Y. Zhou Lab

Welcome to Zhou Lab

We are a synthetic immunology and bioengineering lab focused on developing cutting-edge technologies that enable remote and programmable control of ion channels, protein activity, cell physiology, biologics, and therapeutic immune cells. We pioneer chemical and synthetic biology approaches to address challenges in health and disease. We are particularly interested in:

• Illuminating novel regulatory mechanisms of signal transduction that remain unresolved in calcium signaling and inter-organelle communications;
• pioneering widely-applicable molecular tools for precise control of innate and adaptive immunity, (epi) genome engineering, and gene transcription; and
• Developing innovative theranostic devices, programmable biologics, and intelligent cell-based therapies (CAR-T or CAR-NK) for cancer and neurodegeneration intervention.

Tight integration among mechanistic studies, biomedical engineering, and translational sciences is a hallmark of my research.

See highlights in: “Let there be light” (Scientia); “Optogenetics sparks new research tool” (NIH Biomedical Beat).