Hojong Yoon, PHD
Department of Experimental Therapeutics, Division of Cancer Medicine
Present Title & Affiliation
Dual/Joint/Adjunct Appointment
Assistant Professor, Department of Experimental Therapeutics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Assistant Memeber, Department of James P. Allison Institute, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas
Education & Training
Degree-Granting Education
| 2021 | Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, US, Chemical Biology, PhD |
| 2012 | Seoul National University (SNU), Seoul, KR, Pharmaceutical Science, MS |
| 2010 | Seoul National University (SNU), Seoul, KR, Pharmacy, BS |
Postgraduate Training
| 2021-2024 | Postdoctoral Fellow, Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA |
Experience & Service
Other Professional Positions
Research Scientist, Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Seoul, 2012 - 2016
Honors & Awards
| 2025 | UT System STARs Award, The University of Texas System |
| 2024 - Present | Recruitment of First-Time, Tenure Track Faculty Member, Cancer Prevention & Research Institute of Texas |
| 2024 - Present | NCI Pathway to Independence Award for Outstanding Early Stage Postdoctoral Researchers (K99/R00) |
| 2023 | KSEA Postdoctoral Fellowship, Korean-American Scientists and Engineers Association |
| 2021 - Present | Mogam Science Scholarship, Mogam Foundation |
| 2020 - 2023 | NCI Predoctoral to Postdoctoral Fellow Transition Award (F99/K00) |
| 2020 | Keystone Symposia Future of Science Fund Scholarship, Keystone Symposia |
| 2019 - 2020 | Chleck Fellowship, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute |
| 2017 - 2021 | Asan Scholarship, Asan Foundation |
| 2010 | Brain Korea 21 Scholarship, Korean Ministry of Education |
| 2010 | SNU Development Fund Scholarship, Seoul National University |
| 2008 | Superior Academic Performance, Seoul National University |
Selected Presentations & Talks
Local Presentations
- 2024. “Small, yet mighty - How degraders push proteins towards destruction”. Invited. James P. Allison Institute Seminar. Houston, Texas, US.
- 2023. Small-molecule-induced polymerization triggers degradation of BCL6. Invited. Cancer Chemical Biology & Metabolism retreat. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- 2022. Small-molecule-induced polymerization triggers degradation of BCL6. Invited. Boston Symposium on Organic & Bioorganic Chemistry. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- 2022. Structure-based design of proximity inducing molecules. Invited. 2nd Induced Proximity Based Drug Discovery Summit. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- 2022. Subtle modification of solvent-exposed moiety confers molecular glue activity for targeted protein degradation. Invited. 2nd Ligase Targeting Drug Development Summit. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- 2021. Small-molecule-induced protein polymerization. Invited. Boehringer Ingelheim-DFCI Joint Seminar. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- 2020. Small-molecule-induced protein polymerization. Invited. Dana-Farber Targeted Protein Degradation Webinar Series. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- 2020. Small-molecule-induced polymerization triggers degradation of BCL6. Invited. Translational Chemical Biology. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- 2019. DCAF15: A new ubiquitin E3 ligase for targeted protein degradation. Invited. Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology Data Club. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
- Small-molecule-induced polymerization triggers degradation of BCL6. Invited. DFCI Chemical Biology Symposium. Boston, Massachusetts, US.
