Zhilong Yang

Zhilong Yang is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Biology, Kansas State University. He received his undergraduate and Master degrees from Nankai University, China, and a Ph.D. degree from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He then moved to the Laboratory of Viral Diseases at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and conducted his postdoc training with Dr. Bernie Moss. During his postdoc, Dr. Yang received a K99 Pathway to Independence Award from the NIH. In 2013 he assumed a faculty position at Kansas State University.

Dr. Yang’s long-term research goal is to elucidate mechanisms that govern viral replication, with the expectation that the discoveries made will expand the understanding of the biology of viruses and their infected hosts, and also improve therapeutic interventions and strategies for prevention. He mainly uses poxvirus as the model system. Poxviruses are highly dangerous pathogens of humans and other vertebrates. Poxviruses are also of interest because they are actively developed for the treatment of many infectious diseases and cancers.