I have been interested in science since I was little. Both of my parents are scientists so I was watching biomedical experiments in their labs before I could even walk. After gaining my BS in Biological Sciences from Jilin University, China, I joined the GPiBS Program at OUHSC and started my PhD training under the supervision of Dr. Tim Griffin at OMRF. My PhD projects were focused on the effect of aging on joint tissue, metabolic homeostasis, and osteoarthritis (OA) progression. Using novel aging OA animal models, I identified a new age-related metabolic regulatory pathway in knee cartilage through SIRT3-dependent mitochondrial protein acetylation. After a successful dissertation defense, I obtained my PhD and have now transitioned postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Gaffney’s lab. I am excited to pursue and develop a novel technology in Dr. Gaffney’s lab; the use of ChIA-PET sequencing technologies to characterize 3D genome architectures. My long-term goal is to determine the functional significance of SLE risk haplotypes within the TNFAIP3 gene. We hope to reveal how those haplotypes change the 3D structure of the chromatin thus affecting gene expression and disease phenotype.