Pin Wang
Associate Professor
Research Topics
Research Overview
In the targeted gene delivery area, we are interested in engineering viral vectors capable of targeting specific cell types. Our long-term goal is to design and optimize lentiviral vectors that can selectively deliver appropriate genes to target cells, tissues and organs after direct administration in vivo. We have demonstrated a flexible and general targeting strategy by separating the functions of specific binding and fusion onto two distinct molecules and co-incorporating them into the lentiviral vectors. We are evaluating the utility of these engineered vectors for treating genetic diseases and cancer.
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.
Contact Information
http://virotech.usc.edu
http://virotech.usc.edu/web/
http://chems.usc.edu/pwgroup
E-mail:
pinwang@usc.edu
Mailing Address:
Mork Family Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
University of Southern California
925 Bloom Walk, HED 216
Los Angeles, CA 90089-1211
Office Location:
RTH 509
Office Phone:
(213)740-0780
Fax:
(213) 740-7223
RTH 509
Education
B.S., Material Science and Engineering, University of Science and Technology of China
Research Images
Selected Publications
B. Dai, L. Yang, H. Yang, B. Hu, D. Baltimore and P. Wang, HIV-1 Gag-specific immunity induced by a lentivector-based vaccine directed to dendritic cells, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 2009, 106, 20382-20387.
B. Hu, H. Yang, B. Dai, A. Tai and P. Wang, Nonintegrating lentiviral vectors can effectively deliver ovalbumin antigen for induction of antitumor immunity, Hum. Gene Ther., 2009, 20, 1652-1664.
K.I. Joo, Y. Lei, C.L. Lee, J. Lo, J. Xie, S.F. Hamm-Alvarez and P. Wang, Site-specific labeling of enveloped viruses with quantum dots for single virus tracking, ACSNano, 2008, 2, 1553-1562.
L. Yang, H. Yang, K. Rideout, T. Cho, K.I. Joo, L. Ziegler, A. Elliot, A. Walls, D. Yu, D. Baltimore and P. Wang, Engineered lentiviral targeting of dendritic cells for in vivo immunization.
Nature Biotech., 2008, 26, 326-334.
L. Yang, L. Bailey, D. Baltimore and P. Wang, Targeting lentiviral vectors to specific cell types in vivo, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 2006, 103, 11479-11484.
More publications ...