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Research Categories

Faculty This site

Biomedical Sciences and Life Sciences

This category covers:

Bioinformatics
Cancer Biology
Cell Adhesion
Cell Motility & Cytoskeleton
Computational Biology
Developmental Biology
Genomics and Epigenetics
Host-pathogen interactions
Innate and Adaptive Immunity
Ion Channels
Ion Channels and Transport

Malaria Research
Molecular Bacteriology
Neuroscience
Peptide Based Pharmaceuticals
Physiology
Protein Chemistry
Protein-Protein Interaction
Proteomics
Signal Transduction
Stem Cell Research
Structural Biology
Virology

As one of the priority research, NTU has recruited many principal investigators with proven track record to lead the scientific research and teaching, provide training for post-doctoral, post-graduate and undergraduate students. It has four research divisions: Molecular and Cell Biology, Structural and Computational Biology, Chemical Biology and Biotechnology and Genomics and Genetics.

Research Divisions:

Chemical Biology and Biotechnology
In this interdisciplinary field chemical methods are used to study problems in biology and molecular medicine, leading to a detailed analysis of the interactions between different molecules with an emphasis on the proteins. Research carried out at this Division helps develop a broad appreciation of the interplay between chemistry and biology. Rapid advances in technology in recent years have allowed us to work on entire biological systems, thereby providing a more complete picture of how they function. For example, it is now possible to understand context-dependent changes in protein expression, or even describe the complex pattern of protein interactions in a cell. Techniques like large-scale 2D-electrophoretic analysis provide a snapshot of the nature of the thousands of proteins expressed in a cell. This integrated field of proteomics will gather the different methodologies and facilities necessary for the study of genomes both at the computational and experimental level, and these tools may be used to develop protein chips and specific drugs that have useful industrial and biomedical applications.

Structural and Computational Biology
Structural Biology, the study of the three-dimensional structures of biological macromolecules, is combined with Computational Biology, which fuses elements of computer science with biology for dealing with the vast amount of biological data. Studying the structure of biological macromolecules such as proteins, and their interaction with other cell structures such as nucleic acids, lipids or complex carbohydrates, is critical to understanding their functions and purposes. This research is of particular importance in drug design. To this end, a number of imaging techniques like X-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy, electron microscopy and mass spectrometry, are utilized. In addition, computer-modelling methods are used to complement and obtain additional structural information not accessible by experimental methods. Bioinformatics, required for mining and processing the surge of data resulting from genome sequences and functional genomics, is another area being explored, and problems related to the storage, retrieval and analysis of information about biological structures, sequences and functions are addressed.

Molecular and Cell Biology
Molecular and cell biology is a basic research on cells, the fundamental functional units of life, and the increasing complexity from the molecular level to cellular, tissue and organism levels. Many of the diseases affecting humans such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and dementia are due to defects at the cellular level, which cause some cells to behave abnormally. Research in this division works towards a better understanding of cellular biology, including cell development, cell cycle regulation, cytokinesis, cytoskeletal regulation, intracellular signalling and vesicular transport, which is of paramount importance in the fight against diseases originating from cell abnormality. Different model organisms and mammalian cell lines are adopted to understand these cellular processes, and diverse techniques such as live cell imaging, confocal microscopy and Fluorescent Activated Cell Sorting are employed in combination.

Genomics and Genetics
Genomics and Genetics cover one of the most important aspects of modern biology. Discoveries in basic science, especially those based on molecular genetics and the sequencing of the human and other important genomes has revolutionized our understanding of Life. Translating this new knowledge into new approaches for prevention, diagnosis and the treatment of genetic and infectious diseases is essential for improving health. Combining global approaches like DNA microarray analysis with powerful techniques like transgenic animals and genetic manipulation of other model organisms, it is now possible to investigate in detail how cellular processes are regulated. This will eventually lead to new methodologies for treatment and diagnosis. Research at this Division represents a combined effort at basic research, addressing fundamental questions at the molecular and genetic level and applied research, on medical conditions with clinical importance. These include development of genetic tools for human embryonic cell lines, investigation on the genetic basis of chromosomal rearrangements in the Smith-Magenis Syndrome (a form of mental retardation characterized by unusual physical and behavioral defects), gene expression of malaria and its mechanism of host evasion, and communication circuitry within multi-species bacterial biofilms.

Related Links :
Research at School of Biological Sciences
Bioinformatics Research Centre
Biomedical Engineering Research Centre
Biosciences Research Centre
Drug Discovery Centre

Name	Research Interests
Asst Prof Ajai Vyas	My lab works at the interface of neurobiology (approach and avoidance behaviors) and parasitology (behavioral manipulation of host by parasites). Majority of work will relate to behavioral manipulation of rodents by Toxoplasma. My research program is inspired the fact that a parasite, Toxoplasma gondii, can invade rat brain and removes deep-seated fears from a rat?s psyche. Why? So that parasite can hitch-hike a ride to cat intestines (when fearless rat is eaten by the cat) and reproduce there. This paradigm allows access to a really specific perturbation system for fear. Knowledge of proximate mechanisms will come handy for understanding generation of fear and management of abnormal fear. Apart from that, Toxoplasma infects humans with remarkable frequency. Effects of such infection range from mild personality changes to active brain lesions in immuno-compromised patients to possibly some cases of Schizophrenia. These are a few of my incentives in studying proximate mechanisms of Toxoplasma infection, apart from inherent beauty of co-evolution and arms race between hosts and parasites. Recently, I have observed that Toxoplasma infection causes male rats to become more attractive to female rats. I also intend to search for proximate mechanisms of this very baffling effect. Feel free to drop me an email if you would like to talk science or if you are interested to be part of this interesting research.
Asst Prof Ali Gilles Tchenguise Miserez	Structural properties of biological materials from the macro-scale to the nano-scale Abrasion and wear mechanisms of non-mineralized biocomposites and of biominerals Elastomeric and structural properties of oviparous egg capsules materials Protein chemistry of sclerotized hard-tissues from marine organisms, such as Cephalopod Single-molecular force spectroscopy of structural and elastic proteins Underwater adhesion mechanisms of adhesive proteins Bio-fouling Advanced Metal/Ceramic composites Experimental Fracture Mechanics
Assoc Prof Bertil Schmidt	- High Performance Computing - Bioinformatics - Computational Sciences - Reconfigurable Computing - GPGPU
Asst Prof Bjoern Holger Neu	Dr. Neu's areas of expertise are Biophysics and Biorheology. His research work focuses on the stabilization and destabilization of blood and its clinical significance in diseases, blood cell mechanics, cell interactions with biomaterials and the fabrication of multifunctional nano- and microcapsules for biotechnological applictions.
Assoc Prof Bogdan Jaroslaw Falkowski	Assoc. Prof. Bogdan J. Falkowski's areas of expertise are Electronic Design Automation Tools and Systems for Digital Logic Design and Optimization, Spectral and Discrete Representations of Multiple-Valued and Binary Functions, Design of Algorithms and Discrete Transforms, Design for Testability, Simulation, and Verification, Digital Signal and Image Processing Algorithms and Implementations in ASICs and FPGAs, Biomedical Image Compression and Watermarking.
Asst Prof Boon Chirn Chye	(1) Awards: · PI: Ultra-low Power Fully Integrated CMOS 24GHz Receiver, $0.208mil ($0.323mil including scholarship), March 2008 to February 2011, AcRF Tier 1 MOE. · PI: Batteryless Flexible Transceiver for Biomedical Applications. $0.765mil ($0.995mil including scholarships), May 2009 to April 2012, AcRF Tier 2 MOE. · Co-PI: An Ultra Low-Power RFIC Chip For Wireless and Communication Applications S$1.2 mil, March 2006 to February 2009, funded by Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR). · Co-PI: System-on-chip: Realization of Software Radio, S$0.3 mil, 3 December 2008 to 2 December 2009, University of Electronic Science and Technology (UEST) of China-NTU Joint R&D, jointly funded by UEST and NTU. · Co-PI: An Ultra Low-Power RF Transceiver Chip towards a New Paradigm of Life Quality, $0.25 mil, 3 December 2008 to 2 December 2009, NRF. (2) Research Interest My research interests are in the areas of radio frequency (RF) circuits and systems design for Biomedical and Communications applications. For example ECG/Wheeze (Asthma)/Anti-Fall RF sensor network, next generation hand-phone and wireless local-area network (WLAN) design. I have been looking at methods to improve the design of transceivers (radios) for the above applications in order to achieve ultra-low power, low cost, small die size and good performance. Below is the brief description of my current works. (1) Transceiver Design for ultra-low power application. An example of my work in this area is in the ultra low-power voltage-controlled oscillator (VCO) design. This work was published in IEEE Transaction year 2004 and has six citations (ISI) so far. Another work which is on Low power LNA by my part-time PhD student (Aaron) was published in IEEE Transaction year 2008. (2) High Frequency Effects on Circuit Operation: Study and Solution Two examples of my work on this topic were published in IEEE Transaction year 2005 and IET Proceeding year 2004. (3) RF Components Modeling and Innovation Recently we have filed a patent together with our industry partner, Chartered Semiconductor on a new invention that will allow the quality factor of an integrated inductor to achieve 1000 times higher than conventional inductor. This work currently being pursued by my PhD student (Qiu Ping) is set to revolutionize the RFIC industry. (4) Next Generation High Frequency Circuit Design: Theory and Design A novel circuit was designed, fabricated and tested at 23GHz. This work was published in the last edition of E3 World (an EEE-NTU's publication).
Asst Prof Brendan Patrick Orner	The overall research undertaken in our lab has two fundamental goals, both focused on the chemistry/biology interface. One goal is to develop new methods and technologes, while the second goal is to investigate fundamental questions. The philosophy of the lab is to mesh each of the goals so that they can feed into the other in a smooth and dynamic manner. The new technologies will be utilized to help answer fundamental questions and this basic research will necessitate the development of additional methods. The novel techniques will be developed with an eye on generality and additional applications. They will initially focus on combinatorial techniques that not merely employ vast collections of molecules, but unleash the power and intellectual statisfaction of focused design. The fundamental biological systems of interest will be focused on understanding the role protein-protein interactions play in the key cellular process of apoptosis (controlled cell death), how primary, secondary, and tertiary structure of proteins afeect their quaternary structure and self assembly proceses, and wheter it is possible to convert overly reactive, non-specific compounds into specific ones that target key HIV and Alzheimer's Disease proteins.
Assoc Prof Chai Gin Boay	Composite Materials & Structures, Buckling and Failure of Structures, Practical Application of Finite Element softwares (ANSYS, ABAQUS, MARC/MENTAT).
Asst Prof Chan Chi Chiu	His research areas are optical fiber sensing system, fiber Bragg grating device, fiber optics chemical sensors, photonics crystal fiber biosensor, digital signal processing, such as artificial neural network, fuzzy logic, genetic algorithm, wavelet, etc., on smart structures, fiber optics chemical and biomedical sensing areas.
Asst Prof Chang Wook, Matthew	Prof. Chang's areas of expertise are systems biology, metabolic engineering, and engineering biology. His current research works focus on elucidating genetic regulatory networks and relevant cellular mechanisms in bacteria. The research group website: http://www.changlab.com/
Asst Prof Chen Peng	Prof Chen?s areas of expertise are biosensors, nanotechnology, and electrophysiology. His current research works focus on nano-biosensors, and cell secretion.
Asst Prof Chen Tao	Dr Chen Tao's areas of expertise are chemometrics, i.e. statistical modeling and analysis of chemical and analytical data. His current research focuses on data-based process fault detection and diagnosis, experimental design and optimization, adaptive filtering and data reconciliation, model identification and parameter estimation, and multivariate calibration of analytical sensors.
Assoc Prof Chen Wei Ning, William	1. Mechanism of liver diseases associated with HBV infections by molecular biology and virology techniques for novel antiviral drug targets; 2. Proteomics with LC-MS/MS analysis in metabolic/pharmaceutical engineering, particularly on cellular response to chiral drugs for biomarker identification.
Asst Prof Chen Xin	Computational Biology and Bioinformatics, Microbial Genomics, Data Compression, Algorithm Design and Analysis
Asst Prof (Adj) Chen Yu-Kai David	Current research activities focus on the total synthesis of architecturally complex natural products possessing interesting biological properties. A strong emphasis will be placed on the development of novel synthetic strategies and methodologies in these synthetic campaigns, particularly in carbon-carbon bond forming reactions, asymmetric transformations and catalysis. With chemical biology and structural-activity-relationship investigations in mind, analogue design, synthesis and biological evaluation are taking place concurrently. Research efforts directed towards library design, with application of novel synthetic methodology in the construction of privileged bioactive molecular scaffolds are also being actively pursued.
Asst Prof Cheong Siew Ann	Asst Prof CHEONG Siew Ann's areas of expertise are in computational physics, complex system dynamics, and bioinformatics. He is currently working on the development of self-consistent stochastic boundary conditions for ab initio and molecular dynamics simulations, methods to accelerate Monte Carlo simulations and high-dimensional optimization. He is also interested in developing automatic coarse-graining algorithms to perform data-driven identification of effective degrees of freedom in financial markets, very-large-scale computer simulations. He is also working on applying ideas from the Renormalization Group in statistical physics to the mining of very-large-scale databases.
