Understanding the genetic basis of evolution over time will offer tremendous insights into the fundamental processes of life. As a geneticist, I explored genetic history of modern human to uncover our shared past and deepen our understanding of humanity. I also studied wild and domesticated animals to understand the genetic mechanisms of speciation, hybridization, and adaptation, with the goal of preserving biodiversity and preventing extinction. My work bridges the traditional anthropology and conservation biology to the cutting-edge advances of population genomics and ancient DNA. By integrating ancient DNA and population genomic data and applying advanced analytical tools, I am dedicated to exploring the genetic basis of adaptive evolution in modern humans and other mammalian species. My research currently focuses on the following three key aspects.

• Reconstruct genetic history of ancient and contemporary humans to understand our shared past and deepen our insights on human evolution.
• Explore the adaptive genetic changes in modern human and other mammals in response to infectious disease and other environmental factors over time.
• Characterize domestication history for animals for a deeper comprehension on the interactions between human and animals.

2013-09 ~ 2019-01, Peking University, Ph.D. in Zoology

2009-09 ~ 2013-06, Nanjing University, B.Sc. in Biology

2025.12 ~ Present, IVPP-CAS, Principal Investigator

2020.01 ~ 2025.08, Harvard University, Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Representative Publications: (*equal contribution; #co-corresponding author)

1. Liu YC#, Eakin J#, Liston J, Hunter-Anderson R, Emesiochel C, Soaladaob K, Ngirmang SO, Cheronet O, Spriggs M, Prufer K, Mallick S, Rohland N, Pinhasi R#, Reich D# (2026). Papuan Admixture Predated the Settlement of Palau. Cell 189(9), 2573-2581.e10.
2. Sun X, Liu YC, Tiunov MP, Gimranov DO, Zhuang Y, Han Y, Driscoll CA, Pang YH, Li C, Pan Y, Sandoval-Velasco M, Gopalakrishnan S, Yang RZ, Li BG, Jin K, Xu X, Uphyrkina O, Huang YY, Wu XH, Gilbert MTP, O'Brien SJ, Yamaguchi N, Luo SJ (2023). Ancient DNA reveals genetic admixture in China during tiger evolution. Nature Ecology and Evolution 7, 1914–1929.
3. Liu YC#, Hunter-Anderson R#, Cheronet O, Eakin J, Camacho F, Pietrusewsky M, Rohland N, Ioannidis A, Athens JS, Douglas MT, Ikehara-Quebral MI, Bernardos R, Culleton BJ, Mah M, Adamski N, Broomandkhoshbacht N, Callan K, Lawson AM, Mandl K, Michel M, Oppenheimer J, Stewardson K, Zalzala F, Kidd K, Kidd J, Schurr TG, Auckland K, Hill AVS, Mentzer AJ, Quinto-Cortés CD, Robson K, Kennett DJ, Patterson N, Bustamante CD, Moreno-Estrada A, Spriggs M, Vilar M, Lipson M, Pinhasi R#, Reich D# (2022). Ancient DNA reveals five streams of migration into Micronesia and matrilocality in early Pacific seafarers. Science 377, 72-9.
4. Luo SJ, Liu YC, Xu X (2019). Tigers of the world: genomics and conservation. Annual Review of Animal Biosciences 7, 521-548. [Invited Review]
5. Liu YC, Sun X, Driscoll C, Miquelle DG, Xu X, Martelli P, Uphyrkina O, Smith JLD, O’Brien SJ, Luo SJ (2018). Genome-wide evolutionary analysis of natural history and adaptation in the world’s tigers. Current Biology 28(23), 3840-3849.e6. [Cover Story]
6. Spriggs M*, Geraghty P*, and Liu YC* (2025). “Austronesian archaeolinguistics”, Chapter 25 in Oxford Handbook of Archaeology and Language, edited by Martine Robbeets and Mark Hudson. pp. 466-492

See more at https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0448-8181