Affiliation: Vanderbilt University

Dr. Qingyu Tang is a research assistant professor in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics at Vanderbilt University. Their research focuses on elucidating the structural dynamics of protein complexes that govern essential biological processes, with an emphasis on ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters and signaling kinases implicated in human disease, including cancer and inflammation. Dr. Tang employs an integrated approach combining cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), double electron–electron resonance (DEER) spectroscopy, molecular dynamics (MD) simulations, deep learning approaches, and functional assays to define how conformational landscapes regulate protein function.

Their recent work has elucidated the conformational space and transport mechanism of a heterodimeric ABC transporter through cryo-EM, DEER, and MD simulations, and they have further incorporated AlphaFold to explore novel conformations and shed light on the code governing conformational transitions. Dr. Tang has published extensively in leading journals, including Science, Nature Chemical Biology, and Nature Communications, and has served as a reviewer for numerous publications in the field. They are passionate about decoding protein conformational dynamics and advancing methodological innovation at the intersection of structural biology and artificial intelligence.