Summary

Ph.D. student in Bioengineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. I develop ultrasound-responsive mechanophore nanocarriers and imaging-guided actuation methods to enable non-invasive, deep-tissue mechanochemical control. My work advances mechanistic understanding and system design, including bubble-nucleation and gas-vesicle integration strategies to enhance activation efficiency and localization.

Education

• Ph.D. in Bioengineering
  University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• B.Sc. in Chemical Biology

  2022
  University of Science and Technology of China

Work Experience

• Ph.D. Researcher

  2022 -
  University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

  • Led development of ultrasound-responsive mechanophore nanocarriers for controlled drug release and cancer therapy.
  • Designed bubble-nucleation and gas-vesicle integration strategies to enhance mechanophore activation efficiency and localization.
  • Mentored undergraduate students in nanoparticle synthesis and in vitro nanomedicine testing.
• The University of Edinburgh

  2021-07 - 2021-10
  Designed plant E3 ubiquitin ligases to degrade pathogen effectors and improve plant immunity.
• McMaster University

  2020-07 - 2020-10
  Developed a machine-learning algorithm for molecular potential energy surface calculations.

Skills

Publications

• Ultrasound-driven mechanophore activation in living plants

  2026
  Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

  In press.

  View Publication
• Near-infrared-triggered nanodroplets for macrophage-targeted cancer immunotherapy

  2025
  Small Methods

  Frontispiece paper.

  View Publication
• Injectable mechanophore nanoparticles for deep-tissue mechanochemical dynamic therapy

  2024
  ACS Nano

  View Publication
• Using protein design to monomerize a bright near-infrared fluorescent protein

  2024
  ACS Synthetic Biology

  View Publication

Teaching

• BIOE 486 – Applied Deep Learning in Biomedical Imaging

  Spri
  University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

  Role: Teaching Assistant

  Developed and graded assignments; supported PyTorch-based imaging pipelines.
• BIOE 303 – Quantitative Physiology Lab

  Fall
  University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

  Role: Teaching Assistant

  Led lab sections; graded reports; provided structured feedback.
• BIOE 210 – Linear Algebra for Biomedical Data Science

  Fall
  University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

  Role: Teaching Assistant

  Delivered lectures; developed MATLAB demos; hosted office hours.

Interests

• Ultrasound-triggered mechanochemistry
• Nanomedicine
• Immunotherapy