Dendritic Cell-Directed Vaccine
In the vectored vaccine area, we are developing lentiviral vectors as a novel vaccine carrier. We have identified a dendritic cell-directed lenitviral vector system and demonstrated the potential of this system to induce high magnitude and quality of immune responses. In collaboration with various labs, we are currently testing this dendritic cell-targeted system for cancer and HIV/AIDS vaccines.
Bionanotechnology
In the bionanotechnology area, we are interested in developing novel nanoscale tools for visualizing virus trafficking and interrogating molecular mechanism of viral infection. In addition, we are designing new viral vector tools for achieving site-specific manipulation of stem cell genomes for the future of regenerative medicines. We are also applying polymeric biomaterials for modulating the immune responses. Recently, we have been collaborating with various labs to design and study a nanocapsule-based protein delivery system for bioengineering applications such as delivering therapeutic proteins for cancer treatment and delivering immunogens for vaccine applications. We are also a member of the Join Center for Translational Medicine, where we work with a team of basic scientists and clinical investigators to translate our laboratory discovery into human therapies.
