Yu Jun

Biography

Dr. YU Jun is currently a professor of Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). He is also the director of Beijing Key Laboratory of Genome and Precision Medicine Technologies. Dr. YU obtained his B.S. degree in biochemistry from Jilin University in 1983 and Ph.D. degree in biomedical sciences from New York University Medical School in 1990. He had served as a Research Assistant Professor at NYU since 1990 until he joined University of Washington Genome Center in 1993. Dr. YU is one of the founders of Beijing Institute of Genomics and has been the deputy director until 2012. Dr. YU participated in and presided many important projects including The International Human Genome Project (Chinese part), Super Hybrid Rice Genome Project, The Silkworm Genome Project, The Date Palm Genome Project etc.   Dr. YU has been engaged in genomics, bioinformatics and human genetics, and put forward many new concepts and important theories of genome research. Firstly, he presented “nucleotide composition change dynamics of genome”, which emphasis the determinative role of key molecular mechanisms and cellular processes in genome structure; Secondly, he believe in “key enzymes (and their mechanism) determinism”, which points out the significance of bacteria dnaE in genome component and evolution. This theory implies the existence and importance of eukaryotes non-Darwinian evolution genome variation. Recently, Dr. YU raises “The 5-Track Genome Biology” (Operational Track; Homeostatic Track; Compartmental Track; Informational Track and Plasticity Track) and “Life’s Three Dilemmas at Molecular Levels” (Replication-transcription dilemma; Replication-repair dilemma; Genetic and non-genetic dilemma). His research achievements have been published on many international first-class magazines such as Nature Communications, Nature, Science, PLoS Biology, PNAS, and Genome Research etc.  

Research Interest

Research interests along the direction of systematic studies of genomes are focused on applications of fast-accumulating genome information and new concepts on several basic biological systems, including (1) comparative genomics (including pangenomics and metagenomics), epigenomics, and ribogenomics; (2) domestication of plants and animals as well as recent mutations in humans; (3) hybrid vigor, sex determination, and fruiting of crop plants; (4) medicinal plant genomics and metablomics; (5) origins of genetic code, molecular mechanisms, and origin of cellular processes; (6) new model organisms and molecular mechanisms of phenotypic plasticity in microbes, plants, arthropods, worms, and vertebrates; (7) instrumentation and methodology for DNA sequencing and analysis