Heeyeon Kim earned her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science from Korea University. Since 2021, she has conducted research on the metabolic changes in pancreatic cancer caused by the Yes-associated protein (YAP) and the development of a transcriptional enhanced associate domain (TEAD) protein degrader to inhibit the YAP/TAZ pathway.
As PhD student in the Department of Chemistry at Washington University in St. Louis, Heeyeon is interested in the metabolic interactions between cancer and the tumor microenvironment. Heeyeon participated in a ‘Humanities Exploration Gatherings’ at Korea University, exploring connections between humanities and biology, realizing the synergies of collaboration across different fields, and showing a broad interest in various disciplines. Consequently, she has learned traditional Korean martial arts and traditional Korean mask dance. She enjoys singing and dancing in her free time.