article).
• Optogenetics for transcriptional programming and genetic engineering. Trends in Genetics. 2022,38(12):1253-70. (Feature as cover article).
• The Disordered N-terminal Domain of DNMT3A is Required for Postnatal Development. Nature Genetics. 2022,54(5):625-36.
• Yubin Zhou^# and Kai Zhang. Opsin-Free Optogenetics: Technology and Applications (1^st ed.) CRC Press 2022.) https://doi.org/10.1201/b22823; ^#Book Editor
• Nano-optogenetic engineering of CAR T-cells for precision immunotherapy with enhanced safety. Nature Nanotechnology. 2021,16(12):1424-34.  
• Circularly permuted LOV2 as a modular domain for optogenetic engineering. Nature Chemical Biology. 2021,17(8):915-23.
• Expression of chimeric antigen receptor therapy targets in subpopulations detected by single-cell sequencing of normal cells may contribute to off-tumor toxicity. Cancer Cell. 2021,39(12):1558-9.
• Caffeine-operated synthetic modules for chemogenetic control of protein activities by life style. Advanced Science. 2021,8(3),2002148. (Feature as cover article)
• A combination strategy targeting enhancer plasticity exerts synergistic lethality against BETi resistant leukemia cells. Nature Communications. 2020,11:740.
• Intelligent cell-based therapies for cancer and autoimmune disorders. Current Opinions in Biotechnology. 2020,66:207-16 (PMID: 32956902).
• Optogenetic approaches to control Ca²⁺-modulated physiological processes. Current Opinion in Physiology. 2020,17:187-96.
• Tet inactivation disrupts YY1 binding and long-range chromatin interactions to cause developmental defects in embryonic heart. Nature Communications. 2019,10(1):4297.
• Calcium oscillations coordinate feather mesenchymal cell movement by SHH dependent modulation of gap junction networks. Nature Communications. 2018,9(1):5337.
• Calcium sensing by the STIM1 ER-luminal domain. Nature Communications. 2018,9(1):4536.
• Genetically encoded tags for real time dissection of protein assembly in living cells. Chemical Science. 2018,9(25):5551-5.
• Engineered split-TET2 enzyme for inducible epigenetic remodeling. Journal of the American Chemical Society. 2017,139(13):4659-62.
• Optogenetic immunomodulation: shedding light on the immune system. Trends in Biotechnology. 2017,35(3):215-26.
• ­Targeted DNA methylation in vivo using an engineered dCas9-MQ1 fusion protein. Nature Communications. 2017,8:16026.
• Mutations in 5-methylcytosine oxidase TET2 and RHOA cooperatively disrupt T cell homeostasis. Journal of Clinical Investigation. 2017,127(8):2998-3012.
• The LINK-A lncRNA interacts with PtdIns(3,4,5)P3 to hyperactivate AKT and confer resistance to AKT inhibitors. Nature Cell Biology. 2017,19(3):238-51.
• The LINK-A lncRNA activates normoixc HIF1α signaling in triple-negative breast cancer. Nature Cell Biology. 2016,18(2):213-24.
• Illuminating cell signaling with near-infrared light-responsive nanomaterials. ACS Nano. 2016,10(4):3881-5.
• Proteomic mapping of ER-PM junctions identifies STIMATE as a novel regulator of Ca²⁺ influx. Nature Cell Biology 2015.
• Inside-out Ca²⁺ signaling prompted by STIM1 conformational switch. Nature Communications 2015.
• TMEM110 regulates the maintenance and remodeling of mammalian ER-Plasma membrane junctions competent for STIM-ORAI signaling. PNAS. 2015, 112(51):E7083-92.
• STIM1 triggers a gating rearrangement at the extracellular mouth of the ORAI1 channel. Nature Communications. 2014,5:5164.
• Initial activation of STIM1, the regulator of store-operated Ca²⁺ entry. Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 2013, 20:973-81.
• STIM1 gates the store-operated calcium channel ORAI1 in vitro. Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 2010,17(1):112-116.
• Pore architecture of the ORAI1 store-operated calcium channel. PNAS. 2010,107(11):4896-901.
• Rational Design of Protein-Based MRI Contrast Agents. Journal of the American Chemical Society. 2008, 130(29):9260-7.