Dayoung Oh, Ph.D.
Dayoung Oh is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine/Touchstone Diabetes Center at UTSW. She received her B.S. in Biology for Chonnam National University, Korea and her Ph.D. in Molecular Neuroendocrinology from Chonnam National University under the supervision of Dr. Jae Young Seong, where she made several important contributions to understanding the diverse signaling pathways of G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) and ligand identification for orphan GPCRs using a high throughput system.
In 2007, Dayoung joined the laboratory of Dr. Jerrold Olefsky as a postdoctoral fellow at UC San Diego in La Jolla, CA. There she discovered GPR120 as an omega-3 fatty acid receptor that mediates anti-inflammatory and insulin sensitizing effects, and has published a number of high impact papers on the subjects. In 2016, she joined the faculty at UTSW as an assistant professor. Her lab has had a sharp focus on the role of various GPCRs in the fields of obesity, inflammation, type 2 diabetes, and aging-related metabolic syndromes. The Oh lab has been using various biochemical and physiological approaches including using GPCR KO animals (global and tissue-specific), molecular biology, nucleic acid/protein biochemistry, and eukaryotic cell-based studies with the long term goal to not only elucidate how GPCRs work in regulating metabolism, but also to identify new avenues for developing therapeutics to treat metabolic syndrome.
In her free time, Dayoung enjoys spending time cooking and trekking with her family, and watching movies (mostly children’s movies with her boy!).
Vivian A. Paschoal Ph.D.
Vivian holds a Ph.D in physiology and biophysics from the University of Sao Paolo, Brazil, where she studied the MTOR pathway in obesity-associated macrophages. Vivian is a dedicated scientist with laboratory experience in obesity and diabetes research with a successful record in developing, performing, and completing high quality in vitro and in vivo studies. As a postdoctoral researcher in the Oh lab, her focus is studying the role of GPCR signaling in metabolic syndrome, utilizing mouse models of diet-induced obesity and type 2 diabetes. In particular, she is interested in the role of GPR120 in mediating anti-inflammatory responses and aging-related metabolic syndrome. Vivian is a recipient of the American Diabetes Association postdoctoral fellowship (2018-2020).
In her free time, Vivian enjoys hiking, traveling, and spending time with friends.
Camila O Souza, Ph.D
Camila holds a Ph.D in cell biology from the University of Sao Paolo, Brazil and has a strong background in investigating the influence of inflammation in metabolic dysfunctions, with emphasis on the preventative role of fatty acids. Camila is currently a postdoctoral researcher in the Oh Lab where she has been dedicated to unraveling the immune functions and metabolic role of GPCRs, with emphasis on GPR92.
Outside the work place, Camila as a good Brazilian, enjoys barbecues with good music and watching soccer games (go Corinthians!).
Xuenan (Nancy) Sun Ph.D.
Xuenan Sun joined the Oh lab in 2018, and concentrates on functional characterization of GPR84 in insulin resistance. Xuenan received her Ph.D in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences in 2018, where she was involved in studying the role of nuclear receptors in immune cells, on cardiovascular disease.
In her free time, she enjoys music, swimming and watching movies.
Lorena Arango
Lorena learned the ins and outs of mouse work at the Animal Resources Center in UT Southwestern as an Animal Technician before transitioning to the Oh lab in 2018. Currently, she is broadening her knowledge of colony management, bioinformatics, and web development.
On her time off, Lorena enjoys sifting through Webtoons, spending time with her fiancé, and fattening her dog with treats and belly rubs.