About
Dr. Peng obtained her doctorate degree in biochemistry and molecular biology from Clemson University. She is specialized in the design, biosynthesis, and purification of biomolecules that can be applied for therapeutical, diagnosis, and scaffolding purposes. Her work in antimalarial medicine and antifungal drug resistance has earned her recognition by multiple international peers. She oversees the technical development of molecular diagnostics in the Research and Education on Disease Diagnosis and Intervention (REDDI) lab. She is currently working on setting up a close to real time sequencing and immune profiling workflow to monitor the emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants and the immune responses they elicit. A strong advocate for multi-disciplinary research, she is supported by NIH, the Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) for Translational Research Improving Musculoskeletal Health (SC-TRIMH), and COBRE in Human Genetics. She has several fruitful collaborations with the talents in the field of Bioengineering, Genetics and Biochemistry, Prisma Health, Public Health Sciences, Materials and Engineering, and Physics.
Visit Dr. Peng's Department Profile.
How their research is transforming health care
Dr. Peng’s research centers on the molecular basics of nucleic acids and proteins, and their dynamics under pathological conditions. Such understandings can be applied to disease prevention, diagnostics, and treatments. My research is aimed to transform health care through providing accurate diagnosis, better cure, and easy to access preventative measures. During the pandemics caused by SARS-CoV-2, her efforts were dedicated to exploiting molecular techniques for rapid detection of SARS-CoV-2 and the emerging variants, establishing whole genome sequencing for genomic epidemiology surveillance, and assessing immune responses through surrogate virus neutralization test. These efforts are pivotal to the timely responses of the university and the surrounding communities to the emerging variant of concerns. Her experiences on whole genome sequencing have landed her a collaborative opportunity to investigate the splicing isoforms of long noncoding RNA in triple negative breast cancer tissues and blood samples. Peng and her research team aim to identify potential biomarkers that are associated with the prognosis of triple negative breast cancer.
Health Research Expertise Keywords
Faculty Scholar, Molecular diagnostics, biomarker, immune profiling, biomolecules, antimicrobial medicine