Asst Prof Cheung Ching For Peter	My research concerns the identification and mapping of signaling pathways involved in inflammation. Currently, we are investigating the mechanism of activation of TAK1, a mitogen activated protein kinase kinase kinase (MAPKKK). TAK1 is activated by pro-inflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1 (IL-1) and tumour necrosis factor-? (TNF-?), and also by bacterial lipopolysaccharides (LPS). Engagement of these three stimuli with their receptors leads to the activation of the inflammatory response via the JNK, p38? and NF?B pathways which all lie downstream of TAK1. However, dysregulation of these pathways can lead to chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, psoriasis and asthma. As TAK1 is a key component in transducing inflammatory signals, inhibition of TAK1 by therapeutic means may be attractive as treatment for these diseases. In vivo, TAK1 exists as two distinct heterotrimeric forms. One consists of TAK1-TAB1-TAB2 and the other TAK1-TAB1-TAB3. It is known that TAB1 is required for TAK1 activity, and that TAB2 or TAB3 may act as a link with upstream regulators. My recent work has shown that p38? is involved in the down-regulation of TAK1 activity and the identification of TAB3 as a new binding partner of TAK1.
Asst Prof Chew Sing Yian	Biofunctional micro-/ nano-structured scaffolds for tissue engineering applications Electrospinning Cellular responses to micro- /nano-structured scaffolds Neural tissue engineering
Asst Prof Chi Yonggui Robin	-Catalysis & Organic Synthesis -Peptides, Proteins, Polymers -Nanoscale Structures & Functional Materials see http://chigroupweb.org
Assoc Prof Chian Kerm Sin	Prof Sandy Chian's areas of expertise are polymer chemistry, medical implants, and tissue engineering. His current research works focus on synthesis of degradable polymers, tissue engineering and scaffold fabrication technology.
Prof Ching Chi Bun	Professor Ching is actively involved in research and his research focus on a wide range of topics, mainly the following key areas: 1.Development of Novel Chiral Stationary Phase & Process for resolving pharmaceutical optical isomers 2.Large Scale Adsorptive Separation Technology (SMB) 3.Crystallization Study of Enantiomeric Drugs and Intermediates 4.Protein crystallization - from mechanism to the delivery of biopharmaceuticals 5.Engineering biology
Asst Prof Choong Swee Neo Cleo	Dr Choong is interested in the articifical microenvironment made up of the interaction of cells and materials and how it can be manipulated for cell-based therapy applications. In particular, she is interested in the development of biomaterials that support lineage specific differentiation and in vivo function of cells for the intended application. In order to address the immuno-issues surrounding cell transplantation, Dr Choong is interested in the development of biomaterials for the microencapsulation of cells that allow the cells to respond to external cues, whilst supporting growth and function of the cells within the encapsulated space. For adherent cells, properties of the biomaterial surface such as roughness, hydrophobicity and specific cell-surface interactions can all affect cellular activity. Likewise, encapsulated cells required some kind of interaction between cells and supporting material within the microenvironment in order to support and regulate proliferation and differentiation of the cells with the appropriate phenotypic and functional characteristics. One of the main barriers to taking cell-based therapies from bench to bedside is the immuno-issues surrounding cell transplantation. At the same time, it is indispensable to provide cells with a local environment that enhances and regulate their proliferation and differentiation for cell-based therapies since it is impossible to therapeutically treat patients only by transplanting the cells prepared. Biomaterial technology plays an important role in the creation of these local/cell environments.
Assoc Prof Chua Chee Kai	Geometric Modelling, Rapid Prototyping, Reverse Engineering, Biomedical Engineering Design, Tissue Engineering
Assoc Prof Chua Leok Poh	My research interest is in Bio-fluid engineering espcially on the numerical simulations and measurements (Laser Doppler Anemometer and Particle Image Velocimetry) of the Coronary Bypass Grafting and the Artificial Heart Pumps (both Centrifugal and Axial blood pumps). Furthermore, the design of sleeve connector for the prolong patency of the Coronary Bypass Graft at the distal anastomosis. In addition, I am also interested in turbulent flow measurements using both hot-wire and cold-wire probes in various jet configulations, confined jet and low speed flow measurements.
Asst Prof Claus-Dieter Ohl	My general research interest is Experimental Fluid Dynamics which is focused on cavitation phenomena and gas bubble dynamics. In particular I?m interested and have been studying: * air entrainment and rising bubbles, * laser generated bubbles, * bubble shock-wave interaction, * cavitation nucleation on surfaces and particles, * bubble cell interaction including drug delivery, * bubble dynamics in confined geometries and in microfluidics, * digital holography, and * magnetic-nanoparticle coated bubbles. More information than in this poor RIMS system can be found on my homepage: http://www1.spms.ntu.edu.sg/~cdohl/home.html
Asst Prof Curtis Alexander Davey	DNA in eukaryotic cells is packaged by histone proteins into chromatin, a dynamic hierarchical organization underlying genomic function. The basic chromatin building block is the nucleosome core particle, in which ~147 base pairs of DNA are wrapped in 1 & 2/3 superhelical turns around a histone protein octamer. Our high resolution crystallographic analysis of the nucleosome core particle yielded a wealth of insight into histone-DNA association. In fact, the conformation of DNA in the nucleosome core is remarkably different than its naked form or that associated with other nuclear proteins and is dependent on both DNA sequence and positioning on the histone octamer. We found that even divalent metal hydrates can recognize this unique feature of the nucleosome, binding in a DNA sequence- and orientation-selective manner. Our present goal is to find new drug targets and develop novel therapeutics by studying DNA structure and chemistry within a physiological framework. Approximately 83% of genomic DNA is associated with histone octamers, rendering the nucleosome core an important therapeutic target. However, relatively little is known about the influence of histone packaging on DNA-drug interaction. Since nucleosomal DNA displays sequence- and context-dependent structural features that can be recognized by even simple small molecules, the main premise of our present investigations is to explore the possibilities for nucleosome-selective recognition by medicinal agents and nuclear protein factors. The discovery of nucleosome-specific compounds would hold promise for the acquisition of improved therapeutic agents by allowing for a level of site discrimination beyond the primary structure of DNA.
Asst Prof Domenico Campolo	His research interests include mechatronic technologies with application to the new emerging fields of Phenomics and Neuro-Developmental Engineering, in both animal and human models; biomimetic microrobotics, including: design, fabrication, development and control of biologically inspired smart actuators and sensors.
Assoc Prof Douglas B Matthews	Neurobiology of Alcohol Use and Abuse. Effect of Hippocampal System on Learning and Memory.
Asst Prof Eileen Reynolds	Her research interests include bioethics and emerging technologies, which raise scientific, social, and ethical concerns. Her most recent project embarked on a journey with 33 EEE students from NTU who helped in the creation of an animated film series called "Synchronicity Series". They performed, choreographed and animated their bodies using the stop motion technique called pixilation.
Assoc Prof (Adj) Eric Sun Tak On	1. Histone Deacetylases (HDACs): Discovery and development of histone deacetylase (HDAC) inhibitors for the treatment of hematological and solid tumors. 2. Protein Kinases: Discovery and development of kinase inhibitors which halt cancer cell growth.
Assoc Prof George Chung Kit Chen	Research experience in 3 main areas: 1) Thermal conductivity measurement and modeling of thin films, 2) Diffused optical wireless communication, and 3) Bio-imaging. For the thermal conductivity measurement and modeling of thin films: Using the pulsed photothermal reflectance technique, the intrinsic thermal conductivity of the following materials- GaAsN, AIN, CNT, ta-C, SiO2, Au and the thermal resistance of their interface have been determined. The thinnest film measured was 20nm, For the diffused optical wireless communication: We studied how to achieve uniform infrared light distribution and ensuring 54Mbps (without using equalization) in an indoor environment, invented a technique to redistribute the power due to zero order of CGH (computer generated hologram), designed and demonstrated that white LED can be used for both illumination and communication purpose, and designed an optical wireless communication system for aircraft passenger cabin. For the Bio-imaging: We developed a photothermal imaging and response system that can overcome traditional diffraction-limit of microscope. The system can provide high spatial resolution (~20nm) and high temporal resolution (~1microsecond); the system can also monitor changes of a live cell over time.
Assoc Prof Gerhard Gruber	Research Activities The research group on Structure and function of molecular motors of A/Prof. G. Gruber in the Division of Structural and Computational Biology, SBS, NTU, is recognized for their expertise in determining the relationships between the structure and function of the so-called A1AO ATP synthases, V1VO ATPases, F1FO ATP synthases and AAA-ATPases. These enzymes are proposed to be the smallest biological motor proteins (nano-motor proteins). In order to get inside into the structure of these multi-subunit membrane complexes techniques like single particle analysis of electron micrographs, solution X-ray scattering, X-ray crystallography and NMR-spectroscopy are used. The functional and dynamical processes inside these enzymes are studied by fluorescence spectroscopy (e.g. FRET, FCS, intrinsic fluorescence spectroscopy) and biochemical approaches.
Assoc Prof Gong Haiqing, Thomas	Prof. Gong ?s areas of expertise are BioMEMS, genetic testing instrument, microfluidics and microfabrication processes. His current research works focus on bioMEMS for genetic testing of waterborne and airborne pathogens, bioMEMS for gene expression of cancers, new methods for DNA melting curve analysis and genetic testing instrument.
Assoc Prof Gwee Bah Hwee	Low Power Asynchronous Microprocessor and Digital Signal Processor Design, Digital Class-D Amplifier Design, Bio-informatics Soft computing and Acoustical Noise Reduction
Assoc Prof Ho Moon-Ho Ringo	Assoc Prof Ho Moon-ho's research interests are concerned with the development and application of quantitative methods, in particular, multilevel modeling, resampling methods, structural equation modeling, and time-series analysis in the neural and behavioral sciences. His current research work focuses on neuroinformatics research, in particular, the theoretical development and applications of multivariate time series analysis method for extracting meaningful information from complex brain imaging data.
Prof Hong Hai	Prof Hong has a wide range of research interests, including East Asian culture and management and Chinese medical theories.
Assoc Prof (Adj) Hong Yan	His current research interest are: Jatropha curcas as a biofuel feedstock plant; Biotechnology of tropical forestry species; Plant metabolic engineering; Plant tissue culture and genetic modification; DNA marker and other technology development.
Assoc Prof Huang Weimin	shape memory materials, actuators, advanced technologies and materials, surface patterning, materials selection
Assoc Prof Jaume Torres	Membrane proteins constitute a third of all proteins and are involved in almost every process in the cell. Some of them - the G-protein coupled receptors - are the richest receptor targets for drug discovery, and account for the activity of nearly 60% of all prescription drugs. This is explained by the fact that membrane proteins live at an interface, and therefore mediate communication between both sides of the membrane. Two folds are found within lipid bilayers: as alpha helices and beta strands. The first fold is vastly more abundant, and recent studies show a fascinating capacity of these domains for promiscuity, which affects ion channel formation properties, or signal transduction. Less known are the factors that make possible membrane fusion, with requirements of structural plasticity that are embedded in the amino acid sequence. We study these phenomena at the interface between biophysics and computational biology.
Prof (Adj) Jean-Pierre Abastado	Our laboratory is studying the role of tumor immune microenvironment in cancer progression. We are conducting our studies with samples collected from patients with various malignancies and validating our mechanistic hypotheses in unique mouse model of melanoma. Transcriptome analysis of human tumors has allowed their molecular classification to be refined and has identified gene signatures with prognostic and theragnostic values. This approach has recently been applied to tumor stroma. Interestingly, genes expressed by the tumor stroma and especially by tumor-infiltrating immune cells often constitute a better predictor of tumor aggressiveness than those expressed by the cancer cells. Other studies suggest that the identity, polarization and function of tumor-infiltrating immune cells affect tumor progression, regression, and response to treatment. Therefore a better understanding of the tumor immune milieu is important to design more effective treatments. We have analyzed the tumor immune milieu of liver cancer, one of the most frequent cancers in Asia and a leading cause of cancer deaths. We have identified a set of immune genes whose expression is highly correlated with patient survival. We are now trying to understand the mechanism by which expression of these genes is correlated to better survival. We are also analyzing the tumor immune microenvironment in a mouse melanoma model where skin tumors develop spontaneously and then metastasize despite a strong systemic anti-tumor T cell response. Local and organ-specific immunity seems to play an important role in tumor escape.
Prof Jimmy Pingkwan Tam @ James P Tam	His research work has focused on the design and development of therapeutics, particularly biologics and immunologics of anti-infectives and synthetic vaccines. http://jptam.sbs.ntu.edu.sg/
Assoc Prof Julien Lescar	Structural Biology Infectious Diseases Structure-Based Drug Design
Asst Prof Kai Tang	Dr. Kai Tang's area of expertise is biological applications of mass spectrometry. His current research works focus on protein experssion profiling, biomarker discovery and clinical diagnostics of thalassemia diseases, one of the most common genetic diseases in Southeast Asia and around the world. He is also working on developing novel methods for pathogen identification and protein structure elucidation.
Asst Prof Kim Donghwan	His research interest is broadly in biosurface engineering and nanotechnology, with a focus on functionalized biomaterials for neural prosthetics, immune-suppressive implantable biomaterials and bioconjugated nanoparticles for molecular imaging and non labeling biosensors.
Prof Kjelleberg Staffan Lars Aake	Kjelleberg is internationally recognized for his studies of bacterial adaptive responses, signalling based communication between bacteria, bacterial biofilm biology, and chemically mediated interactions between bacteria and marine sessile organisms. His research approach includes molecular based studies of the mechanisms by which bacteria respond to prevailing conditions as well as environmental genomics of the biodiversity and function of natural microbial consortia. Kjelleberg has published more than 240 original papers in international refereed scientific journals and 30 books or book chapters. On the basis of strong collaborative research across microbiology, marine ecology and chemistry, and applied studies of the strategies employed by bacteria to build biofilms and communicate, substantial intellectual property has been established and utilized in biotechnology industries. Kjelleberg and his colleagues at the CMB also serve as a major research provider to several companies and organizations, including the Australian based Environmental Biotechnology Cooperative Research Centre.
