The Li Lab

Research

Our lab is interested in understanding the mechanisms of diet-derived bioactives in protecting against disease process and harnessing the gained knowledge to develop dietary approaches and natural medicine for disease prevention and management for human health. Our research projects are funded by NIH/NIDDK, USDA/NIFA AFRI Foundational Program, and nutrition research programs of private foundation.

There are currently three main focuses in our research:

  1. Understand the disease mechanisms and modulation by diet-derived bioactives as well as by the interactions between diet and gut microbiota.
  2. Improve bioavailability and targeted delivery of diet-derived bioactives to enhance therapeutic efficacy.
  3. Develop dietary approaches and natural medicine for disease prevention/management and integrative health in human.

People

Yanyan Li, PhD

Dr. Li received her PhD degree in Nutrition and Food Science from Ohio State University in 2011. She has been dedicating herself to studying the diet-derived bioactives, in particular isothiocyanates from cruciferous vegetables (e.g., sulforaphane from broccoli and broccoli sprouts), in disease prevention and management for more than a decade. Outside of work, she enjoys hiking, reading, and most of all, spending time with her three kids.

Johanna Holman, PhD Student

Johanna has been working on research projects on broccoli sprouts, gut microbiota and colon inflammation for a few years. She received her M.S. degree in Food Science and Human Nutrition in August 2022, and is now starting her PhD research with Dr. Li and Dr. Ishaq. She loves animals, and has 4 cats, and enjoys hiking, making art, and eating broccoli!

Zachary Applebee, PhD Student

Zach graduated with a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering from UMaine in 2019. Zach has been working with Dr. Li studying diet-derived exosomes in cell and animal models. He is starting his PhD in the Graduate School of Biomedical Science and Engineering this year. In his spare time, he enjoys reading and writing fictions.

Lauren Roberts, MS Student

Lauren is a Masters student in the combined Master/Dietetic Internship program. She has been working with Dr. Li on human intervention studies. She loves learning new things and working with people to help them with healthy eating. She plans to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist when she graduate and work in clinical nutrition or community education. 

Jennifer Spann, Undergraduate Student

Jen is a senior in the Food Science and Human Nutrition program and is on the board of directors for the Maine Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics as a student representative. She has been working with Dr. Li on human intervention studies with broccoli sprouts. She lives in a small town with her husband, four kids and Goldendoodle Sully.

Ricky Gordon, Undergraduate Student

Ricky is a junior in the Food Science and Human Nutrition program. He enjoys studying food and how it affects general health, as well as how food can be sustainably sourced. He has been working with Dr. Li on diet-derived exosomes. A random fact about him is that I got married at 19 and live off campus with his wife and two adorable cats.

Selected Publications and Conference Presentations

Johanna Holman, Molly Hurd, Peter L. Moses, Gary M. Mawe, Tao Zhang, Suzanne L. Ishaq*, Yanyan Li*. Interplay of broccoli/broccoli sprout bioactives with gut microbiota in reducing inflammation in inflammatory bowel diseases. Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. In revision.

Tao Zhang, Johanna Holman, Delaney McKinstry, Bruno Caetano Trindade, Kathryn A. Eaton, Jonny Mendoza-Castrejon, Sharon Ho, Emily Wells, Hebao Yuan, Bo Wen, Duxin Sun, Grace Y. Chen*, Yanyan Li*. A steamed broccoli sprout diet preparation that reduces colitis via the gut microbiota. Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry. Revision submitted.

Yanyan Li*, Tao Zhang, Johanna Holman, Delaney McKinstry, Bruno Caetano Trindade, Jonny Mendoza-Castrejon, Sharon Ho, Duxin Sun, Emily Wells, Grace Chen. A specific broccoli sprout preparation reduces chemically-induced colitis via gut microbiota. Current Developments in Nutrition. 2022, 6(S1): 307. https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzac053.048

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Johanna Holman, Delaney McKinstry, Bruno Caetano Trindade, Jonny Mendoza-Castrejon, Sharon Ho, Duxin Sun, Emily Wells, Grace Chen. A specific broccoli sprout preparation reduces chemically-induced colitis via gut microbiota. American Society for Nutrition-Nutrition 2022, June 14-16, 2022.

