We are interested in applying engineering principles to develop tools and methods to gain better understanding of biology and to improve public health. The main focus of our work are in the following areas: 1) Single cell analysis, and 2) Microfluidics applications. We work closely with biologists and clinicians in various collaborations.

Single cell analysis

The human body is an amazing feat where trillions of cells of different cell types work together seamlessly to enable specific functions. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of these different cells is the key to understanding the basis of human health and conditions that leads to disease. To date, however, biological measurements are largely applied to bulk cells, which mask important cell-to-cell variations in tissues that give rise to diverse phenotypes. We aim to enable high resolution measurements of these molecular profiles at the single cell level, to identify the continuum of cellular states in a population that lead to function or disease. Ultimately, by integrating these multidimensional measurements, we hope to model the single cell as a system of interacting networks at multiple scales. These cellular models, as the basis of “Single Cell Systems Biology”, will be instrumental in our understanding and prediction of how a cell changes over time and under varying condition. This will create potential for entirely new kinds of explorations, including drug designs to improve cellular function and eliminate diseases.

Microfluidics Applications

Microfluidics presents many opportunities to improve biological research and healthcare. We develop assays exploiting the partitioning capabilities of microfluidics to perform novel single molecule measurements such as DNA molecules and telomeres.

On the other hand, automated microfluidics platform can be used to perform high-throughput biochemical assays using much less samples and reagents. We developed microfluidics valve-based large scale integrated platform to allow simultaneous screening of thousands of protein-ligand interactions via fluorescence polarization in a single chip. We are also developing new automated microfluidic platforms to enable more sensitive and accurate measurements in single cells.