Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences

Sheng-Jia Lin, PH.D.

Sheng-Jia Lin, PH.D.

BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Sheng-Jia Lin is an Assistant Professor of Biology at Utah Tech University. His research focuses on integrating human genetics, genome editing, vertebrate disease models, and human brain organoid systems to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental disorders.

His lab develops and applies advanced model systems, including zebrafish and human brain organoids (three-dimensional cell culture models that mimic human brain structure), to functionally validate patient-derived genetic variants. By combining CRISPR/Cas9 and base editing technologies with transgenic animal models and 3D human cell culture systems, his work bridges genetic discovery and experimental validation.

Through these approaches, Dr. Lin’s research provides mechanistic insights into disrupted brain development and sensory function. His work is further strengthened by international collaborations with clinicians and geneticists, enhancing the translational impact of his research in improving the diagnosis and understanding of neurodevelopmental disorders.

Education

Postdoctoral Scientist

  • Genes and Human Disease Research Program, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, USA, 2025

Ph.D., Biochemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biology

  • Chang Gung University, Taiwan, 2017

M.S., Biochemistry, Molecular and Cellular Biology

  • Chang Gung University, Taiwan, 2011

B.S., Bioscience Technology

  • Chung Yuan Christian University, Taiwan, 2009

Courses

  • BTEC 2010 - DNA Methods and Analysis
  • BTEC 2050 - Zebrafish Maintenance and Methodology
  • BIOL 3030 - Genetics
  • BIOL 4810R - Independent Research

RESEARCH & INTERESTS

  • Neurodevelopmental Disorders
  • Hearing Loss
  • Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase
  • CRISPR-based Functional Genomics
  • Variant Science
  • Organoid Models

FEATURED PUBLICATIONS      †Joint first authors

  • Qin W, Lin SJ et al. (2026). High-efficiency TadA cytosine base editors for precise modelling of human disease variants. Nature Biomedical Engineering.
  • Qin W, Lin SJ et al. (2025). Rationally Designed TadA‐Derived Cytosine Editors Enable Context‐Independent Zebrafish Genome Editing. Advanced Science.
  • Efthymiou S, Leo CP, Deng C, Lin SJ et al. (2025). Bi-allelic pathogenic variants in TRMT1 disrupt tRNA modification and induce a neurodevelopmental disorder. The American Journal of Human Genetics.
  • Lin SJ et al. (2025). Optimizing gRNA selection for high-penetrance F0 CRISPR screening for interrogating disease gene function. Nucleic Acids Research.
  • Banks E, Francis V, Lin SJ et al. (2024). Loss of symmetric cell division of apical neural progenitors drives DENND5A-related developmental and epileptic encephalopathy. Nature communications
  • Lin SJ et al. (2023). Evaluating the association of biallelic OGDHL variants with significant phenotypic heterogeneity. Genome Medicine.
  • Kaiyrzhanov R†, Rad A†, Lin SJ† et al. (2023). Bi-allelic ACBD6 variants lead to a neurodevelopmental syndrome with progressive and complex movement disorders. Brain.
  • Accogli A†, Lin SJ† et al. (2023). Clinical, neuroradiological, and molecular characterization of mitochondrial threonyl-tRNA-synthetase (TARS2)-related disorder. Genetics in Medicine.
  • Lin SJ et al. (2022). Biallelic variants in WARS1 cause a highly variable neurodevelopmental syndrome and implicate a critical exon for normal auditory function. Human Mutation.
  • Lin SJ et al. (2021). Biallelic variants in KARS1 associated with neurodevelopmental disorders and hearing loss recapitulated by knockout zebrafish. Genetics in Medicine.
  • Lin SJ et al. (2021). RGS2 Suppresses Melanoma Growth via Inhibiting MAPK and AKT Signaling Pathways. Anticancer Research.
  • Huang YC†, Lin SJ† et al. (2017). Epigenetic regulation of NOTCH1 and NOTCH3 by KMT2A inhibits glioma proliferation. Oncotarget.
  • Lin SJ et al. (2017). Regulator of G protein signaling 2 (Rgs2) regulates neural crest development through Pparδ-Sox10 cascade. BBA – Molecular Cell Research.
  • Full publications can be found in ORCID, ResearchGate or Google Scholar.

PRESENTATIONS

  • Annual Meeting, American Society of Human Genetics
  • Scientific Retreat, Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation
  • Midwinter Meeting, Association for Research in Otolaryngology

AWARDS & HONORS

  • Professional Development Funding Award, Utah Tech University (2026)
  • Faculty Research Grant, Utah Tech University (2026)
  • OMRF Postdoc Travel Awards (2020, 2022, 2023)
  • Best OMRF Postdoc Paper of 2022 (awarded 2023)
  • Murphy Award, MDI Biological Laboratory (2022)
  • Reviewers’ Choice Award, American Society of Human Genetics (2021)
  • Honor member of the Phi Tau Phi Scholastic Honor Society (2018)

Contact

Sheng-Jia Lin

Assistant Professor of Biology – Functional Genomics

Email: sheng-jia.lin@utahtech.edu

Phone: 435-879-4828

Office: SET 513