Enthusiasm for Discovery
Dr. Fusheng Tang, a cell biologist, holds a well-earned reputation having an enormous enthusiasm for discovery that keeps him at the laboratory until all hours – evidenced by the bedroll he keeps in his office. His steadfast dedication extends to his preparation and imagination in the classroom.
Dr. Tang’s enthusiasm for discovery is reflected in 10 published papers on the process of aging in prestigious scientific journals including Nature, Journal of Cell Biology, and Autophagy.
He received a two-year grant from the American Heart Association, which led to the discovery of a key step in the regeneration of the lysosomal membrane. Dr. Tang and his students are now studying how blood vessel endothelial cells transport cholesterols to and from the lysosomal membrane, a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. He is also studying how cells get rid of damaged materials through autophagy, the process of cell degradation.
Dr. Tang earned a B.S. degree in biology from Central China Normal University in 1984 and an M.S. degree in genetics in 1987 from the Institute of Genetics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. He received a Ph.D. in biochemistry in 2002 from the University of Iowa. He teaches genetics and brings his research into the undergraduate classroom of UA Little Rock.