Dr. Jing Yang has worked as a physician-scientist in ophthalmology for more than 16 years. Dr. Yang completed her residency in Ophthalmology at Jilin University, China. She received her Ph.D in Ophthalmology from Peking University, China.
While a resident in the Ophthalmology program at the Eye Center of Peking University, one of the most prestigious eye centers in China, she was selected to participate in an exchange program with the University of Copenhagen. There she began her work in regenerative medicine, specifically translational research for treatment of retinal degeneration. She independently developed a method to isolate and grow retinal progenitor cells, designed and performed novel experiments that resulted in several refereed publications in respected western journals. For this work, she was recognized as a leading young physician-scientist in China.
Now an assistant professor in the Department of Ophthalmology at the University of California, Irvine, Dr. Yang has developed pivotal techniques to advance stem cell therapies. She is also exploring other clinical applications for retinal progenitor cells, such as using them to treat glaucoma and other optic nerve diseases.