Communication Director
Xiaochun Long (龙小纯), M.Ph.D.
Professor
Vascular Biology Center
Augusta University
1460 Laney Walker Blvd, CL-3004,
Augusta, GA 30912
Biography
Dr. Xiaochun Long is a vascular biologist. She received her PhD degree in Parasitology at Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology in China in 2004. After a short period of postdoctoral training at the Department of Biology, Texas A&M University-Commerce, she relocated to University of Rochester to continue her postdoctoral training on vascular smooth muscle (VSMC) phenotypic modulation. Dr. Long started her independent research at Albany Medical College as an Assistant Professor in 2013, and was promoted to an Associate Professor in 2015. She was relocated to the Department of Medicine, Vascular Biology Center at Augusta University in 2019 and promoted to a Professor in 2022. The primary interests of Dr. Long’s laboratory are focused on molecular underpinnings of VSMC phenotypic plasticity. Her lab integrates multiple approaches, including bioinformatics, in vitro/ex vivo models, genetic animal models, and human samples, to dissect gene regulation and function. Current research includes two major directions. First, her lab has a long-standing interest in long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) regulation of VSMC phenotypic modulation. As one of the lncRNA pioneers in VSMCs, her team has discovered several important lncRNAs with distinct roles in VSMC differentiation, inflammation, and endothelial permeability. This body of lncRNA work has laid a firm foundation for ongoing in-depth mechanistic and translational lncRNA investigation. Second, the Long lab is dedicated to the regulatory mechanisms underlying VSMC lineage commitment and differentiation in vascular remodeling. Using advanced genomic editing technologies (CRISPR-Cas9 and prime editing), the team has pinpointed the molecular basis responsible for some aspects of the VSMC differentiation program. Of particular interest is the functional diversity of Myocardin-related transcription factor family members (MRTFs and MYOCD) under different vascular disease contexts, including aortic aneurysm and arteriovenous fistula failure.
Lab Website
https://www.augusta.edu/centers/vbc/long-lab.php