March 15, 2023

Meet Dr. Kin Fai Au's Lab Members

Dr. Kin Fai Au and his lab members joined DCMB earlier this year.
We welcome all these scientists who research long-read sequencing, gene expression, transcription, and epigenetics.

See also: "Introducing Dr. Kin Fai Au"

Group photo of the Au Lab


Xiaoyu Cai, Ph.D.

Doctorate from The Ohio State University
With Dr. Au since 2022

Postdoctoral Research Fellow
I turn biological questions into statistical language and develop novel statistical methods to answer them.

Area of expertise 
My area of expertise is in statistics, which allows me to describe biological data in a systematical manner and uncover interesting stories behind the numbers.

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
Ph.D. student at The Ohio State University, working on developing adaptive tests for detecting disease-associated single nucleotide variants or methylated CpG sites.

What gets you excited about your work? 
Applying my statistical knowledge to solve real-world biological problems, learning cutting-edge biology and new technologies, and collaborating with people of various experiences and backgrounds.

What do you like to do outside the lab?
Church meetings and Bible studies, playing the piano, and watching soccer games 


Hsin-Lun Hsieh, M.S.

Ph.D. student in The Ohio State University Program
With Dr. Au since 2021

Visiting scholar 

Area of expertise
I focus on evaluating tools, and try to provide a criteria for others to choose an appropriate tool.

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
I was a research assistant and focused on studies about interaction between virus-induced proteins and differential gene expression.

What gets you excited about your work?
Improvements and benchmarks of the existing tools

What do you like to do outside the lab?
I enjoy hiking and playing squash. 


Aifu Li, Ph.D.

Doctorate from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
With Dr. Au since July 2021

Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Leveraging a combination of wet and dry lab techniques, my role is to develop innovative methods and uncover novel biological mechanisms underlying early embryo development.

Area of expertise
Molecular biology and bioinformatics analysis, particularly in the field of epigenomics. My experience in these areas has given me a diverse understanding of biological phenomena and helps me better fulfill my role. 

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
I investigated the genetic mechanisms that contribute to senescence, heterosis and nitrogen utilization in rice. Furthermore, I worked on developing innovative techniques like single-nuclei RNA-seq and ATAC-seq in rice.

What excites you about your work?
It is innovative and has the potential to benefit the community. 

What do you enjoy doing outside the lab?
I like to travel with my wife, engage in sports or barbecuing with my friends, and study the Bible. 


Bo Li, Ph.D.

Doctorate from Beijing Forestry University
With Dr. Au since in July 2021

Postdoctoral Research Fellow
My major work is to analyze sequencing data to understanding biological process in transcription and epigenetic regulation.

Area of expertise
I apply long-read RNA sequencing technology to characterize the transcriptional landscape of transposable elements during early embryonic development in zebrafish and mouse.

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
I spent more than ten years studying plant genomes, including rice, maize, poplar, grapes, giant ragweed and so on. 

What gets you excited about your work? 
The opportunity to explore many unique biological questions in animal kingdom. In the Au lab, I am fascinated with the multiple-discipline environment. Our work can always get support from colleagues with different expertise.

What do you like to do outside the lab?
I spend most of my leisure time with my family. I like hiking and biking.


Haoran Li, B.S.

B.S. from the City University of Hong Kong
With Dr. Au since 2021

Ph.D. student/research assistant
I actively participate in the designing computational/statistical methods and developing software to analyze long-read sequencing data.

Area of expertise 
I have a background in computer science. For high throughput sequencing data, it is essential to design computational efficient and accurate methods to analyze and understand the data. My knowledge in computer science, including design of algorithm and data structure, and optimization will be applied to meet this requirement.

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
I finished my undergraduate study and joined the lab afterwards.

What gets you excited about your work?
To discover some interesting findings in the data, especially when there is some biological interpretation behind it. When I find a novel computational method that can solve a complicated biological problem, I get really excited.

What do you like to do outside the lab?
I am a big fan of history and technology. I like to read books, watch documentaries about history, and play video games with a historical theme.


Puwen Tan, Ph.D.

Doctorate from the Southern Medical University, GuangzhouDr.
With Dr. Au since 2023

Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Mainly responsible for using computational methods to analysis long-read sequencing data and make interpretation for biological phenomena.
Less than two months with Dr. Au

Area of expertise
I am expert in using R for statistical analysis and visualization. These skills are especially important for big data analysis, such as long-read sequencing data.

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
I was studying for a Ph.D. in China.

What gets you excited about your work?
The long-read sequencing technology improves our understanding of transcriptome. My work helps us get an in-depth and comprehensive understanding of transcriptome diversity during embryonic stem cell differentiation.

What do you like to do outside the lab?
I like to do some cooking and exercises.


Dingjie Wang, Ph.D.

Doctorate from Wuhan University
With Dr. Au since 2017, starting at the University of Iowa

Postdoctoral Research Fellow
As a postdoc researcher in Dr. Au's lab, I am developing statistical and computational methods to analyze high-throughput biomedical data, including both hybrid sequencing (long reads plus short reads) and long-read-alone data, to uncover key biological insights in early embryonic development.

Area of expertise
My area of expertise is computational mathematics. Faced with massive high-throughput sequencing data, my goal is to develop efficient and reliable computational and statistical models to accurately identify and quantify transcriptomic events, including gene isoforms and transposable elements.

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
Prior to joining Au’s lab, I received my Ph.D degree in Computational Mathematics in 2019 at Wuhan University in China, where I worked with Prof. Xiufen Zou on computational systems and network biology. My dissertation is entitled "Integration and quantitative analysis of high-dimensional biomedical data based on multi-scale networks."

What gets you excited about your work? 
Long-read sequencing provide unprecedented opportunities to resolve complex genomic features (including gene isoforms and transposable elements) and uncover new insights into the mechanisms of gene expression. In our interdisciplinary lab, we explore long-read sequencing applications with diverse collaborators, motivating me to push the boundaries of what we can achieve.

What do you like to do outside the lab?
Outside the lab, I enjoy hiking with my family and friends. I also like to play Ping-Pong and volleyball.


Yunhao Wang, Ph.D.

Doctorate from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences
With Dr. Au since 2015

Research Investigator
1. Develop both experimental approaches and bioinformatics tools to bridge a methodological gap between sequencing technology and biological applications.
2. Explore the regulatory principles of gene expression and transposable element activation at multiple omics layers (i.e., genome, epigenome, transcriptome and epitranscriptome).

Area of expertise 
Deliver novel biological insights through leveraging the advances of the cutting-edge third-generation single-molecule long-read sequencing techniques developed by Pacific Biosciences (PacBio) and Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT), as well as single-cell genome and transcriptome sequencing techniques.   

What did you do prior to joining the lab?
Ph.D. student focusing on bioinformatics data analyses at University of Chinese Academy of Sciences

What gets you excited about your work?
New techniques bring new patterns and insights which were not uncovered by conventional assays. The interdisciplinary nature of the projects I am working on provides an intellectually stimulating environment that fosters collaboration and innovation. 

What do you like to do outside the lab?
Basketball, swimming.