Yizhi Jane Tao

Infobox_Celebrity
name = Yizhi Jane Tao
imagesize = 200px
caption = Tao at Peking University
occupation = Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Rice University, mapped atomic structure of the influenza A virus nucleoprotein trimer, named among the top ten most influential Chinese of 2006 by a consortium of China’s leading media outlets

Yizhi Jane Tao, Ph.D., is a Chinese biochemist, structural biologist, and Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Rice University in Houston, Texas. Professor Tao led a team of researchers to be the first to map the structure of the influenza A virus nucleoprotein to an atomic level, a feat which circulated widely in the popular press. [cite web |title= Researchers find flu 'weak spot' | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/6213764.stm] [cite web |title= Scientists Find Potential 'Achilles' Heel' in Bird-Flu Virus | url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/12/06/AR2006120600929_2.html] She was named among the top ten most influential Chinese of 2006 by a consortium of China's leading media outlets including Phoenix Satellite Television, China News Service, Asia Newsweek, and World Journal. [cite web |title= Biochemist among most influential Chinese | url=http://www.media.rice.edu/media/NewsBot.asp?MODE=VIEW&ID=9435&SnID=1006600401] [cite web |title= Full list of "You Bring Charm to the World" winners | url=http://english.cri.cn/3086/2007/04/01/[e-mail]]

Education

Born in China, Yizhi Jane Tao received a B.Sc. degree in biology from Peking University in Beijing, China, in 1992. She later moved to West Lafayette, Indiana, where she received her Ph.D. in biological science while studying under the German-American biophysicist Michael Rossmann. [cite web |title= The Rossmann Laboratory - Alumni | url=http://bilbo.bio.purdue.edu/~viruswww/Rossmann_home/people/history/index_90s.php] She completed a postdoctoral fellowship under Stephen C. Harrison at Harvard University in 2002. [cite web |title= The Stephen C. Harrison Laboratory of Structural Cell Biology - Alumni | url=http://crystal.harvard.edu/laboratory-roots.php] Upon completing her postdoctoral studies, Tao joined the faculty of Rice University, where she has made important contributions to the study of influenza and birnaviruses.

External links

* [http://ytao.rice.edu The Tao Laboratory Official Website]
* [http://biochem.rice.edu/facultydetail.cfm?riceid=291 Yizhi Jane Tao Faculty Detail]

References

* [http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=17151603&dopt=AbstractPlus&holding=f1000%2Cf1000m%2Cisrctn The mechanism by which influenza A virus nucleoprotein forms oligomers and binds RNA] in "Nature" magazine.
* [http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.0611599104 The structure of a birnavirus polymerase reveals a distinct active site topology] in "Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America" magazine.