Prof Klaus Erik Karjalainen	All the cells of the blood and immune system are derived ultimately from hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). Therefore, understanding of the rules that govern the maintenance and turn over of HSC is the key to the whole hematopoietic system and especially important to the further improvement of the efficiency of bone marrow (BM) and cord blood transplantations in clinics. Using in vitro culture systems and genetically modified BM and stromal cells we attempt to build a niche that can support HSC self-renewal and hence provide us unlimited source of HSC for therapeutical purposes. T lymphocytes are the main players in adaptive immunity and the deficiency in their production or function can lead e.g. to dramatic immunodeficiences as exemplified by AIDS and to increasingly more prevalent immune dysfunctions associated in aging. Since T lymphocytes are generated in thymus we have started to characterize novel genes that are induced and expressed in developing thymocytes. We will use cell biological, genetical, and biochemical approaches in order to understand their roles in T cell development.
Asst Prof Klaus Heese	Major Research: Neuroscience, neurodegeneration, Alzheimer?s disease, neuronal stem cells Other Interests: Neurotrophic factors in the immune system Current ResearcH: Alzheimer?s disease (AD) is the most common cause of dementia among people age 65 and older and presents a major health problem for the industrialized countries. Early symptoms often include loss of short-term memory, faulty judgment, and changes in personality. The disease is characterized by the presence of neuritic amyloid plaques, cerebrovascular amyloidosis and neurofibrillary tangles. In the past decade it has become evident that the clinical and histopathological phenotypes of AD are caused by heterogenous, genetic, and probably environmental, factors. Neuronal loss includes particularly the cholinergic neurons of the basal forebrain system and Nerve Growth Factor (NGF) promotes survival of those neurons by activating its specific receptor TRKA. Our observation that the NGF receptor TRKA is down-regulated in AD brains led to our suggestion that an imbalance of the neurotrophin receptor signaling may be involved in AD. Interestingly, both NGF receptors (TRKA and p75NTR) are expressed on neural stem cells (NSCs). The question facing modern medicine is how best to use NSCs to produce functional recovery in neurodegenerative disorders in the aging brain. To further explore the cause of neuronal degeneration in AD we study the potential anti-apoptotic role of our newly identified proteins p60TRP, p20, p48ZnF, p17 and p33MONOX in NSCs. Moreover, the development of knock-in/knock-out-mice (incl. MRS-/MRI-/PET-/optical in-vivo imaging analyses in living animals), should demonstrate their functional role in neurodegenerative diseases. Our study also aims at gaining more insight into the ?transactivation? of pivotal stem cell regulators such as the LIF-receptor (LIFR, from the Interleukin (IL)-6 family), gp130, Notch and the Amyloid Precursor Protein (APP) during the process of NTs-mediated NSC proliferation and differentiation. The understanding of our new proteins? signaling pathways in NSCs and their contribution to the Neurotrophin-mediated ?transactivation? process should provide more information about a potential NSC-based AD-therapy. Our fundamental basic research program intends to permit the prospective identification and isolation of NSCs and their induction into particular neuronal phenotypes, and finally it should open new avenues using endogenous NSCs for the development of therapeutic strategies in AD.
Asst Prof Koh Cheng Gee	Our laboratory is interested in the signal transduction events involving small GTPases of the Rho family, their regulators and effectors. These proteins play key roles in transducing extracellular stimuli into distinct responses including cell shape changes, cell motility, adhesion, cell division and phagocytosis. The emphasis of our current research is on the kinase PAK, its interacting protein PIX and a family of serine/threonine phosphataes of the PP2C family, POPXs.
Assoc Prof Koh Tong San	Dr. Koh's current research interests include biomedical engineering and semiconductor quantum structures.
Assoc Prof (Adj) Kolatkar Prasanna Ratnakar	A/Prof Prasanna Kolatkar's areas of expertise include the study of protein-protein and DNA-protein interactions. He specifically focuses on transcription factors involved in stem cell and developmental biology. A variety of techniques including mobility shift assays and X-ray crystallography are used to characterize various systems.
Assoc Prof Konstantin Pervushin	Solution NMR spectroscopy. NMR in solution will be used as a primary tool to elucidate structure and dynamics of IAPP and its mimics in physiologically relevant complexes encountered in health. I specialize on NMR pulse sequence, software and hardware developments in the area of NMR spectroscopy of biomolecules in solution using NMR. The main focus is development of advanced solution NMR and computational techniques to attack challenging biological problems such as structure/dynamics investigations of refolded proteins, membrane proteins, structures of molecular machines assisting heme transfer and folding of other proteins, ligand/protein complexes, large multimeric enzymes, ion channels. We developed a new TROSY concept, which allowed structural studies of large proteins (e.g. 220 kDa complex of immuno-complement proteins). Since NMR structural work should be conducted with medium and large (according to current NMR standards) proteins and protein complexes the use of the advanced NMR techniques such as TROSY, CRINEPT, LTROSY and TROSY-SPI will be critical. Dynamic behaviour of IAPP and analogues will be studied by NMR relaxation methods developed. We developed an automatic assignment of protein resonances program SideLink and extended it to direct spectrum analysis drastically speeding up structure determination of medium sized proteins.
Asst Prof Kristen Elizabeth Sadler	Dr Sadler's areas of expertise are the design and development of peptide-based vaccines, cell penetrating peptides and the design of peptide-based therapeutics and research tools.
Assoc Prof Kwoh Chee Keong	Development of a Computer Prediction System For Rational Design Of HLA-Based Peptide Vaccine; Data Mining and Analysis on Infectious Disease Heterogeneous Multi-Core Systems For Bioinformatics Constrained Optimzation for Bioinformatics Protein Interaction Network Analysis Using Graph Mining Approaches
Mr Lai Siang Hui	Cardiovascular pathology
Asst Prof Lee Jong-Min	Prof Lee's research interest is in analysis and design of electrochemical systems and development of ionic liquid as a green solvent for chemical and biomedical reactions and of nanomaterials and of their assemblies for applications in biomedical, optical, and electronic fields.
Asst Prof Lee Kijoon	His research interest is over a broad area of interaction of light with human tissue, with the application in medical imaging in mind. Main research field is diffuse optical tomography (DOT) and its variants such as fluorescence diffuse optical tomography (fDOT) and bioluminescence tomography (BLT). He is experienced in both instrumentation and numerical image reconstruction, and is actively performing research on building a clinical imaging device for breast cancer screening.
Assoc Prof Leong Kah Fai	His principal areas of research interests are in rapid prototyping and its applications in biomedical applications, including tissue engineering, product design and development science and design education.
Asst Prof (Adj) Levent Yobas	o Microfluidics for biology and chemistry o Lab on a chip for point-of-care diagnostics and drug screening o Biosensors and Bioelectronics o Silicon-based micro/nano fabrication
Asst Prof Li Hoi Yeung	1. Regulation of mitotic catastrophe 2. Regulation of spindle assembly and chromosome segregation. 3. Production of the RanGTP gradient in vivo. 4. Functional study of the RanGTPase in cell cycle progression. 5. Regulation of RCC1 during apoptosis
Asst Prof Li Hua	Dr. Li Hus's area of expertise is Computational Engineering. His current research works focus on the modeling and simulation of MEMS focusing on the use of smart hydrogels in BioMEMS applications; the development of advanced numerical methodologies; and the dynamics of high-speed rotating shell structures.
Asst Prof Li Jinming	The major interest of Dr. Li are bioinformatics, statistical methods in genetic analysis as well as mathematical modelling in biology: Bioinformatics Recent advances in large-scale DNA expression measurements and proteomics technologies have opened the opportunity for massively parallel biological data acquisition and thus have shifted our attention towards an integrated understanding of the genetic networks underlying complex biological phenotypes. Dr Li's major interest in this area focuses on developing novel computational methods for data pre-processing and expression profiling analysis for both cDNA and high density oligonucleotide microarray experiments. Knowledge of the transcription factor binding sites bound by all TFs encoded in a genome can provide the useful information about transcriptional regulatory networks. The rapid accumulation of complete genome sequences and the application of microarray technology to genome-wide gene expression profiling have made a computational approach to the regulatory motif discovery and the study of transcriptional regulatory networks feasible. We are interested in developing computational tools to make fully utilization of current available information to analyze biological pathways and gene regulating networks. Another area of his interest is pattern identification in DNA and protein sequence analysis. Recently the group also started to make efforts in developing methods of analyzing proteomic data such as parallel CID MS data. Statistical Genetics linkage and association studies represent two types of research designs that geneticists commonly use to locate disease genes. The group is interested in computational and statistical methods for both linkage and association study designs. Mathematical Modeling in the Biology The major focus is evolutionary game dynamics study in population genetics.
Assoc Prof Li Jinyan	Data mining: mining statistically important patterns, emerging patterns, clique, biclique pattern; Bioinformatics: protein interaction networks, protein binding site modeling, gene expression and proteomic profiling data analysis.
Assoc Prof Li Lin	(i) polymeric gels & hydrogels, (ii) controlled drug release from hydrogels, (iii) synthesis of nanoparticles for gene delivery, (iv) development of conductive polymers for fuel cells, (v) fabrication of micro- to nano-sized drug particles, (vi) polymer rheology & processing, etc.
Assoc Prof Li Tianhu	Associate Professor Li Tianhu's areas of expertise are nucleic acid chemistry (deoxyribozyme, G-quadruplex, i-motif, supercoiled DNA). His current research focuses are mainly on the following areas: 1. Design and construction of supercoiled DNA structures that possess desired topology and superheliex density. Generation of supercoiled structure of DNA in eukaryotic cells is associated with replication, transcription, and packing of DNA into chromatin while in prokaryotic cell, this superstructure can form with the assistance of gyrase and reverse gyrase. Typically, magnitude of superhelical density in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells is ca. -0.06 (6% underwinding). Our group is interested in designing and constructing negatively and positively supercoiled DNA that possess superhelical densities between -0.24 and +0.024 and in examining the physical, chemical and biological properties of these DNA topological isomers (Figure A). 2. Development of human topoisomerases inhibitors. Topoisomerases are the enzymes that release the topological stress of DNA generated by replication and transcription and several other cellular processes and are critical for cell growth and proliferation. It has been demonstrated in the past that human topoisomerase I is the molecular target of several anticancer agents such as the camptothecins, indolocarbazoles and indenoisoquinolines. Since 2005, our research group has been working on (1) design and synthesis of intrinsically curved oligonucleotides of different lengths that contain matched unnatural bases, nicked and gapped sites as well as mismatched base pairs; (2) examination of inhibitory effect of these curved oligonucleotides on the activity of human topoisomerase I and their interating mechanisms; and (3) design and synthesis of oligonucleotide-based human topoisomerase II inhibitors (Figure B). 3. Search for self-cleaving and self-splicing deoxyribosomes It was uncovered in our lab in 2007 that certain artificially designed non-biologically relevant G-quadruplet could carry out site-specific self-cleavage action. Since then, our research team has been examining the G-quadruplex structures formed by some telometric repeats with the expectation that such G-quadruplexes could perform self-cleaving and self-splicing actions as well (Figure C). 4. Design and synthesis of G-quadruplex-based anticancer drug candidates G-quadruplexes have been demonstrated by several research groups in the past to be potential targets of anti-cancer drugs. Our research team is interested in developing new reagents that could cause irreversible damage to the tetraplex entity in selective manners. 5. Nutritional and food Chemistry Our emphasis in these research areas are on investigating the biological activity of polyphenol antioxidants isolated from plant-based food and their anti-aging activity.
Asst Prof (Adj) Li Xiaoli	Data Mining (WEB and Text Mining), Bioinformatics Machine learning
Asst Prof Lian Heng	Asst Prof Lian Heng?s areas of expertise are Pattern recognition and machine learning, Bayesian analysis with applications to biological and financial data, functional modeling.
Asst Prof Liang Zhao-Xun	I am interested in the structure and function of some newly discovered proteins that are of potential importance for the treatment of human diseases. The proteins under investigation range from enzymes involved in antitumor natural products biosynthesis to potential antimicrobial targets in pathogenic bacteria.
Asst Prof Lim Sierin	Her research focuses on development of hybrid nanobiomaterials by utilizing protein engineering. Understanding assembly of various protein-based nanocapsules and applying them as molecular carriers in medicine are her primary interests.
Dr Lim Tau Meng	Vibration Control of High Speed Rotor-Bearing System, Active and Hybrid Magnetic Bearings, Self-Bearing Motor, Axial Flow Blood Pumps, Transcutaneous Energy Transfer Device
Assoc Prof Lin Chun Ling Valerie	Estrogen and progesterone are essential for the development of normal mammary gland. They are also implicated in the development of breast cancer. The function of progesterone seems to come second after estrogen. Biologically, the expression of progesterone receptor (PR) in the target tissue is primarily dependent on the presence of estrogens so progesterone is only active in cells treated with estrogen. Evolutionarily, estrogen was the first steroid receptor to evolve and this was followed by a progesterone receptor. Our primary area of interest is to understand how PR modulate the activity of ER and what the significance of this modulation is in the context of breast cancer treatment. We are also characterizing the function of some novel progesterone-regulated genes in order to understand the down-stream pathways of PR. Tetratricopeptide repeat domain 9 (TTC9) codes for a 25 kD protein that was recently identified by our laboratory. It was also found an estrogen-inducible gene in mice. Our current research is to study the interacting proteins for TTC9 and to generate TTC9 knockout mice for functional studies. Tripartite motif-containing 22 (TRIM22) belongs to TRIM family of proteins that have a conserved domain structure consisting of a RING domain, followed by one or two B-boxes domains and a Coiled-coil domain (CC). TRIM22 was initially discovered as an interferon-inducible gene which was later found to inhibit clonogenic growth in leukemic cells, but it is better known for its anti-viral properties. We have found that TRIM22 protein form distinct nuclear bodies and the TRIM22 bodies undergo dynamic changes during cell cycle progression. Furthermore, it is immensely under-expressed in breast cancer cells compared to normal mammary epithelial cells. The current research effort for TRIM22 is directed to understand how it is inactivated in breast cancer cells and the molecular mechanism of action of TRIM22 in normal mammary epithelial cells.
