Dr. Kaiping Yang, PhD


Children’s Health Research Institute
Scientist, Fetal and Newborn Health Program


Lawson Health Research Institute
Scientist, Children’s Health Research Institute


University of Western Ontario
Professor, Departments of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, and Physiology & Pharmacology


Contact Information
Tel: (519) 685-8500 Ext. 55069
Fax: (519) 685-8186
E-mail: kyang@uwo.ca
Web: www.physpharm.fmd.uwo.ca/people/info.ihtml?ID=Yang_Kaiping


Brief Biography

Dr. Yang received his BSc from the Northwestern University in China, and obtained his PhD in Reproductive Physiology at the University of Nottingham in 1987 under tutelage of the late Professor Eric Lamming. He then pursued his postdoctoral studies in the laboratory of Dr. John Challis at the Lawson Health Research Institute, University of Western Ontario.

 

Dr. Yang was appointed Principal Investigator at the Lawson Health Research Institute and Assistant Professor in the Departments of Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Physiology & Pharmacology at The University of Western Ontario in 1992. He was promoted to full Professor in 2001. Dr. Yang was a recipient of the Ontario Ministry of Health Career Scientist Award from 1993-2003. He is a member of the internationally acclaimed CIHR Group in Fetal and Neonatal Health and Development, and has maintained continuous funding from MRC and CIHR.


Research Interests

• Glucocorticoid actions and metabolism
• Molecular mechanisms of fetal growth restriction
• Impact of maternal exposure to cadmium on placental function and fetal development
• Fetal origins of central obesity


Research Activities

The main thrust of Dr. Yang’s research activities has been glucocorticoid actions and metabolism in fetal development. He has established a strong international reputation for his work studying the expression, role and regulation of the glucocorticoid metabolizing enzymes 11ß-HSD1 and 11ß-HSD2 in the placenta and fetal organs during development. He has made seminal contributions in this area and has kept the filed moving forward. Other research activities include studying molecular mechanisms of fetal growth restriction and fetal origins of central obesity. His work is notable in that it utilizes contemporary molecular and cellular techniques together with in vitro cell culture and whole animal studies. He has published extensively in high impact journals such as the American Journal of Physiology, Endocrinology, and Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. He has presented his work at both national and international conferences, and was an invited symposium speaker at several international meetings worldwide.


Representative Publications

  1. Yang K, Julan L, Rubio F, Sharma A, Guan H. (2006). Cadmium reduces 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 activity and expression in human placental trophoblast cells. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 290(1):E135-E142.
  2. Julan L, Guan H, van Beek JP, Yang K. (2005). PPARß suppresses 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 gene expression in human placental trophoblast cells. Endocrinology. 146:1482-1490.
  3. Guan H, Arany E, van Beek JP, Chamson-Reg A, Thyssen S, Hill DJ, Yang K. (2005). Adipose tissue gene expression profiling reveals distinct molecular pathways that define visceral adiposity in the offspring of maternal protein restricted rats. Am J Physiol Endocrinol Metab. 288:E663–E673.
  4. Guan H, Dy J, Richardson B, Yang K. (2005). Identification of two novel allelic variants of ESX1L in the human placenta: lack of an association with intrauterine growth restriction. Placenta. 26:766-772.
  5. van Beek J, Guan H, Julan L, Yang K. (2004). Glucocorticoid stimulates the expression of 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 in cultured human placental trophoblast ce ls. J Clin Endocrinol Metab. 89:5614-5621.
  6. Hardy DB, Yang K. (2002). The expression of 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase type 2 is induced during trophoblast differentiation: effects of hypoxia. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism. 87:3696-3701.
  7. Thompson A, Han VKM, Yang K. (2002). Spatial and temporal patterns of expression of 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase types 1 and 2 mRNA and glucocorticoid receptor protein in the murine placenta and uterus during late pregnancy. Biology of Reproduction. 67:1708-1718.
  8. Yang K (1997). Placental 11ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase: barrier to maternal glucocorticoids. Reviews of Reproduction. 2(3):129-132.