Resume

2020-present, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Professor
2015-2020, College of Life Sciences/Advanced Medical Research Institute, Shandong University, Professor
2011-2015, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Harvard University, Research Associate
2006-2011, Harvard University, Postdoctoral Fellow
2000-2006, Institute of Botany, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Ph.D.
1996-2000, Department of Biology, Shandong Normal University, B.S.

Research Areas

Meiosis is a specialized type of cell division, which occurs only during the sexually reproducing process in eukaryotes. It is the essential process to generate gametes with half chromosome complements of their progenitor cells. During meiosis, one round of DNA replication is followed by two successive rounds of chromosome segregations: homologous chromosomes (homologs) are segregated during meiosis I and sister chromosomes (sisters) are segregated during meiosis II. To ensure successful segregation of homologs, a series of unique events occur during the prophase of MI, which includes the programmed formation of DNA double-stranded breaks and their repair with homologs as templates, homolog pairing, and synapsis. These events occur coordinately in meiotic nuclei where chromosomes are organized as arrays of loops on their proteinaceous axes. Research in Zhang Lab focuses the mechanism of meiosis and reproductive health.

Key words: Meiosis; Sexual Reproduction; homologous recombination; chromosomes; infertility and sterility

Honors and Awards

2016, National Science Foundation of Shandong Province for Distinguished Young Scholars

Selected Publications

1) Inefficient crossover maturation underlies elevated aneuploidy in human female meiosis. Wang S, Hassold T, Hunt P, White MA, Zickler D, Kleckner N*, Zhang L*. Cell. 2017, 168(6): 977-989.
2) Per-nucleus crossover covariation and implications for evolution. Wang S#*, Veller C#, Sun F, Ruiz-Herrera A, Shang Y, Liu H, Zickler D, Chen Z, Kleckner N*, Zhang L*. Cell. 2019, 177(2): 326-338.
3) The ubiquitin-proteasome system regulates meiotic chromosome organization. Yang X, Song M, Wang Y, Tan T, Tian Z, Zhai B, Yang X, Tan Y, Cao Y, Dai S, Wang S, Zhang L*. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2022 Apr 26;119(17):e2106902119. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2106902119.
4) RNA-DNA hybrids regulate meiotic recombination. Yang X, Zhai B, Wang S, Kong X, Tan Y, Liu L, Yang X, Tan T, Zhang S, Zhang L*. Cell Rep. 2021 Dec 7;37(10):110097. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.110097.
5) ESA1 regulates meiotic chromosome axis and crossover frequency via acetylating histone H4. Wang Y, Zhai B, Tan T, Yang X, Zhang J, Song M, Tan Y, Yang X, Chu T, Zhang S, Wang S, Zhang L*. Nucleic Acids Res. 2021 Sep 20;49(16):9353-9373.doi: 10.1093/nar/gkab722.
6) Interplay between Pds5 and Rec8 in regulating chromosome axis length and crossover frequency. Song M, Zhai B, Yang X, Tan T, Wang Y, Yang X, Tan Y, Chu T, Cao Y, Song Y, Wang S, Zhang L*. Sci Adv. 2021, 7(11): eabe7920.
7) MEIOK21: a new component of meiotic recombination bridges required for spermatogenesis. Shang Y#, Huang T#, Liu H, Liu Y, Liang H, Yu X, Li M, Zhai B, Yang X, Wei Y, Wang G, Chen Z*, Wang S*, Zhang L*. Nucleic Acids Res. 2020, 48(12):6624-6639.
8) Topoisomerase II mediates meiotic crossover interference. Zhang L, Wang S, Yin S, Hong S, Kim KP, Kleckner N*. Nature 2014, 511(7511): 551–556.
9) Interference mediated synaptonemal complex formation with embedded crossover-designation. Zhang L, Espagne E, de Muyt A, Zickler D, Kleckner NE*. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2014, 111(47): E5059-68.
10) E3 ligase Hei10: a multi-faceted structure-based signaling molecule with roles within and beyond meiosis. De Muyt A#, Zhang L#, Piolot T, Kleckner N, Espagne E*, Zickler D*. Genes Dev 2014, 28(10): 1111-1123.
11) Crossover patterning by the beam-film model: analysis and implications. Zhang L, Liang Z, Hutchinson J, Kleckner N*. PLoS Genet. 2014,10(1):e1004042.

Group Members

Current Members:

Cunxian Fan, Hui Nie, BInyuan Zhai, Ying Wang
Ph.D student : Qijun Chen, Tao Li
M.D student: Qi Sun, Meina Zhao, Jing Jia, Haifei Qi, Xueyu Kong, Xiaoyu Song

Past Members:

N/A

E-mail：zhangliangran@sdnu.edu.cn

Telephone：

Office addr：Room 504, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University