Grant & Contract Support
| Date: | 2025 - 2030 |
| Title: | Discovery of Molecular Glue Degraders Targeting the Undruggable Cancer Proteome |
| Funding Source: | Cancer Prevention & Research Insitute of Texas (CPRIT) |
| Role: | PI |
| ID: | RR240076 |
| Date: | 2025 - 2028 |
| Title: | A Chemoproteomic Approach to Identify Molecular Glues for Targeted Cancer Therapy |
| Funding Source: | NHI/NCI |
| Role: | PI |
| ID: | R00CA287069 |
| Date: | 2024 - 2026 |
| Title: | A Chemoproteomic Approach to Identify Molecular Glues for Targeted Cancer Therapy |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | PI |
| ID: | K99CA287069 |
| Date: | 2021 - 2025 |
| Title: | Expanding pharmacological modalities for targeted cancer therapy |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | PI |
| ID: | K00CA253754 |
| Date: | 2020 - 2021 |
| Title: | Expanding pharmacological modalities for targeted cancer therapy |
| Funding Source: | NIH/NCI |
| Role: | PI |
| ID: | F99CA253754 |
Selected Publications
Peer-Reviewed Articles
- Li, YD, Ma, MW, Hassan, MM, Hunkeler, M, Teng, M, Puvar, K, Rutter, JC, Lumpkin, RJ, Sandoval, B, Jin, CY, Schmoker, AM, Ficarro, S, Cheong, H, Metivier, RJ, Wang, MY, Xu, S, Byun, WS, Groendyke, BJ, You, I, Sigua, LH, Tavares, I, Zou, C, Tsai, JM, Park, PM, Yoon, H, Majewski, FC, Sperling, HT, Marto, JA, Qi, J, Nowak, RP, Donovan, KA, Słabicki, M, Gray, NS, Fischer, ES, Ebert, BL. Template-assisted covalent modification underlies activity of covalent molecular glues. Nature Chemical Biology 20(12):1640-1649, 2024. e-Pub 2024. PMID: 39075252.
- Baek K, Metivier RJ, Roy Burman SS, Bushman JW, Yoon H, Lumpkin RJ, Abeja DM, Lakshminarayan M, Yue H, Ojeda S, Verano AL, Gray NS, Donovan KA, Fischer ES. Unveiling the hidden interactome of CRBN molecular glues with chemoproteomics. bioRxiv, 2024. e-Pub 2024. PMID: 39314457.
- Park, PM, Park, J, Brown, J, Hunkeler, M, Roy Burman, SS, Donovan, KA, Yoon, H, Nowak, RP, Słabicki, M, Ebert, BL, Fischer, ES. Polymerization of ZBTB transcription factors regulates chromatin occupancy. Molecular cell 84(13):2511-2524.e8, 2024. e-Pub 2024. PMID: 38996460.
- Wu, G, Yoshida, N, Liu, J, Zhang, X, Xiong, Y, Heavican-Foral, TB, Mandato, E, Liu, H, Nelson, GM, Yang, L, Chen, R, Donovan, KA, Jones, MK, Roshal, M, Zhang, Y, Xu, R, Nirmal, AJ, Jain, S, Leahy, C, Jones, KL, Stevenson, KE, Galasso, N, Ganesan, N, Chang, T, Wu, WC, Louissaint, A, Debaize, L, Yoon, H, Cin, PD, Chan, WC, Sui, SJ, Ng, S, Feldman, AL, Horwitz, SM, Adelman, K, Fischer, ES, Chen, CW, Weinstock, DM, Brown, M. TP63 fusions drive multicomplex enhancer rewiring, lymphomagenesis, and EZH2 dependence. Science translational medicine 15(714), 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37729434.
- Zou, C, Yoon, H, Park, PM, Patten, JJ, Pellman, J, Carreiro, J, Tsai, JM, Li, YD, Roy Burman, SS, Donovan, KA, Gasser, JA, Sperling, AS, Nowak, RP, Fischer, ES, Davey, RA, Ebert, BL, Słabicki, M. The human E3 ligase RNF185 is a regulator of the SARS-CoV-2 envelope protein. iScience 26(5), 2023. e-Pub 2023. PMID: 37095859.
- Du, G, Jiang, J, Henning, NJ, Safaee, N, Koide, E, Nowak, RP, Donovan, KA, Yoon, H, You, I, Yue, H, Eleuteri, NA, He, Z, Li, Z, Huang, HT, Che, J, Nabet, B, Zhang, T, Fischer, ES, Gray, NS. Exploring the target scope of KEAP1 E3 ligase-based PROTACs. Cell Chemical Biology 29(10):1470-1481.e31, 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 36070758.
- Nitsch, L, Jensen, P, Yoon, H, Koeppel, J, Roy Burman, SS, Fischer, ES, Scholl, C, Fröhling, S, Słabicki, M. BTBBCL6 dimers as building blocks for reversible drug-induced protein oligomerization. Cell Reports Methods 2(4), 2022. e-Pub 2022. PMID: 35497498.
