Prof. Jieqiong Gao earned her PhD in 2018 from the University of Osnabrück, where her research focused on the molecular mechanisms of autophagosome maturation and fusion with lysosomes. After completing her doctoral studies, she continued her postdoctoral research in Christian Ungermann’s lab, expanding her focus to endosome biogenesis. In 2025, she began her independent career as an assistant professor at HKUST, where she continues to explore the molecular basis of organelle biogenesis and degradation.

Research Question

Lipid droplets (LDs) serve as essential storage deposits for lipid and energy homeostasis. Understanding how LD growth, function, and consumption are regulated at the molecular level to maintain energy balance according to cellular needs is a fundamental question in cell biology. Given the crucial role of LDs in various cellular processes, their dysfunction is associated with prevalent diseases such as obesity, diabetes, steatohepatitis, and lipodystrophy. Here, we aim to address the following questions: (1) How is LD growth controlled at the molecular level? (2) What role do LDs play in organelle biogenesis? (3) How is the consumption of LDs mediated by lipophagy?

Research Approach

Our lab will initially focus on the model system yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. This simple widely used model is ideal to address fundamental questions in cell biology due to its lower complexity that allows for a straightforward identification of new cellular and molecular mechanisms. At the same time, we will apply and validate our findings from this simple model to mammalian cells. Importantly, we will use a combination of biochemical, cell biological, and protein structural approaches in our study.

Recent Representative Publications

1. Gao J, Nicastro R, Péli-Gulli MP, Grziwa S, Chen Z, Kurre R, Piehler J, De Virgiloi C, Fröhlich F, Ungermann C (2022). The HOPS tethering complex is required to maintain signaling endosome identity and TORC1 activity. J Cell Biol. doi: 10.1083/jcb.202109084. Highlight primary research
2. Gao J, Kurre R, Rose J, Walter S, Fröhlich F, Piehler J, Reggiori F, Ungermann C (2020) Function of the SNARE Ykt6 on autophagosomes requires the Dsl complex and the Atg1 kinase complex. EMBO Reports, 2020 Dec 3;21(12):e50733. doi: 10.15252/embr.202050733.
3. Gao J, Langemeyer L, Kümmel D, Reggiori F, Ungermann C (2018) Molecular mechanism to target the endosomal Mon1-Ccz1 GEF complex to the pre-autophagosomal structure. Elife. 7:e31145. doi:10.7554/eLife.31145.
4. Gao J, Reggiori F, Ungermann C (2018) A novel in vitro assay reveals SNARE topology and the role of Ykt6 in autophagosome fusion with vacuoles. J Cell Biol.  doi: 10.1083/jcb.201804039.
5. Lürick A, Gao J, Kuhlee A, Yavavli E, Langemeyer L, Perz A, Raunser S, Ungermann C (2017) Multivalent Rab interactions determine tether-mediated membrane fusion. Mol. Biol. Cell. 28:322–332. doi:10.1091/mbc.E16-11-0764.

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