Biography
2018 Assistant Professor, University of New Mexico
2015-2017 Research Investigator, University of Michigan
2010-2015 Research Fellow, University of Michigan
2010 Ph.D., Chinese Academy of Sciences
Personal Statement
My current research interests are to understand the role of cellular and molecular metabolism in inflammation and cancer. There has been resurgence in assessing altered cell metabolism in disease. These studies have led to identification of several critical pathways that have the potential to be therapeutic targets. However, the focus has been primarily on the changes and impact of macronutrients such as glucose, amino acids, and lipids. Much less is known about the contribution of micronutrients in pathologic conditions, despite the wealth of epidemiological data that demonstrate that micronutrient metabolism is altered in chronic inflammatory disorders and cancers. It is currently unclear how inflamed and transformed cells acquire and utilize micronutrients for signaling, survival, and growth. This research area is under-explored and has the potential to generate novel biomarkers and therapeutic targets for inflammatory diseases and cancers. Research in my lab will understand how micronutrients are essential in cancer cell growth through integrating cancer cell metabolism, oncogenic signaling and tumor-promoting inflammation.
Areas of Specialty
Gastroenterology, Cancer Biology, Iron Metabolism, Mitochondria
Achievements & Awards
2002 Outstanding Student Leader Award, Southeast University
2002 The United Laboratories Medical Education Scholarship, Southeast University
2003 Jiangsu Provincial Government Scholarship, Southeast University
2003 Merit Student Award, Southeast University
2008 Outstanding Junior Thesis Award, Shanghai Pharmacological Society Annual Meeting
2009 Outstanding Thesis Award, Chinese Pharmaceutical Association Annual Meeting
2009 Science and Technology Award, 1st Place, Chinese Pharmaceutical Association.
2009 Doctoral Fellowship, the Nagai Foundation Tokyo
2009 Merit Student Award, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica
2010 Junior Fellowship, The XII International Congress of Toxicology
2010 Merit Student Award, Shanghai Institute of Materia Medica
2011 Best Posters Award (3/92), University of Michigan-Wayne State University Physiology Symposium II
2013 Takeda Travel Award, The American Physiological Society (4 in total)
2014 Top 3 Poster Award (2nd/51), University of Michigan Cancer Center Fall Symposium
2018 Judge Travel Award, Annual Biomedical Research Conference for Minority Students (ABRCMS)
2019 A Metabolomic Studies Voucher from Autophagy, Inflammation and Metabolism (AIM) Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (P20GM121176)
2019 A Core Utilization Voucher from Autophagy, Inflammation and Metabolism (AIM) Center of Biomedical Research Excellence (P20GM121176)
2020 A voucher from the IDeA National Resource for Quantitative Proteomics (R24GM137786)
Languages
- Chinese
- English
Courses Taught
BIOCHEMISTRY OF DISEASE II (Biochem 464)Spring 2019, Spring 2020
M, W 1:00 to 2:15 PM
Role: Course Instructor
BIOCHEMISTRY OF DISEASE I (Biochem 463)Fall 2020
Where: ZOOM
When: Aug 17, 2020 - Dec 12, 2020, M, W 1:00 to 2:15 PM
Role: Course Director
Biochemical Methods (BIOC 448L)Fall 2020
Where: ZOOM
When: Aug 17, 2020 - Dec 12, 2020
Role: Course Builder
Research and Scholarship
1. Inflammatory Bowel Disease (Gastroenterology. 2013 Oct;145(4):831-41.)
2. Iron Metabolism and Colorectal Cancer (Cell Metab. 2016. Sep 13;24(3)447-461.)
3. Mitochondrial Metabolism and Colorectal Cancer (Cell Death Differ .2021. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41418-021-00760-9.)