weiling.yin@utexas.edu
M.D., Ph.D. 2008, Pharmacology/Toxicology
Research associate, Project manager, Clinical instructor
Clinical background: My clinical background was developed during study in Jinan University School of Medicine (Guangzhou, China) and residence in China-Japan Friendship Hospital in Beijing. Subsequently I had an opportunity to work in Mount Sinai Hospital in New York as a visiting scholar. I instantly enjoyed research in the field of neuroscience, especially the impact of hormone to the aging brain.
Graduate education and research: My PhD research in Dr. Gore’s lab in the department of pharmacology & Toxicology at the University of Texas at Austin concerned “the brain control of reproductive aging”, the goal of which is to reveal the critical interactions between the female reproductive system and the central nervous system.
At the base of our brain, in a small, enigmatic, and powerful place called the median eminence, many “brain messengers” dock and depart, including our reproductive messenger – the gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH). Changes at this messenger “harbor” may also affect our reproductive system, and sometimes elicit a large response from the body with dramatic, seemingly unpredictable physical changes. My research was to observe changes to GnRH nerve terminals and their surrounding microenvironment in normal and abnormal physical conditions in rats. Using immuno-fluorescence microscopy and post-embedding immuno-gold electron microscopy on rats of different ages and estradiol treatment, I have found ultrastructural evidence of changes in GnRH nerve terminals, their surrounding glial cells and the nearby capillary system.
Postdoctoral research: Following my passion in aging research, my postdoctoral research continued in Dr. Gore’s lab focused on how timing and duration of hormone treatment change the neuronal gene network in hypothalamic control of homeostasis during menopause. The goal of this study is to seek opportunities for maximizing the benefits of hormone replacement treatment as well as evaluating the potential risks. I designed a preclinical rat model to test the “critical window” hypothesis of hormone treatment. This project enabled me to explore the neuroendocrine homeostasis in response to estrogenic changes during reproductive aging using molecular and behavioral research technique and large data analysis. My goal is to understand the natural processes of the interaction of the brain with reproduction during aging. We do undergo inevitable changes both large and small as we age, but as our understanding of these processes grows, so does our ability to predict and manage them.
I enjoyed the continuous challenge and learning opportunities presented during research, and I am eager to use my knowledge and skills to help undergraduate students and graduate students to achieve their personal success in a research.
Publications:
Yin W, Gao Z and Meng L. Survey on antibiotics in China-Japan Friendship Hospital from 1996 to1999. Drug Information of China-Japan Friendship Hospital, Vol. 16 No. 1, (2000)