Assoc Prof Lin Feng	Dr Lin's research interest includes bioinformatics, biomedical imaging and visualization, high-performance computing. Currently active funded projects: A-Star/BMRC - Creating an In Vivo Navigational Cellular Fluorescence Imaging System with Dynamically Optimized Endomicroscopy, AcRF - Real-time Diagnostic Endomicroscopy, A-Star/SERC - Collaborative Creation and Application of Interactive Digital Media over the Internet, AcRF - Cellular Fluorescence Imaging with Endomicroscopy, AcRF - Dynamically Adaptable Neurocomputer and Its Application to Recognition of Steroid Hormone Response Elements, SingHealth Foundation Development of a Real-time Fluorescence Endoscopy Diagnostic System for the Early Detection of Oral and Bladder Cancers, NTU/BPE Cluster SEED Funding - Gene Expression Profiling with Oligonucleotide Microarray Technology; and some completed funded projects: SCE ER Lab Research Programme Grant DNA Chip Design Programme, BMRC&NMRC Joint Research Fund - Elucidation of Expression Profiles of Genes in Alpha-fetoprotein Positive and Alpha-fetoprotein Negative Hepatocellular Carcinoma by cDNA Microarray Analysis, AcRF - Design and Simulation of Artificial Bone Implantation, NMRC Research Fund -Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma: 3D Imaging for Staging and Treatment Planning, AcRF - Design and Development of Bio-medical Devices Using Rapid Prototyping (RP) Techniques, AcRF - Real-time Dynamic Simulation, MOH & Singapore Totalisator Research Fund - Transforming Medical Ultrasound Scanning into 3-Dimensional Real-time Organ Imaging to Aid Clinical Diagnosis.
Assoc Prof Lin Zhiping	Dr Zhiping Lin's research interests include multidimensional systems and signal processing, array and radar signal processing, and biomedical signal processing.
Asst Prof Liu Quan	• Biophotonics • Biomedical optical spectroscopy and imaging • Non-invasive medical diagnostics • Biomedical instrumentation • Computer simulation of electromagnetic wave in tissue
Prof Loh Teck Peng	Teck Peng's research interests encompass a very wide array in organic synthesis. Research activities include green chemistry, asymmetric synthesis, the development of new synthetic methodology, and total synthesis of architecturally complex organic molecules with interesting biological activities. He also discovered many new concepts and methods for organic synthesis and completed the total synthesis of many complex molecules. To date, he has published 153 papers in international refereed journals, 106 conference papers, 5 book chapters, Hirsch-index of 38 and a total number of 3891 citations. He has been the Principal Investigator of several research grants, with total exceeding S$5 million, awarded by A*Star and Ministry of Education. Being the program leader of Medicinal Chemistry at National University of Singapore, he spearheaded a number of main programs and they were completed successfully. He has been a frequent plenary speaker or invited speaker at many international conferences. Recently, he is invited to the Editorial Advisory Board of ChemComm to shape one of the world?s top chemistry journals. He has also been frequently invited to write book chapters, review articles, etc. Teck Peng was awarded the prestigious Japanese Government (Mombusho) scholarship, which was only given to 5 students in Malaysia every year, from 1982 to 1989. In 1997, National University of Singapore bestowed him the University Outstanding Researcher Award. He has been the Adjunct Professor of Soo Chow University (China) and Tsukuba University (Japan) since 2002 and 2005 respectively. He was also the Visiting Professor of Columbia Medical School, Columbia University (USA) from 2002 to 2003. Recently, he was awarded by NTU for NTU Research Innovation Award.
Asst Prof Loo Say Chye Joachim	I. Nano-Biomaterials for Biomedical Applications 1) Developing multi-functional nanoparticles for bioimaging and cancer therapy ? Collaboration with Prof Stephen J Russell and Prof Peng Kah-Whye, Mayo Clinic, USA. 2) Targeted dendrimers for cardiovascular repairs ? Collaboration with Dr Moe Kyaw Thu, National Heart Centre, Singapore. 3) Surface modification of nanoparticles using peptidomimetic polymers ? Collaboration with Prof Philip Messersmith, Northwestern University, USA. 4) Stealthy nanoparticles for targeted delivery ? Collaboration with Prof Freddy Boey and Prof Subbu Venkatraman, NTU, Singapore. II. Biodegradable Polymers for Biomedical Applications 1) X-ray CT-scan imaging of biopolymers ? Collaboration with Prof Zbigniew Stachurski, Australia National University, Australia. 2) FTIR and Raman imaging of biomaterials ? Collaboration with Dr Effendi Widjaja, ICES, Singapore. 3) Laser modification of biomaterials ? Collaboration with Dr David Low and Dr Wang Xincai, SIMTech, Singapore. 4) Drug release, controlled degradation and surface modification of multi-layered biopolymer films ? Mr Alfred Chia, Amaranth Medical Pte Ltd, Singapore. 5) Multi-layer biodegradable microparticles for sustained release of drugs ? Prof Shabbir Moochhala, Defense Science Organization, Singapore. III. Tissue Engineering 1) Effects of sub-micron sized debris from hip-joint implants on bone resorption ? Collaboration with Prof Wilson Wang, NUH, Singapore. 2) Mesoporous biomaterials for bone tissue engineering ? Collaboration with Prof Wilson Wang, NUH, Singapore. 3) Determination of resorption surface area on bone samples using photonics ? Collaboration with Prof George Chen, EEE, NTU, Singapore.
Assoc Prof Lu Guoxing	Prof Lu's primary research interest is fundamentals in impact and crashworthiness of structures and materials, which can be applied to design of vehicle structures such as automobiles and aircraft. He has conducted extensive in-depth studies of crashing of thin-walled structures, ductile tearing behaviour of metals, mechanical properties of novel cellular materials such as honeycombs and aluminium foams. His recent interests are the behaviour of novel sandwich panels subject to impact and blast loadings, buckling of nanotubes and mechanics of cells.
Asst Prof Lu Wenmiao	Magnetic resonance imaging Image reconstruction Computer vision
Prof (Adj) Lun Kwok Chan	Health Informatics Biostatistics eLearning in biomedical sciences
Assoc Prof Luo Qian Kathy	Prof. Luo's areas of expertise include genetic and protein engineering, design and application of fluorescent-based biosensor in living cell analysis, apoptosis, cell cycle regulation and nanomization using supercritical CO2 method. Her current research works focus on three projects: 1. Drug discovery: Using a biosensor-based high throughput assay to discover novel anti-cancer drugs from Chinese herbal medicines. 2. Pharmaceutical engineering: Studying the molecular mechanisms and pharmacokinetics of drug candidates using cancer cell lines and animal models. 3. Nano-medicine: Using nanotechnology to enhance the solubility and bioavailability of the drug compounds and evaluating the resulting particles using a Caco-2 cell monolayer model and animal models.
Prof Mark Featherstone	Hox gene products and their partners (PBX, MEIS, PREP) are homeodomain-containing transcription factors that pattern the embryo along the antero-posterior axis of the trunk and limbs, in addition to directing morphogenetic/organogenetic processes, and hematopoiesis in the adult. Importantly, the mis-expression of Hox genes and their partners has been directly implicated in human leukemias, and in the maintenance/suppression of stem cell character. Studies in my lab focus on two basic questions concerning the function of these gene families: First, what are the regulatory mechanisms that ensure that Hox genes and their partners are deployed correctly in time and space during embryogenesis? Second, how do these homeodomain proteins function as transcription factors in terms of DNA-binding specificity, partner recognition, co-regulator recruitment, chromatin modification, and subcellular localization? Our ongoing projects include (1) the analysis of chromatin modifications accompanying Hoxd4 activation in the embryo (Rastegar et al, 2004), and the identification of the trans-acting factors that bind to Hoxd4 promoter and enhancer elements (Nolte et al, 2006; Kobrossy et al, 2006); (2) the investigation of mechanisms by which protein kinase A modulates transcriptional activation by MEIS (Saleh et al, 2000; Huang et al, 2005; Goh et al, in preparation); (3) the examination of the roles of cytoskeletal systems in controlling the subcellular localization of PBX, MEIS and PREP (Huang et al, 2003; Haller et al, 2002; 2004).
Asst Prof Mayasari Lim	Dr. Mayasari Lim is focused in the area of stem cell bioprocessing. Her expertise lies in hematopoietic stem cells and design of experiments. Her current research interest includes ex vivo expansion and differentiation of hematopoietic stem cells, bioprocess development, process characterization and modeling, bioreactor designs, and cardiomyocyte differentiation from embryonic stem cells.
Asst Prof Meena Kishore Sakharkar	Computational biology, BioInformatics and Biotechnology with special focus on - Biological databases, Genome design and architecture, comparative genomics, Drug discovery, Combination therapy for treatment of bacterial infections.
Assoc Prof Miao Jianmin	MEMS, biochip and nanofabrication technologies, inertial sensors, acoustical and ultrasonic transducers, RF MEMS, biosensors, MEMS for environmental monitoring, carbon nanotubes based NEMS, through-silicon via interconnects, MEMS packaging.
Asst Prof Michael David Gumert	Currently, a long-term research project is being developed out of NTU to study the long-tailed macaques of Singapore and surrounding nations, such as Thailand and Indonesia. Macaques provide us a model for understanding the basis of behavior, and this project will investigate social exchange, aggression, cooperation, communication and movement patterns. In addition, Singapore currently needs a thorough understanding of their macaque population to develop strategies to resolve the human-macaque conflict issues that have become a growing concern throughout SE Asia. With such knowledge, Singapore could develop the model wildlife management program for maintaining a healthy macaque population in close proximity to human settlement. One major focus of the research program has been investigating cooperation in Indonesian long-tailed macaques. Recently, the research program released a series of studies investigating social exchange in macaques. It was discovered how grooming is used as a trade medium to coordinate cooperative exchange, and how the amount of grooming performed towards a partner was based on the current social market. Male macaques direct grooming to females mainly in a sexual context. During direct exchanges with mating, males groom females longer when competition for females is greater, as measured by supply of females per male. Similar results were found for female-to-mother grooming exchanges for infant handling. Here, the supply of infants per females influenced grooming payment. The foundation of these exchanges may be that grooming establishes a level of tolerance between a pair. This increased tolerance facilitates cooperation. Most likely through physiological and neurobiological alterations, the interface of grooming and the conditions of the surrounding social environment modulate an individual's motivation to cooperate. On islands in the Andaman Sea, Dr. Gumert and researchers from Chulalongkorn University have begun an investigation on a unique form of stone tool use. Here long-tailed macaques live on small islands and frequently come down to the rocky beaches where oysters are attached to large boulders and crabs, snails, and clams are abundant. To exploit these hard-shelled food sources, the macaques regularly use stone hammers. Research is investigating how this behavior may have emerged, how it is maintained, and how it compares to other forms of animal tool use. Moreover, these macaques use a unique form of axe hammering which may have implications for understanding early hominid tool use. In Singapore, research is being initiated that will explore social exchange and cooperation, the structure of societies, aggression and formation of power-based coalitions, social communication, grouping and movement patterns, and hormonal and genetic influences on behavior. In collaboration with Nparks, an investigation will be carried out on the urbanized monkeys of Bukit Timah, and Upper and Lower Pierce Reservoirs. In order to compare the behavior of Singapore's urbanized macaque population, a research project is also currently being put together to continue investigations in Indonesia. In collaboration with Universitas Indonesia and the Orangutan Foundation UK, researchers will investigate a much less disturbed population of monkeys in Tanjung Puting National Park, in Central Kalimantan, that live in their typical river edge environments. By comparing rural populations in Indonesia with the urban populations of Singapore, we can learn how urbanization has changed the behavioral patterns of Singaporean macaques.
Asst Prof Mohammad Aman Ullah	Prof. Aman's expertise is in the areas of 1) Control and optimization of chromatographic separation processes (e.g. SMB, Varicol), 2) Optimization of hybrid processes such as SMB and crystallization, 3) Separation of optical isomers, 4) Biofiltration and column dynamics, 5) Indoor air quality. Currently he is working on control and optimization of continuous chromatographic separation process.
Asst Prof Mu Yuguang	Research Fields 1. MD simulation method and data analysis method development. 2. DNA dynamics, DNA ?protein, DNA-counterions interaction study. 3. Peptide, protein folding, unfolding study, specially aimed at folding, misfolding mechanism which could lead to amyloid fibril. 4. RNA dynamics and folding study.
