Christopher R. Harman, MD Endowed Professorship in Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences
April 24, 2024
Peixin Yang
About Peixin Yang, PhD
Dr. Peixin Yang is the founding director of the Center for Birth Defect Research at the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He has built up an extensive research program in diabetic embryopathy, including pregestational diabetes-induced neural tube defects (NTDs), congenital heart defects (CHDs), and kidney defects.
Dr. Yang has a sincere passion for determining the cause of the extremely high incidence of maternal morbidity and mortality in the US by studying the effect of maternal obesity on placental function. He is leading a group of translational and clinical scientists to establish the Maryland Maternal Health Research Center of Excellence by focusing on the adverse effects elicited by obesity, placental accreta spectrum, and opioid use disorder.
His research focuses on the molecular mechanism(s) and potential therapeutic approaches of maternal diabetes-induced neural tube defects and cardiovascular defects in the offspring. Currently, he is directing a multi-million NIH-funded research group. Dr. Yang's laboratory has made original and significant contributions to the area of maternal diabetes-induced structural birth defects, particularly delineating the molecular mechanism(s) underlying neural tube defects and heart defects and revealing the therapeutic potential of several naturally occurring compounds.
To learn more about Dr. Yang, please see his faculty profile.