Zhongchi Li, Ph.D.
Favorite movie: The Shawshank Redemption
Hometown: Jilin, China
Non-science activity: Exercise and traveling
Dream benchmate: Vivien Low
One item from your bucket list: Translating my research findings into clinical applications.
Your scientific interests: Metabolic dysfunction and remodeling during aging and tumor progression
Current research interests: Tumor microenvironment and cancer metastasis. Interaction of cell senescence and EMT. Propionate metabolism and aging.
Research:
My long-term research interest has been to understand the mechanisms of aging and identify effective strategies for the diagnosis, prevention, and intervention of aging and aging related diseases, including cancer. My immediate research goal is to investigate the mechanisms by which propionate metabolism regulates lipid metabolism and post-translational modifications, and how these processes impact cell senescence, aging, and cancer progression.
Selected Publications:
1. Li Z, Low V, Luga V, Sun J, Earlie E, Parang B, Shobana Ganesh K, Cho S, Endress J, Schild T, Hu M, Lyden D, Jin W, Guo C, Dephoure N, Cantley LC, Laughney AM, Blenis J. Tumor-produced and aging-associated oncometabolite methylmalonic acid promotes cancer-associated fibroblast activation to drive metastatic progression. Nat Commun. 2022 Oct 20;13(1):6239. doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-33862-0. PMID: 36266345; PMCID: PMC9584945.
2. Low V*, Li Z*, Blenis J. Metabolite activation of tumorigenic signaling pathways in the tumor microenvironment. Sci Signal. 2022 Nov 8;15(759):eabj4220. doi: 10.1126/scisignal.abj4220. PMID: 36346837.
3. Li Z, Xu K, Guo Y, Ping L, Gao Y, Qiu Y, Ni J, Liu Q, Wang Z. A high-fat diet reverses metabolic disorders and premature aging by modulating insulin and IGF1 signaling in SIRT6 knockout mice. Aging Cell. 2020 Mar;19(3):e13104. doi: 10.1111/acel.13104. PMID: 31967391; PMCID: PMC7059164.
4. Li Z, Xu K, Zhao S, Guo Y, Chen H, Ni J, Liu Q, Wang Z. SPATA4 improves aging-induced metabolic dysfunction through promotion of preadipocyte differentiation and adipose tissue expansion. Aging Cell. 2021 Jan;20(1):e13282. doi: 10.1111/acel.13282. PMID: 33314576; PMCID: PMC7811838.
5. Xu K, Guo Y, Wang Y, Ren Y, Low V, Cho S, Ping L, Peng K, Li X, Qiu Y, Liu Q, Li Z#, Wang Z#. Decreased Enterobacteriaceae translocation due to gut microbiota remodeling mediates the alleviation of premature aging by a high-fat diet. Aging Cell. 2022 Dec 25:e13760. doi: 10.1111/acel.13760. PMID: 36567449.
6. Li Z, Xu K, Zhang N, Amador G, Wang Y, Zhao S, Li L, Qiu Y, Wang Z. Overexpressed SIRT6 attenuates cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury by inhibiting ERK1/2 signaling. Kidney Int. 2018 Apr;93(4):881-892. doi: 10.1016/j.kint.2017.10.021. Epub 2018 Jan 17. PMID: 29373150.
7. Xu K, Guo Y, Ping L, Qiu Y, Liu Q, Li Z#, Wang Z#. Protective Effects of SIRT6 Overexpression against DSS-Induced Colitis in Mice. Cells. 2020 Jun 22;9(6):1513. doi: 10.3390/cells9061513. PMID: 32580272; PMCID: PMC7348883.