Assoc Prof Murukeshan Vadakke Matham	Associate Professor Murukeshan V Matham's research expertise and focus interests falls under the category of (i) Biomedical Optics, Evanescent and Surface Plasmon lithography(iii)Applied Optics, (iv) Optical Metrology, and (v) Fiber Optic sensing (IF, PCF, HiBiF and POF). The details of his Research Frontiers and current projects can be found in brief as given below: RESEARCH FRONTIERS & CURRENT FOCUS Applied Optics for precision engineering and metrology(measurement), Nondestructive testing (NDT) and machining Major Current on-going projects: (i) Multimodality multidimensional imaging for tissue imaging and cancer diagnosis (ii) Photonic Crystal and crystal fibers for communications and bio-sensing (iii) Novel Interferometric ( EW and SP) lithography for sub-60nm feature fabrications- semicon and bio applications (iv) Applied Optics/ Optical Metrology for engineering applications (v) Precision fabrication of micro lenses and fiber lenses. (vi)Optofluidics Bio-optics (fiber optics instrumentation, bio-imaging and sensing) for medical and forensic applications Major current on-going Bio-optic research Projects/ Research Interests (i)Multimodality multidimensional imaging for tissue imaging and cancer diagnosis [ On-Going] (ii)Speciality fiber optics based( IF, PCF, FBG) High depth and spatially resolved imaging for bio-applications [On-Going] (iii) Opto-digital vision system for imaging and profile mapping of intra cavities of engineering parts [ On-Going] (iv) Novel opto-digital system for early colon cancer diagnosis [On-Going] (v) Phase Resolved optical concepts for bio- imaging applications [Phase-I completed & Phase-II On-Going]. (v) Photonic crystal/ Fiber for communication and sensing applications [On-Going]
Prof Nadia Magnenat Thalmann	Nadia Magnenat-Thalmann’s interests are mainly on Virtual humans, both on the creative and the algorithmic side. One recent interest is to model the physiological Virtual Human, including specific individual modelling of organs. Among recent topics of interests : - Physics-based modelling of Clothes - Simulating the touching of clothes using haptics and force-feed back devices - Interactive CAD modelling (for hair and clothes) - Interactive Virtual try on methods for learning processes - Interaction with Social robots and Virtual Humans - Modelling personalities, emotions, memory processes and relationship models for Virtual Humans and Social Robots - Modeling bones, cartilage and muscles from MRI data - Physics-based modelling of deformations of soft tissue - Motion capture methods and motion retargeting - Segmentation methods for MRI data - -
Prof Narasimhan Sundararajan	Aerospace control, machine learning, Computational Intelligence, neural networks and applications. 1. Neural Networks Learning Algorithms Minimal Resource Allocation Network: A sequential learning algorithm for realizing a minimal radial basis function network (RBFN), referred to as Minimal Resource Allocating Network (MRAN). With the growing and pruning strategy, the MRAN algorithm can implement a more compact network structure, resulting in fast on-line learning. The MRAN algorithm is successfully applied in the areas of function approximation, time series prediction, nonlinear system identification and pattern recognition. Yingwei Lu, N. Sundararajan, P. Saratchandran, ?A Sequential Learning Scheme for Function Approximation using Minimal Radial Basis Function Neural Networks?, Neural Computation, MIT Press, USA, Vol. 9, No. 2, pp. 461-478, February 1997. Adaptive Flight Control Until the later part of 1940's and early 1950s flight control research was aimed at providing pilot relief capabilities, mainly in the form of auto-pilots. With the advent of high performance aircrafts, it become evident that controllers were required to bring the aircrafts within certain specified operating envelop that would increase the pilots capabilities for controlling the aircrafts. Due to stringent requirements and complexities of the modern flight control system, it is difficult to estimate the nonlinearities accurately. The performance of conventional controller will be poor under severe nonlinearities. The research deals with the new design development of adaptive and fault tolerant control systems using neural network methodologies. Conventional aircraft, helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles are considered. The aim of the research area is the design of adaptive flight controllers such that the aircraft can even under severe fault and disturbances. The application of controllers to linear and nonlinear models was investigated.
Assoc Prof Ng Beng Koon	My research expertises include the physics of impact ionization process in semiconductors, the design and characterization of advanced photodetectors, and the use of Biophotonics imaging techniques for medical diagnosis.
Assoc Prof (Adj) Ng Huck Hui	In general, transcriptional activation results from the tethering of sequence specific DNA binding transcription factors to their cognate sites. This leads to the assembly of transcription initiation complex at promoters and subsequent transcription elongation. The mammalian genome encodes for over 2000 transcription regulators, and many of them play critical roles in orchestration of gene expression which is fundamental to cellular phenotypes and identity of the organism. Our long term goal is to dissect the functional role of transcription regulators using two complementary technologies (1. chromatin immunoprecipitation to study the location of transcription factors in living cells, and 2. RNAi depletion to examine the response of cells in the absence of the factors). This experimental strategy will allow us to probe the functional importance of the transcription factors of interest. We have setup a system for large scale RNAi to screen for transcription factors (or other proteins) involved in the regulation of cell-type specific promoter. Complemented with ChIP, we are able to dissect the functional importance of binding of transcription factors to key regulatory elements. Our focus is on stem cell biology. We are addressing two questions: 1) What makes a stem cell a stem cell? 2) How to make a non-stem cell a stem cell?
Vg Asst Prof Ng Kee Woei	Dr Ng's research interests centres around tissue engineering and the use of biodegrable polymers for biomedical applications. Currently, he is specifically interested in the use of PVDF for hernia repair and also the development of a biological ventricular assist device using novel combinations of materials and cells.
Assoc Prof Ng Wan Sing	Prof Ng's areas of expertise are in robotics and image guided surgery, targeting particularly at the prostate, breast, thyroid. He has also researched into the use of ultrasound, including its acquisition and processing, targeting at the anorectal tract and the prostate. His current research works focus is on robotic biopsy which involves needling in soft tissue.
Assoc Prof Ng Yin Kwee	His main area of research is thermal imaging, human physiology, biomedical engineering; computational turbomachinery aerodynamics; microscale cooling problems; CFD/CHT. He is: Adjunct National University Hospital Scientist; Editor-in-Chief for the Journal of Mechanics in Medicine and Biology; associate editor for Int. Journal of Rotating Machinery; regional editor for the Computational Fluid Dynamics Journal (CFD); guest editors for the Int. Journal of Computer Applications in Technology; Editorial Board for Chinese Journal of Medicine, (China); The Open Medical Informatics Journal (UK); Editorial Board for Journal of Biomedical Science and Engineering (USA); Cancer Therapy (Greece); Review board for African Journal of Biotechnology; co-chairman for 15th Int. Conf. on Mechanics in Medicine and Biology (2006); co-chair of the working group on thermal imagers under Medical Technology Standards Committee by SPRING, Singapore (handling the international standardisation aspects for thermal imagers for ISO-IEC) etc.
Assoc Prof Nguyen Nam-Trung	* Silicon-based microtechnology * Laser micromachining of polymers * Bonding of polymeric substrates * Hot lamination of polymeric multi-layers * Polymeric surface micromachining * Forced convection in microchannels * Non-linear acoustic effects (acoustic streaming) in microchannels * Convective/diffusive transport of pressure-driven flow in microchannels * Hydrodynamic spreading and hydrodynamic focusing * Taylor-Aris dispersion of pressure-driven flow in microchannels * Multiphase flows in microchannels * Thermocapillary flows in microchannels * Droplet formation and manipulation in microchannels * Viscoelasticity in microscale * Transport of ferrofluids in microchannels * Microchannels * Microvalves * Micropumps * Microgrippers * Micromixers * Microdispensers * Microsensor for interfacial tension * Micro fuel cells * DNA amplifier * Microdevice for capillary electrophoretic separtion * Lab on a chip (LOC) for detection of biochemical agents * Handheld platform for LOCs * Micro particle image velocimetry (micro-PIV) for diagnostics of velocity fields in microfluidic devices * Fluorescent measurement for diagnostics of concentration fields in microfluidic devices * Fluorescent measurement for diagnostucs of temperature fields in microfluidic devices * In-situ optical detection in microchannels * High-speed cinematography for diagnostics of dynamic processes in microscale
Asst Prof Olga Sourina	Prof Sourina's areas of expertise are computer graphics, virtual reality, data mining, and orthopedic surgery simulation. Her current research works focus on visual haptic-based molecular docking, visual data mining, processing and analysis of brain responses to external stimuli.
Asst Prof Pang Zhen	He is interested in developing methods for the multivariate, dependent and non-linear data. His current research emphasises on the correlated multivariate binary data analysis from developmental toxicity studies, bootstrapping data with multi-levels of variations, robust methods, survey methodology and generalized linear mixed models.
Assoc Prof Park Cheol-Min	My research program focuses on the development of synthetic methodologies that would allow us to create molecular scaffolds with multiple stereogenic centers. These scaffolds will be providing opportunities in areas such as total synthesis of natural products with interesting biological activity, identification of molecular target of these natural products, determination of pharmacophore, and ultimately compounds with improved properties.
Assoc Prof Peter Droge	please refer to http://www.sbs.ntu.edu.sg/Staff/pdroge/index.html for a detailed description
Prof Peter Rainer Preiser	My research interests focus on the molecular mechanisms by which the malaria parasite is able to avoid host immunity and adapt to changes in the host cell environment. One of the main problems in developing an efficient malaria vaccine is the ability of the parasite to evade host immune responses. Immune evasion happens both at the level of the infected red blood cell and at the process of invasion, the step at which the parasite infects a new cell. A key focus area of the lab is to understand the mechanisms on how the malaria merozoite recognizes and penetrates the erythrocyte. To address these questions we have particular focused on the role of the Reticulocyte Binding Protein Homologues (RH) family of proteins which is found in all malaria species and has been implicated on playing a role in immune evasion and parasite virulence. Using both the human parasite Plasmodium falciparum as well as the rodent parasite P. yoelii we have been able to address question relating to mechanisms regulating parasite virulence as well as getting a cleared understanding on how these large proteins mediate their function. An interesting upshot of this work is the possibility of using them as part of a malaria vaccine formulation. In addition to merozoite invasion the lab has also spend significant effort in elucidating the biological role of the STEVOR and PIR multigene families identified in P. falciparum and P. vivax respectively. While STEVOR is unique to P. falciparum the PIR multigene family is found not only in P. vivax, but also rodent and simian malaria parasites. My research group has focused on developing a range of reagents that allow us to address what the role of STEVOR is in parasite development. We have recently been able to show that STEVOR is highly expressed in patient isolates and may play an additional role in immune evasion. We are now further characterizing how STEOVR functions. The PIR gene family provides a unique opportunity to study antigenic variation in a rodent model and possibly utilize the information gained in this system to understand how these genes may work in the intractable human parasite P. vivax. Currently, our efforts focus on understanding how the pir genes are transcriptionally regulated. A more recent effort is to gain new insights into how human malaria parasites interact with their host. Until recently most research efforts have focused on using culture adapted parasites but it has become clear that significant information in relation to host parasite interactions are lost in this system. We are therefore interested in using the P. falciparum and P. vivax microarray platform developed here at NTU (in collaboration with Professor Zbynek Bozdech) to investigate differences in the transcriptional profile of parasites obtained directly from patients with different clinical symptoms. This effort has recently given significant new insights into the biology of P. vivax.
Asst Prof Phan Anh Tuan	Dr. Phan's research focuses on the use of a combination of physical, chemical and computational methods to investigate and manipulate properties of biomolecules. The research goals include: (1) Structures, dynamics, interactions and functions of DNA, RNA and proteins. (2) Noncanonical structures of DNA and RNA as molecular targets against diseases. (3) Structural design and engineering of nucleic acids and proteins. (4) Application and development of methods, including Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) and other spectroscopic techniques, as well as single-molecule manipulations, for the study of biomolecular structures and dynamics.
Asst Prof Phee Soo Jay, Louis	His current research works focus on Medical Robotics and Mechatronics in Medicine.
Assoc Prof (Adj) Philip Wong En Hou	1. Cellular Therapy and devices used for cell transplantation 2. Implantable Medical Devices 3. In-vivo imaging of disease, particularly cardiovascular related 4. Materials used for implantable devices
Asst Prof Pina Marziliano	Pina Marziliano's research interests include: sampling theory, signal processing applications in communications and biomedical engineering, watermarking and perceptual quality metrics for multimedia. Current Research Projects - Sampling Theory and Applications in Biomedical Engineering - Automatic Detection and Prediction of Seizures in Neonates
Assoc Prof Poenar Daniel Puiu	Sensors & actuators; MEMS; Si processing; (Bio)chemical sensors; bio-photonics; colour discriminators (e.g. using triple junction structures); miniaturization of spectrometry, electrophoresis, chromatography, for (Bio)chemical application, as well as optical detection for these separation methods; bio-photonics & opto-fluidics
Asst Prof Qu Xingda	Human Factors Engineering Human Factors Research Design Occupational Biomechanics Industrial Ergonomics and Work Physiology Occupational Safety and Health
Assoc Prof Quek Hiok Chai	His main interests includes the research and study of brain-inspired functional and computational models of memory structures that underlie the human reasoning process. In addition, advanced brain-inspired reasoning and cognition frameworks such as focus of attention, affect modeling, skill learning from novice to expert are actively investigated using the neurocognitive informatic approach. Fuzzy, Fuzzy neural, Neural, GA, GA-Neural, Rough set that maps formal fuzzy logical structures onto neural systems to perform fuzzy set derivation and Rule identification/reduction are investigated. The development of architectures that supports on-line and off-line learning fuzzy intelligent rule based systems is examined. The research issues cover fuzzy clustering, learning, modeling, fuzzy rule model, etc. These basic techniques are used to craft the brain-inspired memory learning systems. These memory learning structures are the building blocks of the functional neuro-cognitive brain and they can be broadly classified into huppocampal global semantic memories and neocortical like semantic association memories. In addition, research into CMAC and in-house developed MCMACs and Fuzzy MCMACs are actively pursued. They form a class of cerebellar like association memories that have excellent memory resolution and recall. The application areas are extensive as they rely heavily on the basic research into brain-inspired learning memory structures and brain-inspired cognitive architectures for emotion, cognition and perception modeling. The exciting application areas include computational finance ? arbitration, portfolio, trend analysis, bond and commodity trading; biomedical engineering ? diabetes modeling and control, ICU ventilator control; Affect modeling for edutainment, forensic tools, marketing research tools; Medical decision support tools ? thermograph analysis, pediatric leukemia and ovarian cancer analysis; Intelligent transportation analysis tools ? trend analysis and incident monitoring; as well as student affect modeling in Intelligent Tutoring System.