Johanna Holman, Sue Ishaq, Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Gary Mawe, Molly Hurd. Prevention of inflammatory bowel disease by broccoli-sourced and microbially-produced bioactives. American Society for Microbiology-ASM Microbe 2022, June 9-13, 2022, Washington, DC.

Sue Ishaq, Yanyan Li, Johanna Holman, Tao Zhang, Grace Chen. Biogeography may be key to microbial anti-inflammatory production using dietary precursors. Maine Biological and Medical Sciences Symposium, Bar Harbor, ME, April 22-23, 2022.

Johanna Holman, Sue Ishaq, Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang. Prevention of Inflammatory Bowel Disease by Broccoli-sourced and Microbially-produced Bioactives. ASM Microbe/ISME World Microbe Forum 2021. June 20-24, 2021.

Yeon Bai, Charles Feldman, Yanyan Li, Ki Keys, Kaitlin Overgaard. Sensorial evaluation of a novel broccoli kimchi: a pilot study in college community. Food & Nutrition Conference & Expo (FNCE). Philadelphia, PA. October 26-29, 2019.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Grace Y. Chen*. Flavonoids and Colorectal Cancer Prevention. Antioxidants, 2018, 7, 187; doi:10.3390/antiox7120187.

Yanyan Li, Yeon Bai, Bo Wen, Tao Zhang. Comparison of Sulforaphane Content: Traditional vs. Modified Kimchi Recipes. Journal of The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Sep 2018. Volume 118, Issue 9, Supplement.

Yanyan Li*, Aaron Domina, Gi Lim, Teralyn Chang, Tao Zhang. Evaluation of curcumin, a natural product in turmeric, on Burkitt lymphoma and acute myeloid leukemia cancer stem cell markers. Future Oncology. Aug 24 2018. https://doi.org/10.2217/fon-2018-0202  

Yanyan Li*, Katharine Atkinson, Tao Zhang. Combination of Chemotherapy and Cancer Stem Cell Targeting Agents: Preclinical and Clinical Studies. Cancer Lett, 2017; 396: 103-109.

Joseph P. Burnett, Gi Lim, Yanyan Li, Ronak B. Shah, Rebekah Lim, Hayley J. Paholak, Sean P. McDermott, Lichao Sun, Yasuhiro Tsume, Shuhua Bai, Max S. Wicha, Duxin Sun*, Tao Zhang*. Sulforaphane Enhances the Anticancer Activity of Taxanes against Triple Negative Breast Cancer by Killing Cancer Stem Cells. Cancer Lett, 2017; 394:52-64.

Gi Lim, Yanyan Li, Rebekah Lim, Joseph P. Burnett, Duxin Sun, Tao Zhang. Combination of sulforaphane and paclitaxel to treat triple negative breast cancer. American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy (AACP) Annual Meeting. Anaheim, CA. July 23-27, 2016.

Wenpeng Zhang, Yanyan Li, Peng Zou, Man Wu, Zhenqing Zhang, Tao Zhang*. The Effects of Pharmaceutical Excipients on Gastrointestinal Tract Metabolic Enzymes and Transporters – An Update. AAPS J (2016) 18: 830. doi:10.1208/s12248-016-9928-8.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang. Targeting of cancer stem cells by curcumin and clinical applications. Cancer Lett, 2014; 346(2): 197-205.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Xiaoqin Li, Peng Zou, Duxin Sun, and Steven J. Schwartz*. Kinetics of sulforaphane in mice after consumption of sulforaphane-enriched broccoli sprout preparation. Mol Nutr Food Res, 2013; 57(12): 2128-36.

Yanyan Li*, Tao Zhang. Targeting cancer stem cells by sulforaphane, a dietary component from broccoli and broccoli sprouts. Future Oncol, 2013; 9(8): 1097-103.

