Zia Zhao
Graduate Student (Ph.D.)
Biomedical Sciences
Summary
Zia Zhao is a PhD student in the Biomedical Sciences graduate program at UC San Diego. She earned her B.A. in Natural Sciences with a concentration in Biochemistry from the University of Cambridge. Following graduation, she joined Wan Yue’s laboratory at the Genome Institute of Singapore (A*STAR), where she studied RNA interactomes and structuromes using biochemical approaches combined with high-throughput sequencing. Her research focused on RNA-virus interactions, particularly in pathogens such as DENV1 and SARS-CoV-2, with implications for human health.
Building on this foundation, Zia moved to San Diego to pursue her PhD at UCSD. As a member of the Yeo lab, she is developing high-throughput technologies and integrating machine learning models to study RNA-RBP interactomes and prioritize disease-relevant mutations.
Outside the lab, she enjoys dancing, being a devoted servant to her three black cats, and embarking on a never-ending quest to find the ultimate boba drink.
Education
B.A., Natural Sciences (Biochemistry), University of Cambridge, 2023
Publications
Coming Soon!