Assoc Prof Rachel Susan Kraut	Dr. Kraut's group is interested in the intracellular trafficking and biophysical behavior of sphingolipids, and the role these lipids play in neurodegeneration. The significance of sphingolipids in neurodegeneration, particularly Alzheimer's disease, is now recognized. The metabolism of these lipids is altered in the disease, and conversely, the cellular content of sphingolipids affects Alzheimer's pathogenesis and production of the disease-causing peptide, A?. In spite of the critical involvement of sphingolipids in the disease, and the intense interest this has awakened, the means available to visualize sphingolipids and their trafficking pathways in live cells remain extremely limited. We address this problem by developing fluorescently tagged probes to trace the behaviors of sphingolipids and observe how this changes under neurodegenerative conditions. We exploit a phenomenon in which plasma membrane "rafts", or nano-scale assemblages of sphingolipids and cholesterol, interact with short peptide motifs within various toxins and viruses, and mediate cellular uptake of the invading pathogen. We have developed a fluorescent probe based on the Sphingolipid Binding Domain (SBD) of A? (identified by Fantini et al). The SBD probe is internalized via a raft- and sphingolipid-dependent mechanism. Using time-lapse fluorescence imaging and quantitative colocalization with cellular markers, we have characterized precisely the intracellular trafficking behavior of the SBD probe. We also analyze the biophysical properties of the SBD peptide, using Fluorescence Correlation Spectroscopy (collaboration with Dr. Thorsten Wohland, NUS), Surface Plasmon Resonance, and Atomic Force Microscopy. With this combination of techniques, we have determined that SBD, through interacting with a subset of sphingolipids and cholesterol, marks a small, low-mobility domain at the cell surface that is required for efficient internalization into the cell. Importantly, the trafficking behavior of SBD and other sphingolipid probes changes drastically under pharmacological treatments that alter lipid metabolism and storage, mimicking neurodegenerative conditions such as Niemann-Pick and the lipid storage diseases. We are now analyzing changes in sphingolipid trafficking, using SBD and other probes, in cellular models of Alzheimer's disease that will be amenable to high throughput analysis. Taking advantage of quantifiable changes in trafficking of these probes, intracellular trafficking analysis will be used as a cell-based drug-screening platform, where automated fluorescence imaging and quantitative colocalization can be applied as a diagnostic readout. A second interest in the lab is the role of sphingolipids and lysosomal trafficking in neurodegeneration. Neurons and other cells rid themselves of toxic aggregated proteins and damaged organelles by transporting them to degradative autophagosomes and lysosomes. When degradative function is compromised, neurons degenerate. Autophagy is controlled by sphingolipids at a number of levels, but its connection to vesicle transport is not understood. Blue-cheese is an autophagosomal/lysosomal protein in Drosophila that affects both vesicle transport and sphingolipid metabolism (Lim & Kraut, `09; Hebbar & Kraut, in prep). Degenerating motorneurons in blue cheese mutants show a severe impairment in axonal transport of GFP labeled lysosomes, similar to transport defects in mouse models of Alzheimer's disease, suggesting a mechanism whereby failure in axonal transport of a degradative compartment is a primary cause of the pathology. As in the case of Alzheimer's, blue-cheese also affects sphingolipid and cholesterol metabolism in the fly. Our goal is to analyze the relationship between sphingolipid metabolism, neurodegeneration and vesicle transport in this model, using a combination of genetics, live imaging, and sphingolipidomic analysis.
Prof Rajapakse Jagath Chandana	Professor Rajapakse's areas of expertise are machine learning, brain imaging, and computational and systems biology. Professor Rajapakse has pioneered several techniques for analysis of anatomical and functional MR images. His team was the first to develop techniques to model brain connectivity in an exploratory manner, using functional MR images. Presently, his team is investigating brain connectivity patterns underlying higher-order brain functions such as language and memory, and brain disease such as Parkinson's disease. He is also working on potential applications of brain connectivity and constrained independent component analysis (cICA) in Brain Computater Interface applications, especially in identifying different mental states and extracting features robust to inter- and intra-subject variations. Professor Rajapakse is presently working on identifying key targets in biological pathways. His research is centered on identifying co-regulated genes, building gene regulary networks, fusion of protein-interactions, and identifying key molecules and core networks in pathways. His team also develops techniques to segment cells and nuclei, identify protein subcellular localizations, and model spatiotemporal changes of cell morphologies from cellular images obtained from electron microscopy and high content screening.
Assoc Prof Raju Vijayaraghavan Ramanujan	Nanomaterials are the focus of research work in Ramanujan?s group, especially magnetic and thermoelectric nanomaterials for energy, bioengineering, information storage and defense applications. Processing, characterization and property measurements are carried out in his group (presently 8 graduate students and 3 Research Fellows). Recent PhD theses include: Characterization and processing of cobalt based magnetic nanomaterials (Li Huafang),Microstructural evolution and processing of melt spun and mechanically alloyed Fe-Ni-B-Mo nanomagnetic materials (Du Siwei), Alloying effects on nanostructure formation in iron based soft magnetic materials (Yanrong Zhang) and Directed self assembly of patterned magnetic nanostructures (A. Srivastava). A strong emphasis is placed on electron microscopy and phase transformations are used as an important tool to tailor the microstructure. A bioengineering project, in collaboration with SingHealth, aims to develop magnetic nanoparticles for human liver cancer treatment. Synthesis of magnetic nanoparticles, coating these particles with a suitable polymer and cancer drug, followed by in-vitro and in-vivo testing of the coated particles is being carried out. MRI imaging is being used as an investigative tool in this work. Microelectronic reliability issues, e.g., stress-induced diffusive voiding in microelectronic materials are being studied. Magnetocaloric materials for energy applications, patterned nanostructures for ultra high density data storage media, giant energy product exchange coupled magnetic nanomaterials and nanomaterials for artificial muscles, targeted drug delivery and gene delivery are topics of ongoing research.
Assoc Prof Ravi Kambadur	My laboratory has been actively involved in skeletal muscle research for the past 10 years. We have discovered that, in addition to the positive regulators of myogenesis, there are negative regulators of myogenesis too. In 1997, my laboratory discovered that mutation in the gene Myostatin, a TGF beta super-family member, causes an increased growth in the prenatal and post natal skeletal muscle. We have demonstrated the function of myostatin in three independent models that is chicken, mice and cattle. Recently myostatin?s ability to regulate muscle growth has also been demonstrated in humans. Thus Myostatin is considered to be a well conserved potent negative regulator of myogenesis. The recent research from our lab indicates that myostatin is expressed in muscle resident stem cells, Satellite cells, and induces quiescence in satellite cells. Furthermore, our research also suggests that myostatin could be involved in the self-renewal of satellite cells and specification of satellite cell lineage. The future research projects in my laboratory thus will capitalize our significant findings to unravel the molecular mechanism behind satellite cell self renewal and specification. This research has tremendous scope in regenerative medicine and therefore has applications in gene therapy and cell based therapies for muscle wasting conditions.
Assoc Prof Ruedl Christiane	My major research interest has been and continues to be how innate and adaptive immunity is regulated. In particular, dendritic cells (DCs)- the major professional antigen presenting cells of the immune system-, have been in my focus for the last few years. As key players of immune responses, DCs are fine-tuning the balance between the opposing forces of tolerance and immunity, making them attractive candidates for several clinical applications. We are currently engineering ?tailor-made? DCs by overexpressing or deleting genes known to be involved in DC-mediated tolerance with the aim of a therapeutic application in a variety of disease, like autoimmunity, transplantation or gene therapy.
Vg Assoc Prof Said Eshaghi	The focus of our research is to elucidate the molecular biology of divalent cation (Mg2+, Co2+, Zn2+ and Ca2+) transporters. These families of transporters are integral membrane proteins involved in cellular activities (e.g. cell signaling and homeostasis) where impairments lead to pathological conditions, thus making them biomedically very interesting. Structure determination using X-ray crystallography is the main strategy for this. We also implement various biophysical assays as complementary tools. In addition, we constantly work on method developments and improvements in order to isolate these membrane proteins in large quantities and of high qualities.
Prof Salil Kumar Bose	Energy production and consumption inside a biological cell occurs under a very finely regulated manner. The focus of my research is the understanding of the regulatory network in the heart that controls the flow of energy. This includes the delivery of oxygen and metabolic substrates from the blood, to the energy conversion processes in the cell, to the actual muscle contraction and ion transport associated with the pumping of blood. Because mitochondria are the `powerhouse? of energy production, a major effort is put in determining the cellular factors that control and balance the interaction between the production of ATP and its utilization. This is being accomplished at the level of intact heart cells as well as isolated organelles and proteins using various biochemical and biophysical techniques. We are currently working on the mechanisms that calcium and phosphate can regulate muscle energy metabolism in mitochondria in the intact heart cells. I have studied how sunlight is utilized by bacteria, Halobacterium salinarium, to produce electro-chemical energy that is used to make ATP. This energy conversion in the cell is accomplished by a membrane protein called bacteriorhodopsin. This protein is excited by absorption of light and then undergoes a series of conformational changes within a short time of few milliseconds before returning back to the starting unexcited state. This process, called photocycle, is energetically coupled in transporting protons across the bacterial membrane. Using flash photolysis technique I study the kinetics of photocycle in relation to its regulation through interaction between bacteriorhodopsin protein and the neighboring lipids.
Assoc Prof Seah Leong Keey	Phase-resolved Imaging, Latent Fingerprint Imaging, Strain Measurement, Thin-Walled Structures, Buckling Analysis, Structural Behaviour,
Asst Prof Shirley Ho Soo Yee	Science, Health, and Risk Communication Media and Public Opinion Computer-Mediated Communication Communication Theory Quantitative Research Methods
Prof Shiro Konishi	* Pursuit of cellular and molecular mechanisms for synaptic plasticity around inhibitory GABAergic synapses in the mammalian brain * Elucidation of molecular mechanisms underlying GABA receptor trafficking at CNS inhibitory synapses using molecular imaging * Search for the mechanism of pain signal transmission and novel analgesics * Study on the mechanisms of synaptic disturbance in Alzheimer disease model mice using neurophysiological and molecular techniques
Assoc Prof Shu Dong Wei	Drop test of Seagate Hard Disk Drives and other consumer products; Working with the defence industry and the hard disk drive industry; High speed camera at speed upto 20,000 fps; Impact tester at peak accleration upto 10,000g; Effects of delaminations in laminate composites on vibration and buckling; Piezo-electric sensors and actuators embedded in composites as vibration control-Theory; Piezo-electric ceramics fibres and particulates embedded in piezo-electric polymers; Stress of solder, metal foams, AZ90 and MA50 alloys at high strain rate of about 1000/s. Study on the Split Hopkinson Bar technique; FEM simulation of collision, energy absorbing devices (EAD) Ballistic testing on novel materials such as SMA, Solder, and metal foams; Spina Bifida in salamander and its early development; Youngs Modulus of metal foams; Youngs modulus of tropical swine bones under different moistures.
Asst Prof Sridhar Idapalapati	Mechanics of Materials; Failure Ananlysis; composites consolidation with CNTs; Optimal Sandwich Panels design as protective structures; Nanoindentation and contact mechanics especially for adhesion; bone fracture fixation
Asst Prof Su I-Hsin	Our research centers on the molecular mechanisms by which the development and function of immune cells are regulated. We have identified that a polycomb group protein Ezh2 is required for differentiation of early lymphoid precursors and immune responses of mature lymphocytes. Using a conditional Ezh2-deficient mouse, we have demonstrated that Ezh2-dependent histone H3 lysine 27 (H3-K27) methylation regulates immunoglobulin heavy chain (Igh) gene rearrangement and early B cell development. Our work has established, for the first time, the important role of histone methylation in antigen receptor rearrangement and lymphocyte development. The histone-modifying function of Ezh2 is consistent with its predominant nuclear localization in various cell types. While the role of Ezh2 in B cells and T cell precursors is more dominant in the nucleus, we found that Ezh2 is crucial for TCR-mediated cytosolic signaling in mature T cells. Our recent study has shown that the Ezh2 complex is also present in the cytosol, and there it acquires an unexpected role in cell signaling: the cytosolic Ezh2 methyltransferase complex controls receptor-induced Rho-family GTPase activity and actin polymerization in a methylation-dependent manner in T cells and fibroblasts. The molecular mechanisms by which Ezh2 regulate GTPase activity and actin polymerization are still elusive. However, given the methyltransferase nature of Ezh2, it is feasible that Ezh2 regulates cell signaling through protein methylation. We will further explore the dual functions of lysine methylation in 1) cytosolic cell signaling and basic cellular processes, and 2) epigenetic regulation of lymphocyte development and immune responses.
Prof Subramanian Venkatraman	Research is focussed on the applications of polymeric biomaterials in medicine. In particular, research areas include biodegradable stents, injectable drug delivery systems and gene delivery. Controlled release of drugs to the eye and the cardiovascular system are the primary end applications. Cancer therapy using "stealth" particles also forms a significant component of the research activities.
Assoc Prof Sunita Chauhan	Medical/surgical robotics, Computer Assisted/Integrated Surgery, Bio-medical Instrumentation, Robotics, Mechatronics, Sensors/Transducers, Ultrasound in Medicine (Diagnostic, Therapeutic, Surgical), Signal/Image Processing, Bio-mechanics (hard and soft tissue), Tissue characterization, Real-time monitoring and feedback.
