Dr. Xiong is currently a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. Ted Dawson and Dr. Valina Dawson’s group in Department of Neurology and Institute for Cell Engineering at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Xiong graduated from Capital Normal University, Beijing, China, where she received both a BS degree in biology and a MS degree in molecular genetics. She received her PhD degree in biochemistry and molecular genetics at Lancaster University, UK. During her Masters and PhD training Dr. Xiong developed considerable skills in molecular biology and yeast genetics. She has successfully incorporated yeast biology into Parkinson’s disease research in Dr. Dawson’s group. Dr. Xiong has expertise in developing molecular and cellular models of Parkinson’s disease. She is extending her expertise in fly genetics to study Parkinson’s disease.