Affiliation: University of Edinburgh, Centre for Inflammation Research

Dr. Yi Feng started using zebrafish as a model organism to study sensory organ development in 2004 during her first post-doctoral fellowship in the National Institute for Medical Research, London. From 2007, she started using zebrafish models to investigate the process of tumorigenesis in Paul Martin’s laboratory, Bristol, England. She set up her own laboratory in the University of Edinburgh in 2012. Her research has focused upon the earliest events during tumor initiation, using models of early pre-neoplastic cell (PNC) development governed by transgenic expression of oncogenic Ras. Her research has showed that PNCs induce an inflammatory response during tumor initiation, and the recruited host innate immune cells promote PNC growth and tumor development. Her lab employs in vivo live imaging approaches to monitor the earliest events during tumor initiation. We also use gene expression analysis and other omic analyses as well as zebrafish genetic methods. From their research they wish to elucidate mechanisms that modulate pre-neoplastic lesion development, which might aid the development of strategies for cancer prevention and early detection.