Asst Prof Surajit Bhattacharyya	Structural Dissection of Scaffolding Protein and Its Interactions with Kinases SAM-SAM Interactions in MAPKKK Activating Ste11/Ste50 Complex Interactions of Integrin Tails with Effector Proteins Designed Peptide Antagonists against Endotoxin: A structure-based approach to develop antisepsis and antimicrobial drugs. Structure and Activity of Cathelicidin Family of Antimicrobial and Antiendotoxic Peptides.
Assoc Prof Susana Geifman Shochat	Associate Professor Geifman Shochat's expertise is in bimolecular interactions which she monitors mainly using SPR Biosensors. Since her arrival at SBS she has established a platform for SPR Biosensors and has collaborated with scientists from SBS and other Institutes in different projects including antibodies screening, small molecules screening, interactions of membrane proteins with partners,nucleic acids-protein interactions, binding of antibacterial peptides to liposomes mimicking bacterial membranes, etc...
Asst Prof Sven J Norris	3D immersive environments Games & game design interactive multimedia technologies Architecture, Product Design, Lifestlye Technologies Whilst being interested in most areas of New media and emerging technologies, Sven is an enthusiastic gamer. He is, therefore, very interested in all process which go on behind the scenes in this field. As of March 2009, he is embarking as the Principal Investigator on a Tier 1 Grant project which is currently due to run for 3 years. The project titled "Mindscape" is aimed at creating a virtual 3D environment which will be partially generated by neurofeedback - reading EEG signals from the brain and detecting facial expressions to alter the environment. This will provide a new avenue for mental training, for instance, improving concentration, enhancing working memory, reducing depression or stress etc as well generating a dynamic and unique aesthetic canvas from an artistic perspective. As an interdisciplinary project, Mindscape is a collaboration bewteen : School of Art, Design & Media, Nanyang Technological University (ADM) Institute for Infocomm Research, A*STAR (I2R) School of Computer Engineering, Nanyang Technological University (SCE)
Asst Prof Sze Chun Chau	Assistant Professor Sze Chun Chau's basic research interest lies in bacterial gene regulation and communication. Specifically, the complexity of gene regulatory circuits and inter-species communication are being investigated using biofilms, i.e. surface-associated and structured bacterial communities, as model systems. The two systems that she is currently working on includes (a) intestinal microbiota and (b) Legionella pneumophila in interaction with its amoebic host. On the second level, she is interested in the application and domestication of biofilms in medical, industrial and environmental contexts. Eradication of biofilms has been the primary force driving applied research in this field, but exploiting (rather than fighting) biofilms has great potential that awaits exploration.
Asst Prof Sze Siu Kwan	Our research is devoted to develop and apply advanced proteomic technologies to decipher human diseases through a rational search for novel disease targets and medicines. As proteomics is still in the infancy stage, technology development is the key to advance the field to address more sophisticated biomedical questions. During the past few years, we have successfully developed a few novel proteomic techniques and applied to study proteins that are important to transcriptional and translational regulatory networks, DNA repair, and apoptotic pathway. More importantly, we have established a biological and biomarker discovery pipeline to study clinically important proteome systems relevant to host-pathogen response, cancer, and cardiovascular diseases
Assoc Prof Tai Xue-Cheng	1) Domain decomposition methods for elliptic and parabolic partial differential equations. 2) Parallel operator splitting methods for partial differential equations 3) Inverse problem (or called distributed parameter identification problems) and their error estimates 4) Image analysis and level set related methods. 5) Optimization techniques
Assoc Prof Tan Boon Tiong	A/Prof Tan Boon Tiong area of expertise is Biomedical Engineering. His current research works focus on medical instrumentation and biomedical signal processing.
Prof Tan Hong Siang	Research interests: Microwave remote sensing, electromagnetic propagation and scattering, dielectric mixture theory, heat transfer techniques for drying applications, filtered cathodic vacuum arc techniques for thin film applications, non-invasive waveguide probes for biomedical applications.
Asst Prof Tan Lay Poh	Asst Prof LP Tan research interests include polymer engineering, and biodegradable polymers and heart tissue engineering
Asst Prof Tan Nguan Soon	My research centered on peroxisome proliferators-activated receptors (PPARs) signaling in several complex processes which are of extreme clinical relevance. Wound repair Effective wound repair requires the interactions among immune cells, keratinocytes, fibroblasts and endothelial cells. Mesenchymal-epidermal interactions play a crucial role in skin homeostasis and tissue repair. My laboratory research concerns the crosstalk of signaling pathways invoked during barrier and skin repair, especially in obese and/or diabetic conditions. Carcinogenesis Many evidences clearly support a tumor-promoting role of inflammation in the development and progression of epithelial skin cancer. Tumor-promoting microenvironment resembling the wound environment is indispensable for tumor formation and progression. PPARs play important role in carcinogenesis. My laboratory is interested in the impact of tumor microevironment on the PPAR activity.
Assoc Prof Tan Soon Huat	Prof Tan's areas of expertise are biomechanics and stress analysis. His current research works focus on rotator cuff and spine.
Assoc Prof Tan Suet Mien	My laboratory is interested in dissecting the molecular mechanisms governing the adhesion and migratory properties of immune cells. A major focus of my laboratory is the regulation and dynamics of a family of molecules known as the integrins. The integrins are essential for leukocyte adhesion, migration, trafficking, immune synaspe formation, and proliferation. My laboratory is currently investigating the regulatory mechanisms of the integrins in different lineages of immune cells.
Asst Prof Tan Thatt Yang Timothy	1. Nanomedicine: Design and Engineering of Multifunctional Nanomaterials for simultaneous targeting, bio-imaging and drug delivery. The research objective of this work is to apply nanotechnology to medicine. We have developed a new class of florescent-magnetic nanoparticles as probes and aim to demonstrate their application in both fluorescent microscopy and MRI. Subsequent work will be undertaken to introduce multifunctional organic, organometallic or biological groups into nanostructured materials to render them with biocompatibility, targeting, drug loading and delivery functions. The cytotoxicity of such nanomaterial will also be evaluated. 2. Design of Nanoparticles for Drug Separation. The project focuses on the development of nano-sized achiral and chiral packing materials for Super-critical fluid Chromatography (SFC), Capillary Electrophoresis (CE) and Capillary Electrochromatography (CEC). Judging from the viewpoint of novelty of science, there are to date no known research work published in open literature on the application of chiral-nanomaterials having size ranging < 1.5 ?m for SFC, CE and CEC analyses. The reduction in size of packing materials is anticipated to lead to a huge increase in chromatographic resolution. 3. Advanced Materials for Green Architecture: Nanocomposites for Permanent Self-cleaning and Antibacterial Surface. This research focuses on synthesizing scratch resistant nanocomposite coating that are photocatalytic, superhydrophilic and antibacterial. This material can then be coated to surfaces inside and outside buildings and structures for permanent self-cleaning and antibacterial functions. Current work includes exploring various synthesis methods (including atomic deposition, sonication and sol-gel) that will give the most efficient materials.
Prof Tay Joo Hwa	Waste recycling and reuse. Hazardous waste management. Biotechnological applications on wastewater treatment. Membrane filtration technology. Advanced oxidation processes technology. Sludge management.
Asst Prof Tay Leng Phuan, Alex	Alex Tay's research interests currently lie in Cognitive Intelligence. He actively seeks to understand how human percepts can be derived from sensory inputs and how these representations can be transformed into memories. His current project to develop a cognitive autonomous vehicle seeks solutions to visual perceptions through active cognitive binocular interactions with the real world. He is also investigating cognitive navigation whereby autonomous systems can use perceived states to aid in the navigational tasks. Dr Tay's research is always augmented with actual implementations. He, together with a strong team have managed to build a vehicular platform to realize the investigations.
Assoc Prof Teh Kah Chan	Prof Teh Kah Chan's areas of expertise and research interests are as follows: 1. Signal Processing for Communications 2. Performance Analyses for Spread Spectrum (Direct-Sequence and Frequency-Hopped) Communication Systems 3. Multi-user Detection for Code-division Multiple-Access Systems 4. Interference Suppression for Ultra-Wideband Communication Systems 5. Cognitive Radio
Assoc Prof Teo Ee Chon	Dr Teo has for the past 18 years been a dynamic researcher in the area of human spinal biomechanics, crossing both experimental and computational fields. His central accomplishment was pioneering a novel method for the computational modelling of the human second cervical vertebra (C2) using a computer controlled Co-ordinate Measuring Machine in 1987, progressing to the spinal segments and column using an advanced 6 DOF flexible digitiser in 2000. It was one of Dr Teo's earliest conference papers, Finite Element Stress Analysis of a Cadaver Second Cervical Vertebra, presented in the 16th World Congress on Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering in Kyoto 1991, that subsequently led to the exploration of the use of the FE method in human spinal analysis based on geometrical data from digitised or scanned images (X-ray, CT scan, MRI). The presented paper was selected as outstanding contribution for subsequent publication in Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing in 1994. Over the years, Dr Teo and his team have created FE models of the various spinal regions to predetermine the three-dimensional flexibility changes of degenerated or injured spine and relate the data to established published experimental and radiological findings. The FE models help to enhance various relevant clinical and experimental studies and reduce time and cost for diagnosis and implants pre- and post-surgery. Also, as an extension of his research interest in producing "virtual" injuries, he is employing the FE models of the spine for simulation and analysis of head-neck region trauma due to whiplash and pilot egress, with the aim of predicting injury, establishing safety standards and influencing the design of equipment and platforms. Extending his computational research expertise beyond the spinal field, Dr Teo also performed simulation analyses of offshore tubular tubular joints with doubling-plate stiffeners and deep seas offshore connectors for offshore marine engineering company. He also performed comparative analysis of proposed coronary (heart) stents and human spine implants devices for few joint venture local biomedical company. Overall, the research success that Dr Teo has achieved and the extensive network with external researchers in similar fields that he has built have helped NTU's standing, particularly, in spinal research both locally and internationally.
Asst Prof Thirumaran s/o Thanabalu	The actin cytoskeleton plays an essential role in cell proliferation, migration and differentiation; cellular processes essential for embryogenesis, wound repair, angiogenesis and immune response. The Wiskott-Aldrich Syndrome protein (WASP) and its homologue N-WASP are key downstream components which link multiple signaling pathways to actin cytoskeleton remodeling. The founding member of the WASP family is implicated in the Wiskott Aldrich syndrome, an X-linked recessive disorder characterized by recurrent bacterial infection, eczema and immunodeficiency. WASP and N-WASP N-WASP regulate the actin cytoskeleton by modulating the activity of Arp2/3 complex.
Assoc Prof (Adj) Thomas Lufkin	RESEARCH FOCUS Our research is in the emerging area of Developmental Genomics, which is replacing the long standing discipline of Developmental Genetics. Our focus is on the molecular mechanisms controlling vertebrate development with an emphasis on early embryogenesis and embryonic stem cell commitment to particular differentiation pathways, but from a novel Systems Biology point of view. We are focused on understanding the gene regulatory networks (GRNs) that govern the normal embryonic development of vertebrate organisms. In particular we are investigating the role of transcriptional regulators in the restriction of pluripotent embryonic stem cells into specific lineages that in turn comprise functional prenatal organs with the goal of applying this knowledge to regenerative medicine. In parallel to these studies, we are also developing novel experimental strategies that combine modern molecular genetic and transgenic approaches in mouse and zebrafish with emerging bioinformatic and genomic technologies such as comparative genomics, microarray, GIS Ditag, ChIP-Seq and others. RECENT SELECTED PUBLICATIONS Jeong, J., X. Li, R.J. McEvilly, M.G. Rosenfeld, T. Lufkin and J.L. Rubenstein (2008). Dlx genes pattern mammalian jaw primordium by regulating both lower jaw-specific and upper jaw-specific genetic programs. Development 135, 2905-16. Tay YM, Tam WL, Ang YS, Gaughwin PM, Yang HH, Wang W, Liu R, George J, Ng HH, Perera RJ, Lufkin T, Rigoutsos I, Thomson AM, Lim B. (2008). MicroRNA-134 Modulates the Differentiation of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells where it Causes Post-transcriptional Attenuation of Nanog and LRH1. Stem Cells, 17-29. Simon, R., T. Lufkin, and A.D. Bergemann (2007). Homeobox gene Sax2 deficiency causes an imbalance in energy homeostasis. Developmental Dynamics 236, 2792-2799. Wang, Z.X., J.L. Kueh, C.H. Teh, M. Rossbach, L. Lim, P. Li, K.Y. Wong, T. Lufkin, P. Robson, and L.W. Stanton (2007). Zfp206 Is a Transcription Factor That Controls Pluripotency of Embryonic Stem Cells. Stem Cells 25, 2173-2182. Tribioli, C., and T. Lufkin (2006). Bapx1 homeobox gene gain-of-function mice show preaxial polydactyly and activated Shh signaling in the developing limb. Developmental Dynamics 235, 2483-2492. Abstract Kraus, P., and T. Lufkin (2006). Dlx homeobox gene control of mammalian limb and craniofacial development. American J Medical Genetics 140, 1366-1374. Zhang, J., W.L. Tam, G.Q. Tong, Q. Wu, H.Y. Chan, B.S. Soh, Y. Lou, J. Yang, Y. Ma, L. Chai, H.H. Ng, T. Lufkin, P. Robson, and B. Lim (2006). Sall4 modulates embryonic stem cell pluripotency and early embryonic development by the transcriptional regulation of Pou5f1. Nature Cell Biology 8, 1114-1123. Mathavan, S., S.G. Lee, A. Mak, L.D. Miller, K.R. Murthy, K.R. Govindarajan, Y. Tong, Y.L. Wu, S.H. Lam, H. Yang, Y. Ruan, V. Korzh, Z. Gong, E.T. Liu, and T. Lufkin (2005). Transcriptome analysis of zebrafish embryogenesis using microarrays. PLoS Genetics 1, 260-276. Basson, M.A., S. Akbulut, J. Watson-Johnson, R. Simon, T.J. Carroll, R. Shakya, I. Gross, G.R. Martin, T. Lufkin, A.P. McMahon, P.D. Wilson, F.D. Costantini, I.J. Mason, and J.D. Licht (2005). Sprouty1 Is a Critical Regulator of GDNF/RET-Mediated Kidney Induction. Developmental Cell 8, 229-239. Wang, W., J.F. Grimmer, T.R. Van De Water, and T. Lufkin (2004). Hmx2 and Hmx3 homeobox genes direct development of the murine inner ear and hypothalamus and can be functionally replaced by Drosophila Hmx. Developmental Cell 7, 439-453.
