Research/Areas of Interest
Tissue engineering; human intestinal organoids; gut inflammation; epithelial barrier function; environmental exposures; microplastics and nanoplastics; food and future food systems; microbiome interactions; bacterial engineering; drug delivery; silk biomaterials; cell nanocoating; protective cell technologies; cultivated foods; sustainable biotechnology.
Education
- Ph.D., Biomedical Science and Engineering, University of Maine, Orono, United States, 2013
- M.S., Environmental Toxicology, Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian, China, 2007
- B.S., Environmental Science, Fujian Normal University, Fuzhou, Fujian, China, 2004
Biography
My research develops tissue engineering and biomaterials-based approaches to address challenges at the intersection of human health, environmental exposure, and sustainability. A central focus of my work is building bioengineered models of human intestinal tissues, from healthy to inflamed and disease-relevant states, to study how the gut responds to microplastics and nanoplastics, foods and food-derived materials, microbiome interactions, engineered bacteria, and therapeutic delivery systems. This work has expanded into related areas, including brain tissue engineering and models for evaluating cultivated and future foods, reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of my research. In parallel, I have advanced biomaterials approaches such as silk ionomer-based cell nanocoatings, which create new opportunities to protect living cells and improve the durability of cell-based systems.
To date, I have published more than 80 peer-reviewed articles and, as principal investigator, have secured competitive funding from the NSF, NIH, USDA-NIFA, and industry partners including LifeNet Health, Softgen, and Hopewell Therapeutics. Collaboration and mentorship are central to my research program. I work closely with faculty, clinicians, industry partners, postdoctoral researchers, graduate students, undergraduates, and high school interns to build interdisciplinary projects and translate ideas across engineering, biology, medicine, and food systems. Through advanced in vitro tissue models and biomaterials design, my group aims to better understand how environmental and food-related exposures affect human health, while contributing to the development of more sustainable and biologically informed technologies.
To date, I have published more than 80 peer-reviewed articles and, as principal investigator, have secured competitive funding from the NSF, NIH, USDA-NIFA, and industry partners including LifeNet Health, Softgen, and Hopewell Therapeutics. Collaboration and mentorship are central to my research program. I work closely with faculty, clinicians, industry partners, postdoctoral researchers, graduate students, undergraduates, and high school interns to build interdisciplinary projects and translate ideas across engineering, biology, medicine, and food systems. Through advanced in vitro tissue models and biomaterials design, my group aims to better understand how environmental and food-related exposures affect human health, while contributing to the development of more sustainable and biologically informed technologies.