Team

• Prior to joining WUSM, Dr. Li served as a Postdoctoral Fellow in Bing Ren’s Laboratory of Gene Regulation at the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research at the University of California San Diego. He holds a Ph.D. in Computational Biology & Bioinformatics under the supervision of Dr. Zhi John Lu from Tsinghua University and Bachelor’s Degrees in Biology and Laws from Sichuan University.
• Dr. Li’s research interests include developing innovative computational tools/methods and utilizing single-cell (epi)genomic techniques to gain a comprehensive understanding of gene regulation in mammalian models and human diseases, particularly in brain tumors and neuropsychiatric disorders.
• In his free time, he enjoys running, hiking, watching movies, and spending time with his family.

Postdoc

• I also received my PhD in Biology from Tsinghua University, and my  M.S. degree in Biology from Hebei Normal University. With a background in microbiology and cancer biology, my research direction is to understand gene dysregulation in cancer by using single-cell multi-omics.
• In my free time, I like running and cross-country, especially marathons.

• I completed my Ph.D. at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, where I delved into the dynamics of circular RNAs within various vertebrates. After earning my doctorate, I engaged in an 18-month postdoctoral fellowship under the mentorship of Prof. Martin Vingron at the Max Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics. During this time, my research was dedicated to exploring the use of machine learning algorithms to derive phenotypic predictions from extensive genotype datasets.
• In my free time, I like cooking and traveling.

Graduate Students

• I received my B.A. from Vanderbilt University under the guidance of Dr. Lawrence Marnett. I am currently an MSTP student interested in optimizing mtDNA clonal tracing and single-cell multiomics to interrogate the epigenetic reprogramming underpinning the disease progression from myeloproliferative neoplasm to secondary acute myeloid leukemia driven by leukemic stem cells.
• In my free time, I like to enjoy food, hiking, and pondering about philosophical questions.

Staff

• Xiaoxiao was the first addition to the Li lab. She holds a M.S. degree in Computer Science from WashU, and her previous research interests were focused on the application of Deep Neural Networks in 3D medical image registration.
• Outside of the lab, she enjoys traveling, hiking, and music festivals!

Undergraduates

• I am an undergraduate at WashU studying neuroscience and computer science. I have an interest in using computational methods for biomedical methods and specifically in machine learning.
• In my free time, I like eating pizza, watching football, or playing video games.

Alumni

Vivien Li – Rotation Student (Molecular Cell Biology), 2024/03 – 2024/05
Haina Jin – Rotation Student (Plant and Microbial Biosciences), 2024/03 – 2024/05
Danting Zeng – Rotation Student (Computational and Systems Biology), 2024/01 – 2024/03
Rachel Wu – Rotation Student (Computational and Systems Biology), 2024/01 – 2024/03