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Yichen Wang

Dr Yichen Wang

BSc MS PhD

  • Position Governing Body Fellow Junior Research Fellow
  • School Wellcome Sanger Institute
  • Email yichen.wang@sanger.ac.uk
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Yichen is a computational biologist focusing on understanding the normal aging process as well as early cancer development. She is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Wellcome Sanger Institute and a Junior Research Fellow at Âé¶¹ËÞÉáµçÊÓ¾çCollege.

Yichen Wang

Yichen graduated from Peking University, China with a BSc in Biological Science and Applied Mathematics. She then pursued a doctorate in Computational Biology at the University of Cambridge (funded by Wellcome Trust), and meanwhile, a part-time online Master's in Computer Science with Georgia Institute of Technology. Her PhD explored mutational processes in normal human tissues under the supervision of Professor Sir Mike Stratton and Dr Peter Campbell. She is now a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Cancer, Ageing and Somatic Mutation Programme at the Wellcome Sanger Institute.

As a genome biologist, Yichen studies changes in our DNA that occur after birth, called somatic mutations. While many of these changes are harmless, some can trigger diseases like cancer. Somatic mutations also serve as genetic footprints, recording the history of cells, from environmental exposures to the natural process of ageing. Analysing these footprints provides clues about the causes and developmental trajectory of diseases.

Yichen’s research focuses on understanding how somatic mutations in normal tissues contribute to the very early stages of cancer development and ageing. Her current work, based on bioinformatics analysis of normal kidney genomes collected from different geographic regions with varying kidney cancer risks, has demonstrated how the genomes of certain normal tissues can serve as a sensitive ‘reporter’ for exogenous mutagens, helping to discover previously unknown cancer risk factors.

Her past research, along with that of others, also suggests both cancer and ageing are affected by factors beyond DNA mutations, which are yet unknown. To address this, her next focus will be exploring how DNA methylation impacts DNA mutation rates, ageing and cancer risk. By employing advanced sequencing techniques to analyse methylation and DNA mutation patterns in normal tissues simultaneously, she aims to uncover signatures of methylation changes, and how they may explain for ageing and differences in cancer risk beyond mutation burden alone.

What's on

A triptych of abstract images: a smooth round stone nestled in a curved rock, distorted eyeglass frames scattered on a white background, and a high-contrast black and white microscopic image resembling organic or cellular structures.

Art Exhibition: Âé¶¹ËÞÉáµçÊÓ¾çat 60

21/06/2025 at 10.00

Celebrating Wolfson’s 60th anniversary year, this exhibition highlights the range of artistic disciplines and styles that have made up our exhibitions over the years.

A group of people stands outdoors near a table with books and papers, attentively reading or listening during a gathering.

WolfWords Launch and Poetry Reading

27/06/2025 at 11.00

Please come and join us for the launch of this year's WolfWords poetry anthologywhich brings together poems from the entire Âé¶¹ËÞÉáµçÊÓ¾çcommunity.

Âé¶¹ËÞÉáµçÊÓ¾çChampagne Credit Ian Olsson

Wolfson's 60th Birthday Party

27/06/2025 at 18.30

Come party like it's 1965 as we celebrate Wolfson's 60th birthday!

Graphic for "Cambridge Zero Community Day" on 28 June 2025 from 10:00 to 20:30, with the tagline "Forging a Future for Our Planet" and descriptors "Innovative, Inclusive, Impactful."

Cambridge Zero Community Day

28/06/2025 at 10.00

Âé¶¹ËÞÉáµçÊÓ¾çCollege will showcase its commitment to Sustainability and Conservation and Green Impact by exhibiting a number of projects around the College at the Cambridge Zero Community Day.

A large stone church with a tall spire and ornate Gothic-style windows stands on a grassy hill under a clear blue sky.

Thaxted Festival Mass

29/06/2025 at 11.00

Haydn’s delightful Little Organ Mass will be sung by Âé¶¹ËÞÉáµçÊÓ¾çChamber Singers, accompanied by the historic Lincoln Organ played by Tom Williamson.

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