Hye Young Shin

Background

Dr. Hye Young Shin has made significant contributions to the search for therapeutics for patients with incurable diseases, utilizing cutting-edge technologies. Her expertise lies in the differentiation of various neurons from human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) and patient-derived pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), as well as in disease modeling of neurodegenerative disorders to facilitate the development of new therapies.

Dr. Shin earned both a Master of Science and a Ph.D. in Brain Science and Cancer Biology from Seoul National University in South Korea. She continued her research as a postdoctoral fellow and research associate in the Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University and the Harvard Stem Cell Institute. There, she conducted live imaging and morphometric parameter-based drug screening for motor neuron diseases, combining her knowledge of neurodevelopment, neurodegeneration, and neuronal differentiation of hESCs and iPSCs.

Her research has led to the publication of more than a dozen papers in international scientific journals and a patent for a method to diagnose Parkinson’s disease and assess disease progression. In August 2021, Dr. Shin joined Rivier University as an Assistant Professor of Biotechnology. Since then, she has taught the majority of upper-level courses in biology and biotechnology. Dr. Shin has expanded her previous research efforts with undergraduate students to find potential therapeutics for Glioblastoma, the most difficult brain cancer. Glioblastoma (GBM), a grade IV glioma, is the most difficult adult brain cancer. GBM’s median survival rate is 14.5 months due to its high resistance to medical interventions and high recurrence rate. Since 2021, her cancer research has been funded by the NH-INBRE grant of Dartmouth College, which is awarded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Dr. Shin has prioritized giving senior students the opportunity to conduct research with her, resulting in two graduates securing positions with leading biotech companies in the Greater Boston area, MA, since 2021.

Dr. Shin deeply values the history and mission of Rivier University and finds fulfillment in sharing her knowledge and experiences with her students.

Degrees

• Ph.D., Seoul National University, School of Medicine
• M.S., Seoul National University, School of Natural Science
• B.S., Inje University, School of Biotechnology and Biomedical Science

Specialties

• Neurodegenerative diseases & Neurobiology

• Stem Cell Biology

• Cell-based High Content Screening for therapeutic compounds

• Neurogenerative disease modeling utilizing Patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells

• Three-dimensional Brain Organoids

• Cancer Stem Cell Biology

• Cerebral Stroke

Courses Taught

• BIO112 Stewards of the Living World

• BIO105 Anatomy and Physiology Lab I

• BIO106 Anatomy and Physiology Lab II

• BIO220 Biotechnology

• BIO301 Animal Physiology and Lab

• BIO303 Population Genetics

• BIO305 Animal Behavior and Lab

• BIO308 Molecular Cell Biology and Lab

• BIO385 Integrated Biotechnology

• BIO404 Developmental Biology and Lab

• BIO426 Problems in Biology

• BIO496 Biotechnology Internship

Recent Publications and Proceedings

1. NH-INBRE PILOT GRANT, 06/15/2023-06/30/2025
2. NH-INBRE SEED GRANT, 07/01/2022-06/30/2023
3. Shin HY, Han KS, Park HW, Hong YH, Kim Y, Moon HE, Park KW, Park HR, Lee CJ, Lee K, Kim SJ, Heo MS, Park SH, Kim DG, Paek SH. Tumor Spheroids of an Aggressive Form of Central Neurocytoma Have Transit-Amplifying Progenitor Characteristics with Enhanced EGFR and Tumor Stem Cell Signaling. Exp Neurobiol. 2021 Apr 30;30(2):120-143. doi: 10.5607/en21004. PMID: 33972466.
4. Shin HY, Pfaff KL, Davidow LS, Sun C, Uozumi T, Yanagawa F, Yamazaki Y, Kiyota Y, Rubin LL. Using Automated Live Cell Imaging to Reveal Early Changes during Human Motor Neuron Degeneration. eNeuro. 2018 Jun 29;5(3). pii: ENEURO.0001-18.2018. doi: 10.1523/ENEURO.0001-18.2018. eCollection 2018 May-Jun. PMID: 29971247.
5. Shin HY, Kim JW, Paek SH, Kim DG. The characteristics of neuronal stem cells of central neurocytoma. Neurosurg Clin N Am. 2015 Jan;26(1):31-6. doi: 10.1016/j.nec.2014.09.009. Review. PMID: 25432181
6. Lee K, Byun K, Hong W, Chuang HY, Pack CG, Bayarsaikhan E, Paek SH, Kim H, Shin HY, Ideker T, Lee B. Proteome-wide discovery of mislocated proteins in cancer. Genome Res. 2013 Aug; 23(8):1283-94. doi: 10.1101/gr.155499.113. Epub 2013 May 14. PMID: 23674306.
7. Shin HY, Hong YH, Jang SS, Chae HG, Paek SL, Moon HE, Kim DG, Kim J, Paek SH, Kim SJ. A role of canonical transient receptor potential 5 channel in neuronal differentiation from A2B5 neural progenitor cells. PLoS One. 2010 May 7;5(5):e10359. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0010359. PMID: 20479868.
8. Kang SS, Han KS, Ku BM, Lee YK, Hong J, Shin HY, Almonte AG, Woo DH, Brat DJ, Hwang EM, Yoo SH, Chung CK, Park SH, Paek SH, Roh EJ, Lee SJ, Park JY, Traynelis SF, Lee CJ. Caffeine-mediated inhibition of calcium release channel inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate receptor subtype 3 blocks glioblastoma invasion and extends survival. Cancer Res. 2010 Feb 1;70(3):1173-83. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-09-2886. Epub 2010 Jan 26. PMID: 20103623.
9. Shin HY, Lee YJ, Kim HJ, Park CK, Kim JH, Wang KC, Kim DG, Koh GY, Paek SH. Protective role of COMP-Ang1 in ischemic rat brain. J Neurosci Res. 2010 Apr;88(5):1052-63. doi: 10.1002/jnr.22274. PMID: 19885826.