Yanyan Li, G. Elif Karagoz, Young Ho Seo, Tao Zhang, Yiqun Jiang, Yanke Yu, Steven J. Schwartz, Kate Carroll, Stefan Rudiger, and Duxin Sun*. Sulforaphane inhibits pancreatic cancer through disrupting Hsp90-p50Cdc37 complex and direct interactions with amino acid residues of Hsp90. J Nutr Biochem, 2012; 23(12): 1617-26.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Steven J. Schwartz, and Duxin Sun. Sulforaphane potentiates the therapeutic efficacy of 17-AAG against pancreatic cancer by enhancing 17-AAG-induced abrogation of Hsp90 chaperone function. Nutr Cancer, 2011; 63(7): 1151-9.

Yanyan Li, Max S. Wicha, Steven J. Schwartz, and Duxin Sun. Implications of cancer stem cell theory for cancer chemoprevention by natural dietary compounds. J Nutr Biochem, 2011; 22(9): 799-806.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Hasan Korkaya, Suling Liu, Hsiu-Fang Lee, Bryan Newman, Yanke Yu, Shawn G. Clouthier, Steven J. Schwartz, Max S. Wicha, and Duxin Sun*. Sulforaphane, a dietary component of broccoli/broccoli sprouts, inhibits breast cancer stem cells. Clin Cancer Res, 2010; 16(9): 2580-90.

Tao Zhang, Yanyan Li, Zhenkun Zhu, Mancang Gu, Bryan Newman, and Duxin Sun*. MEK inhibition potentiates the activity of Hsp90 inhibitor 17-AAG against pancreatic cancer cells. Mol Pharm, 2010; 7(5): 1576-84.

Yiqun Jiang, Denzil Bernard, Yanke Yu, Tao Zhang, Yanyan Li, Shaomeng Wang, Xueqi Fu, and Duxin Sun*. Split renilla luciferase protein-fragment-assisted complementation (SRL-PFAC) to characterize Hsp90/p50Cdc37 complex and identify critical residues in protein-protein interactions. J Biol Chem, 2010; 285(27): 21023-36.

Yanke Yu, Adel Hamza, Tao Zhang, Mancang Gu, Peng Zou, Bryan Newman, Yanyan Li, A.A. Leslie Gunatilaka, Chang-Guo Zhan, and Duxin Sun*. Withaferin A targets heat shock protein 90 in pancreatic cancer cells. Biochem Pharmacol, 2010; 79(4): 542-51.

Yanyan Li, Elif Karagoz, Young Ho Seo, Tao Zhang, Yiqun Jiang, Yanke Yu, Steven J. Schwartz, Kate Carroll, Stefan Rudiger, and Duxin Sun. Sulforaphane inhibits Hsp90 by disrupting super-chaperone complex through direct interaction with specific residues of Hsp90/p50Cdc37 in pancreatic cancer cells. American Association of Pharmaceutical Scientists (AAPS) Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA. November 14-18, 2010.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Hasan Korkaya, Suling Liu, Hsiu-Fang Lee, Bryan Newman, Yanke Yu, Shawn G. Clouthier, Steven J. Schwartz, Max S. Wicha, and Duxin Sun. Sulforaphane, a dietary compound of broccoli/broccoli sprouts, targets breast cancer stem cells. Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) Annual Meeting, Chicago, IL. July 17-20, 2010.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Yiqun Jiang, Hsiu-Fang Lee, Steven J. Schwartz, and Duxin Sun. (-)-Epigallocatechin-3-gallate inhibits Hsp90 function by impairing Hsp90 association with co-chaperones in pancreatic cancer cell line Mia Paca-2. Mol Pharm, 2009; 6(4): 1152-9.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Steven J. Schwartz, and Duxin Sun. EGCG inhibits Hsp90 function by impairing Hsp90 association with cochaperones in pancreatic cancer cells. American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting, Denver, CO. April 18-22, 2009.

Yanyan Li, Tao Zhang, Steven J. Schwartz, and Duxin Sun*. New developments in Hsp90 inhibitors as anti-cancer therapeutics: mechanisms, clinical perspective and more potential. Drug Resist Updates, 2009; 12(1): 17-27.