Assistant Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
jk2938 [at] cornell.edu   CV
During his PhD, Jongmin identified the function of an uncharacterized gene (he and his advisor named it Kumgang), which was critical for silencing somatic genes during fly spermatogenesis (Kim, ..., Fuller, 2017). After joining a chromatin lab as a postdoc, he continued his work on gene silencing in mouse spermatogenesis, focusing on Polycomb group proteins in modulating chromatin architecture (Kim and Kingston, 2022; Kim, ..., Kingston, 2023). He is excited to investigate how these chromatin-modifying proteins block the misexpression of unwanted genes and safeguard male germ cell fate.
Jongmin is from Korea and came to the US for graduate school. He likes to swim and hike. His recent memorable hike was the "Subway" at Zion. He is looking forward to exploring many trails and gorges around Ithaca.

Research technician, Department of Biomedical Sciences
esb268 [at] cornell.edu  
I obtained my BS with a concentration in Animal Physiology at Cornell University. During my time at Cornell, I worked as a research assistant in the Hendry lab, investigating the distribution of apicomplexan parasites in lizards. After taking a few classes in development and reproduction, I decided that was what I wanted to pursue for my future, and now I am helping set up and organize the Kim lab. Here, I will assist in investigating the functions of the protein Kumgang and CBX7 in spermatogenesis. In the future, I plan to pursue a PhD in developmental biology. In my free time, I enjoy spending time outside, cooking, and caring for my geckos.

Research technician, Department of Biomedical Sciences
jz682 [at] cornell.edu  
I am Jingzhi Zhang, born in Lanzhou, China. Obtaining my bachelor’s degree in Molecular and Cell Biology at UC San Diego, I have joined the Breen lab and Fang lab, participated in the fascinating research in oxygen dynamics in muscle fibers of Cmah knock-out mice and the molecular mechanisms behind murine cardiomyopathy. Upon completion, I determined to continue pursuing a master’s degree at Cornell University in Duan Lab, focusing on gene regulation and epigenetics in bovine embryos, particularly H4K16ac and its regulator MOF, during zygotic genome activation. Also, I have investigated the transcriptomic impact of cryopreservation on bovine embryos. In Kim Lab, I will dive into the studies of polycomb complex CBX7 functions in mouse spermatogenesis while helping with the lab establishment. I am preparing to apply to the PhD programs in the fields of Genetics, Molecular and Developmental Biology.

Graduate student, Graduate Field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology (BMCB)
hl2522 [at] cornell.edu  
Hongjiang is a PhD student in the field of Biochemistry, Molecular and Cell Biology(BMCB). He was born and raised in Chengdu, China, and obtained his B.S. from Nankai University, advised by Xinglu Huang. He spent 1 year as a visiting scholar in the Shen lab at UCSF, where he studied functional genomics in the context of Alzheimer’s disease and contributed to the development of various sequencing methods and tools. He then spent 2 years at Tsinghua, studying epigenetics and transposons. In Kim Lab, his research focuses on chromatin-based gene regulation during spermatogenesis, leveraging advanced tools in functional and computational genomics.

Graduate student (co-advised with Paula Cohen), Graduate Field of Genetics, Genomics, and Development (GGD)
hms267 [at] cornell.edu  
Helen is a PhD student in the field of Genetics, Genomics and Development (GGD) co-advised by Dr. Jongmin Kim and Dr. Paula Cohen. Before coming to Cornell, she obtained her B.S. in Biology and Mathematics from Northeastern University in 2024. During undergrad, Helen worked as a research assistant in Dr. Sandeep Robert Datta’s lab at Harvard Medical School, where her research focused on the role of Ms4a6d in the progression of Alzheimer's Disease in mouse models. Her current research focuses on the roles of CBX2 and CBX7, polycomb repressive complex proteins, in mouse spermatogenesis. Outside of the lab, Helen enjoys reading, playing the cello, and exploring Ithaca with her friends.