- Cho H, Shin I, Yoon H, Jeon E, Lee J, Kim Y, Ryu S, Song C, Kwon NH, Moon Y, Kim S, Kim ND, Choi HG, Sim T. Identification of Thieno[3,2-d]pyrimidine Derivatives as Dual Inhibitors of Focal Adhesion Kinase and FMS-like Tyrosine Kinase 3. J Med Chem 64(16):11934-11957, 2021. e-Pub 2021. PMID: 34324343.
- Slabicki M, Yoon H, Koeppel J, Nitsch L, Roy Burman SS, Di Genua C, Donovan KA, Sperling AS, Hunkeler M, Tsai JM, Sharma R, Guirguis A, Zou C, Chudasama P, Gasser JA, Miller PG, Scholl C, Frohling S, Nowak RP, Fischer ES, Ebert BL. Small-molecule-induced polymerization triggers degradation of BCL6. Nature 588(7836):164-168, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 33208943.
- Teng M, Ficarro SB, Yoon H, Che J, Zhou J, Fischer ES, Marto JA, Zhang T, Gray NS. Rationally Designed Covalent BCL6 Inhibitor That Targets a Tyrosine Residue in the Homodimer Interface. ACS Med Chem Lett 11(6):1269-1273, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32551010.
- Faust TB, Yoon H, Nowak RP, Donovan KA, Li Z, Cai Q, Eleuteri NA, Zhang T, Gray NS, Fischer ES. Structural complementarity facilitates E7820-mediated degradation of RBM39 by DCAF15. Nat Chem Biol 16(1):7-14, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 31686031.
- Cho H, Shin I, Cho K, Yoon H, Yoo EK, Kim MJ, Park S, Lee IK, Kim ND, Sim T. Identification of Novel Resorcinol Amide Derivatives as Potent and Specific Pyruvate Dehydrogenase Kinase (PDHK) Inhibitors. J Med Chem 62(18):8461-8479, 2019. e-Pub 2019. PMID: 31469962.
- Moon H, Yoon H, Lim C, Jang J, Yi JJ, Lee JK, Lee J, Na Y, Son WS, Kim SH, Suh YG. Asymmetric Synthesis of (-)-6-Desmethyl-Fluvirucinine A(1) via Conformationally-Controlled Diastereoselective Lactam-Ring Expansions. Molecules 23(9), 2018. e-Pub 2018. PMID: 30223428.
- Yoon H, Shin I, Nam Y, Kim ND, Lee KB, Sim T. Identification of a novel 5-amino-3-(5-cyclopropylisoxazol-3-yl)-1-isopropyl-1H-pyrazole-4-carboxamide as a specific RET kinase inhibitor. Eur J Med Chem 125:1145-1155, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 27814560.
- Hwang G, Kim H, Yoon H, Song C, Lim DK, Sim T, Lee J. In situ imaging of quantum dot-AZD4547 conjugates for tracking the dynamic behavior of fibroblast growth factor receptor 3. Int J Nanomedicine 12:5345-5357, 2017. e-Pub 2017. PMID: 28794627.
- Park M, Song C, Yoon H, Choi KH. Double Blockade of Glioma Cell Proliferation and Migration by Temozolomide Conjugated with NPPB, a Chloride Channel Blocker. ACS Chem Neurosci 7(3):275-85, 2016. e-Pub 2016. PMID: 26711895.
- Yoon H, Cho Ks, Sim T. Asymmetric synthesis of (+)-lentiginosine using a chiral aziridine based approach. Tetrahedron: Asymmetry 25(6-7):497-502, 2014. e-Pub 2014.
Review Articles
- Yoon H, Rutter JC, Li YD, Ebert BL. Induced protein degradation for therapeutics: past, present, and future. J Clin Invest 134(1), 2024. e-Pub 2024. PMID: 38165043.
- Wu T, Yoon H, Xiong Y, Dixon-Clarke SE, Nowak RP, Fischer ES. Targeted protein degradation as a powerful research tool in basic biology and drug target discovery. Nat Struct Mol Biol 27(7):605-614, 2020. e-Pub 2020. PMID: 32541897.
Other Articles
- Yoon H, Sim T Stereoselective Synthesis of (+)-Polyoxamic Acid Starting with a Chiral Aziridine. Synthesis 45(23):3276-3280, 2013.
Patient Reviews
CV information above last modified July 28, 2025