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Sifeng Gu is a genome engineer with a deep passion for advancing therapeutic development through his expertise in functional genomics and CRISPR gene editing.
Sifeng completed his Ph.D. at UC San Diego in the lab of Dr. Alexis Komor. His main project focused on using CRISPRi screens to uncover the genetic determinants governing different cytosine base editing outcomes. Cytosine base editors (CBEs) enable the efficient introduction of C‧G to T‧A point mutations into the genome. However, they have been shown to introduce other undesired mutational outcomes, such as C‧G to G‧C, C‧G to A‧T and C‧G to indels. Despite the wide application of CBEs, the genetic determinants that influence these outcomes remain largely unknown. To address this, Sifeng led a team to perform CRISPRi screens in which 2,015 genes involved in DNA processing were individually knocked down, followed by measuring how these gene knockdowns affected different editing outcomes. This study demonstrated that competition and collaboration among seven key DNA repair proteins from four different DNA repair pathways shaped cytosine base editing outcomes.
Sifeng also earned a master’s degree with first-class honors in chemistry from the University of Edinburgh, focusing on organometallic chemistry. He then took a gap year before starting his PhD, working as an associate scientist in synthetic organic chemistry at Bioduro, Beijing.
At General Proximity, Sifeng is a scientist on the Platform team, pioneering a novel high-throughput screening technology to facilitate the discovery of next-gen induced proximity medicines. Outside of the lab, Sifeng enjoys surfing, meditation, and hanging out with his cat.
