Xiaoyu Yang

About

Xiaoyu Yang is a graduate student in the Department of Linguistics at the University of Maryland. Her research expertise includes neurolinguistics, semantics, and syntax. She is affiliated with the Department of Linguistics located at 1401 Marie Mount Hall, College Park, MD 20742, and can be contacted via email at xyang99@umd.edu. Her work focuses on understanding the neural mechanisms underlying language processing and the semantic and syntactic aspects of linguistics.

Research topics

• Biology
• Microbiology
• Virology
• Genetics
• Cell biology

Selected publications

• Gene Regulation and Transcriptomics

  Current Issues in Molecular Biology · 2020-12-10 · 55 citations

  reviewOpen access

  Borrelia (Borreliella) burgdorferi, along with closely related species, is the etiologic agent of Lyme disease. The spirochete subsists in an enzootic cycle that encompasses acquisition from a vertebrate host to a tick vector and transmission from a tick vector to a vertebrate host. To adapt to its environment and persist in each phase of its enzootic cycle, B. burgdorferi wields three systems to regulate the expression of genes: the RpoN-RpoS alternative sigma () factor cascade, the Hk1/Rrp1 tw…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• The Factor H-Binding Site of CspZ as a Protective Target against Multistrain, Tick-Transmitted Lyme Disease

  Infection and Immunity · 2020-03-03 · 31 citations

  articleOpen access

  is the causative agent of Lyme disease (LD). The spirochetes produce the CspZ protein that binds to a complement regulator, factor H (FH). Such binding downregulates activation of host complement to facilitate spirochete evasion of complement killing. However, vaccination with CspZ does not protect against LD infection. In this study, we demonstrated that immunization with CspZ-YA, a CspZ mutant protein with no FH-binding activity, protected mice from infection by several spirochete genotypes in…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Mechanistic insights into the structure-based design of a CspZ-targeting Lyme disease vaccine

  Nature Communications · 2025-04-06 · 5 citations

  articleOpen access

  Abstract Borrelia burgdorferi ( Bb ) causes Lyme disease (LD), one of the most common vector-borne diseases in the Northern Hemisphere. Here, we solve the crystal structure of a mutated Bb vaccine antigen, CspZ-YA that lacks the ability to bind to host complement factor H (FH). We generate point mutants of CspZ-YA and identify CspZ-YA I183Y and CspZ-YA C187S to trigger more robust bactericidal responses. Compared to CspZ-YA, these CspZ-YA mutants require a lower immunization frequency to protect…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Borrelial phosphomannose isomerase as a cell surface localized protein that retains enzymatic activity and promotes host-pathogen interaction

  mBio · 2025-02-11 · 3 citations

  articleOpen access

  ABSTRACT All organisms produce an intracellular Zn 2+ -dependent enzyme, phosphomannose isomerase (PMI) or mannose-6 phosphate isomerase, that catalyzes the reversible conversion of mannose-6-phosphate and fructose-6-phosphate during sugar metabolism and polysaccharide biosynthesis. Unexpectedly, we discovered an additional PMI function in Borrelia burgdorferi , the pathogen of Lyme disease, where the enzyme is localized on the cell surface and binds to collagen IV—a host extracellular matrix co…

  PublisherDOI

• Impact of E. muris infection on B. burgdorferi–induced joint pathology in mice

  Frontiers in Immunology · 2024-08-20 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  Tick-borne infections are increasing in the United States and around the world. The most common tick-borne disease in the United States is Lyme disease caused by infection with the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi ( Bb ), and pathogenesis varies from subclinical to severe. Bb infection is transmitted by Ixodes ticks, which can carry multiple other microbial pathogens, including Ehrlichia species. To address how the simultaneous inoculation of a distinct pathogen impacted the course of Bb -induced…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R03AI092143

  NIH · $152k · 2015

• NIH Grant R21AI085242

  NIH · $397k · 2013

• Regulatory Network of the Lyme Disease Pathogen

  NIH · $5.4M · 2009–2028

Frequent coauthors

• Utpal Pal

  University of Maryland, College Park

  154 shared

• Youyun Yang

  Indiana University – Purdue University Indianapolis

  87 shared

• Meiping Ye

  Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital

  62 shared

• Yongliang Lou

  Wenzhou Medical University

  57 shared

• Xuwu Xiang

  New York University

  57 shared

• Alexis A. Smith

  Walter Reed Army Institute of Research

  54 shared

• Bryan Troxell

  Research Triangle Park Foundation

  52 shared

• Ming He

  52 shared

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