Assoc Prof Tjin Swee Chuan	Swee Chuan Tjin's research interests are in fibre optic sensors, biomedical engineering and biophotonics.
Asst Prof Tobias Carl Cornvik	Assistant Professor Tobias Cornvik's field of expertise is in the field of recombinant protein expression, especially in E.coli. During his Ph.D studies Dr. Cornvik developed several methods that can be used to increase the likelihood in obtaining soluble protein expression in E.coli. In particular Dr. Cornviks work focused on using in vitro evolution followed by screening. Within this field he has developed a screen that can separate soluble protein from insoluble protein expression at the colony level. His current focus is to lead a protein production platform, which will serve structural biology groups at NTU and A*STAR with recombinant proteins. This work will include high throughput cloning, small scale expression as well as large scale expression and purification. Efforts will also be put into develop methods within these fields.
Asst Prof Vinod Achutavarrier Prasad	Digital Signal Processing, Low Power Reconfigurable DSP Circuits for Software Radio and Cognitive Radio, Biomedical Signal Processing, Brain-Computer Interface, Number Theoretic Transforms for Signal processing and Communications ACTIVE RESEARCH GRANTS: - Project grants amounting $298,344 as Principal Investigator (Funding from MOE, MINDEF, Merlion (France-Singapore Cooperation), European Aeronautic Defence & Space Company (EADS). - Project grants amounting $54,194 as Co-Investigator (Funding from MOE).
Asst Prof Vitali Zagorodnov	Prof Zagorodnov?s areas of expertise are signal and image processing. His current research works focus on brain structural and functional imaging.
Assoc Prof Vladimir Vladimirovich Kulish	Prof. Kulish's main research interest is in the area of mathematical modeling of energy-informational transport processes and transport phenomena in biological systems.
Assoc Prof Volodymyr Ivanov	Research activities Microbial ecology and microbiological monitoring of environmental engineering systems; removal and recovery of nutrients from wastewater; microbial biogeotechnics; design and testing of the facilities for nutrients removal and microbial granulation; new bioinformatics methods for the comparison of DNA sequences. Research projects performwed in NTU PI of the MOE funded research project Microfluidic Bacterial Cell Separation for Environmental Monitoring, 2008-2011 Co-PI of the TEC funded research project on Field test of innovative constructed wetland for the treatment of stormwater, PUB-NTU-Enviropro Ltd., 2005 - 2008 Co-PI Biotechnology of anaerobic digestion enhanced by iron-reducing bacteria, from December 2000 to November 2003, funding S$197,000 from Applied Research Fund PI CSE /RG Microbiological examination of water quality by labeled trinucleotides and flow cytometry, from 15 April 2001 to 14 April 2003, funding S$41,569 from Applied Research Fnd Investogator MRC research project Development of methods and diagnostic kits for rapid microbiological monitoring of ballast water quality, from 3 July 2001 to 2 July 2003, S$63,927 from Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore
Asst Prof Wang Desheng	His research interests include Interactive Digital Media, numerical analysis and scientific computing, computational biomedical engineering and computational EM, computational geometry, computational graphics and vision.
Asst Prof Wang Dongan	Assistant Professor Wang Dongan's research interests include: (1) Functional biomaterials for tissue engineering; (2) Stem cells for engineered tissue regeneration; (3) Gene delivery for engineered tissue regeneration; and (4) Tissue-biomaterial integration.
Asst Prof Willmann Liang	Physiology, Pharmacology, Smooth muscle, Endothelium, Urinary bladder, Blood vessels, Heart
Asst Prof Xiang Liming	Dr. Xiang Liming's areas of expertise are clustered/longitudinal data analysis, survival analysis, robust estimation, statistical diagnostics, biostatistics and statistical quality control. Her current research work focuses on robust approaches for finite mixture with random effects and survival analysis.
Assoc Prof Xiao Gaoxi	* Complex Systems and Networks * Optical and Wireless Networking * Internet Technologies * Network Security
Asst Prof Xing Bengang	Dr. XING's research interests will be highly interdisciplinary in the interface of nano-biotechnology, fluorescent imaging, Biomaterials as well as medicinal chemistry. Specific aims of ours are to integrate the basic knowledge and techniques to design, develop and identify the small molecules, natural products, peptides and/or their analogues for probing some special biological molecular. We are also interested in development of new functional nanomaterials for enzyme detection, drug delivery and clinical diagnosis. 1. Nano-biotechnology: Developments of nano-particles (such as gold, silver, magnetic particles and quantum dots etc) and/or carbon nanotube based biomaterials for drug delivery and biomolecular imaging. 2. Fluorescent imaging: Design and synthesis of new fluorescent probes for efficnet detection of biological active molecules (?-galactosidase, proteases and ?-lactamase etc). 3. Biomaterials: Design, synthesis and characterization of new transporters and/or the peptides based hydrogels for biomedical application.
Assoc Prof Yeo Joon Hock	Prof Yeo research interest is mainly in Cardiovascular Engineering including : heart valves engineering, arterial pusle waveform analysis, pulse waveform analysis,
Assoc Prof Yoon Ho Sup	RESEARCH INTERESTS: Apoptotic cell death mechanism; Molecular chaperones in cancer and neurodegenerative diseases; NMR; Kinases and phosphatases involved in cell signalling pathways; Structure-based drug design Selected Publications 1. Yoon, H.S., Hajduk, P.T., Petros, A.M., Olejniczak, E.T., Meadows, R.P., and Fesik, S.W. (1994) Solution structure of a Pleckstrin homology (PH) domain. Nature 369, 672-675. 2. Muchmore, S.W., Sattler, M., Liang, H., Meadows, R.P., Harlan, J.E., Yoon, H.S., Nettesheim, D., Chang, B.S., Thompson, C.B., Wong, S.-L., Ng, S.-C., and Fesik, S.W. (1996) X-ray and NMR structure of Bcl-XL, an inhibitor of programmed cell death. Nature 381, 335-341. 3. Sattler, M., Liang, H., Nettesheim, D., Meadows, R.P., Harlan, J.E., Eberstadt, M., Yoon, H.S., Shuker, S.B., Chang, B., Minn, A.J., Thompson, C.B., and Fesik, S.W. (1997) Structure of Bcl-XL-Bak peptide complex: Recognition between regulators of apoptosis. Science 275, 983-986. 4. Petros, A.M, Medek, A., Nettesheim, D. G., Kim, D.H., Yoon, H.S., Swift, K., Matayoshi, E.D.,Oltersdorf, T., and Fesik, S.W. (2001) Solution Structure of The Anti-Apoptotic Protein Bcl-2. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 98, 3012-3017. 5. Kang, CB., Tai, J, Chia, J, and Yoon, HS (2005) Flexible loop of Bcl-2 is required for molecular interaction with immunosuppressant FK-506 binding protein 38 (FKBP38) FEBS Letters 579, 1469-1476. 6. Kang, C.B., Ye, H, Vivekanandan, S, Simon, B., Sattler, M, and Yoon, HS (2006) Backbone 1H, 13C, and 15N resonance assignments of the N-terminal domain of FKBP38 (FKBP38NTD). J. Biomol. NMR. 36, 37. 7. Kang, T.H., Park, DY., Choi, YH., Kim, KJ., Yoon, HS, and Kim, KT (2007) Mitotic histone phosphorylation by VRK1 in mammalian cells. Mol. Cell. Biol. 27, 8533-8546. 8. Liang, Y, Ye, H., Kang, CB, Yoon, HS. (2007) Domain 2 of Non-Structural Protein 5A (NS5A) of hepatitis C virus is natively unfolded. Biochemistry 46, 11550-11558. 9. Kang, CB, Ye, H, Yoon, HR., and Yoon, HS. (2008) Solution structure of FK506-binding domain (FKBD) of Plasmodium falciparum FK506-Binding Protein 35 (PfFKBP35). PROTEINS: Structure, Function, and Bioinformatics 70, 300-302. 10. Kotaka, M, Ye, H, Alag, R, Hu, G, Bozdech, Z, Preiser, P, Yoon, HS, Lescar, J (2008) Crystal Structure of the FK506-binding domain of the Plasmodium falciparum FKBP35 protein in complex with FK506. Biochemistry 47, 5951-5961. 11. Kang, CB, Ye, H., Chia, Dhe-Paganon, S, and Yoon, HS (2008) FKBP Family Proteins: Immunophilins with Versatile Biological Functions. Neurosignals 16:318?325 Patents Mutant Bcl-2 Proteins and Uses Thereof. US Patent No 01987213.4-2405-US0145693 Scientific Awards Abbott Laboratories Drug Discovery Impact Award, 2000
Asst Prof Yu Ting	My research focuses on synthesis of nanostructures, assembly and manipulation of 1D nanostructure, and development of nanodevices: 1. Graphene: preparation, optical characterization, chemical/biological sensor, electrical devices 2. Substrate-friendly synthesizes of metal oxide nanostructures with controlled morphologies and patterns. 3. Wet-chemical method for fabrication of metal hydroxides and metal oxides nanostructures. 4. Field induced electron emission of individual nanowires or nanowire arrays 5. Electronic transport and mechanical properties of individual nanostructures 6. Nanowire FETs for nanoelectronics, nano-chemical sensors and nano-biological sensors
Assoc Prof Yvonne Lam Ying Hung	Assoc Prof Yvonne Lam's research interests are in analogue IC design as well as Analogue Design Automation.
Asst Prof Zaher Judeh	My research interests are in the following areas: 1. Organic synthesis: Reaction mechanisms new methodologies 2. Asymmetric catalysis: Synthesis and use of novel chiral bidentate ligands based on bisisoquinolines focusing on synthesis of enantiomerically pure drug intermediates 3. Ionic liquids: Use as solvents for new reactions 4. Natural product chemistry: Study the synthesis, characterization and bioactivity of Vanicosides
Asst Prof Zbynek Bozdech	My research focuses on regulatory mechanisms that are associated with the progression of the complex life cycle of human malaria parasites, Plasmodium species. The research activities can be divided into three major objectives (i) Characterizations of transcriptional regulation in Plasmodium. In these studies we conduct genome-wide transcriptional profiling of field isolates and chemical genomics analyses of the laboratory strains. The main goal of these studies is to identify transcriptional regulation that controls parasites virulence as well as responses to drug therapies. (ii) Quantitative proteomics of the Plasmodium intraerythrocytic developmental cycle. The main objective these studies is to characterize protein abundance profiles as well as the pattern of posttranslational modification associated with the progression of the Plasmodium erythrocytic development. These studies are conducted in the proteome-wide manner using the two dimensional gel electrophoresis approaches. The main objective is to identify regulatory elements of Plasmodium translational machinery as new therapeutic targets for human malaria. (iii) Epigenetic regulation of transcriptional control in Plasmodium parasites. Using a chemical genetic approach we characterize a role of Histone Deacetylases (HDAC) in the transcriptional regulation of the Plasmodium life cycle. Using these approaches we attempt to analyze the histone code in Plasmodium and its role in parasite growth and development. Simultaneously we evaluate a potential of HDAC inhibitors as new malaria chemotherapeutics.
Asst Prof Zhang Dawei	The Dawei research group has two key research interests involving computational biology and molecular biology. (1) Development of Force Field We are collaborating with John Zhang's group at New York University to develop new force field containing polarized protein-specific charges (PPC) for molecular dynamics simulation of proteins by combining a recently developed fragment-based scheme, molecular fractionation with conjugate caps (MFCC), with continuum solvent model. Since the PPC is derived from first principal quantum solvation calculation of protein in a native (or a given) structure and thus correctly represents electronically polarized state of the protein and therefore provides accurate electrostatic interaction near the native structure. Extensive researches will be carried out to investigate the effects of PPC on protein folding (especially for folding thermodynamics), protein-protein interaction, protein-ligand interaction, and protein-ligand docking. (2) Structure-Function of CAM Structure-based virtual ligand screening computation is performed on a natural compound library to discover novel classes of PPAR-delta agonists. The free energies of binding with PPAR-delta will be predicted by using linear interaction energy (LIE) method. The real binding affinity values of putative candidates will be measured by adipogenesis assay and whether they are agonists or antagonists or partial agonists will be determined by measuring the expression of PPAR-delta during adipocyte differentiation. After confirming the validity of the predicted binding energy values and also their binding conformations by comparing the predicted values with the experimental data, we will then further analyze the binding conformations of PPAR-delta agonists to identify important structural determinants that would favour PPAR-delta binding. The goal of our research in the field of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is to identify novel natural PPAR-delta agonists as promising new drugs in the fight against obesity.
Asst Prof Zhang Li-Feng	Dr. Zhang Li-Feng's current researches focus on using X chromosome inactivation as example to study chromatin modifications, non-coding RNAs and embryonic stem cell pluripotency.
Assoc Prof Zhong Guofu	* Asymmetric Synthesis * Organocatalysis * Organic Synthesis * Medicinal and Bioorganic Chemistry

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