Biography
Dr. Wenlong Du is an Associate Professor at the Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical and Life Sciences, Xuzhou Medical University. His research focuses on two main areas: (1) antimicrobial mechanisms of novel nanomaterials, including carbon dots, MOFs, and chitosan-silver nanocomposites against pathogenic fungi such as Aspergillus fumigatus; and (2) multi-omics bioinformatics analysis of tumors and neurodegenerative diseases. He has published over 20 SCI-indexed papers, with more than 10 as first author or corresponding author, including publications in journals such as Antimicrob Agents Chemother, Psychoneuroendocrinology, Appl Environ Microbiol, and Front Microbiol. He serves as a Young Editorial Board Member for the core Chinese journal Genomics and Applied Biology.
Education
Nanjing Normal University, 09/2016 – 06/2021, PhD in Biology
Research Funding
1. National Natural Science Foundation of China (Young Scientists Fund), Grant No. 82302547.
Project: Mechanism of SltA involvement in regulating calcium homeostasis and virulence of Aspergillus fumigatus through negative regulation of CrzA and inhibition of vacuolar calcium pump expression (2024–2026, PI).
2. Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (Young Scientists Fund), Grant No. BK20220658.
Project: Molecular mechanism of the calcium signaling network negative regulator SltA in regulating cytoplasmic calcium homeostasis and virulence of Aspergillus fumigatus (2022–2025, PI).
3. Excellent Talents Research Foundation of Xuzhou Medical University, Grant No. D2021042.
Project: Regulatory mechanism of the NF-κB/NLRP3/Caspase-1 pyroptosis signaling pathway on hippocampal synaptic plasticity in diabetic encephalopathy models (2022–2025, PI).
4. Jiangsu Province College Students Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program (3 projects, Supervisor).
Publications:
1 Jin LS, Zhou XY, Du W*. Antimicrobial effects and mechanism of action of carboxymethyl chitosan-loaded silver ion complexes against drug-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus. J Microbiol, 2026, 64(4):e2512001.
2 Yang D, Song YL, Yu SH, Ma YZ*, Du W*. Rational Design of Dual-Targeting Novel GPE-Derived Oligopeptide Conjugates for Alzheimer's Disease: Synergistic Inhibition of Excitotoxicity and Oxidative Stress. ACS Chem Neurosci, 2026, 17(4):778-790.
3 Yu T, Wu JN, Li TT, Zhu YL, Xie YW, Yin ZR, Ma YZ, Du W*. Chitosan-silver nanocomposites: promising alternatives for combating azole-resistant Aspergillus fumigatus. Front Cell Infect Microbiol, 2025, 15:1669609.
4 Ma YZ, Du W*. Unlocking the Secrets: Causal Associations Between Blood Metabolites and Aspergillosis. Curr Microbiol, 2025, 82(10):490.
5 Gong Y, Yu T, Zhou Y, Zhu YL, Du W*, Xu XD*. From Anesthetic to Neuroprotector: Multi-Omics Reveals Ketamine's Previously Unexplored Neuroprotective Role in Alzheimer's Disease. CNS Neurol Disord Drug Targets, 2025.
6 Ling ZK, Kong QQ, He ZQ, Hao X, Liu RY, Liu J, Wang YS, Liu J, Du W*, Liu Y*. Hydrogen sulfide improves depression-like behaviors in CUMS-induced mice by regulating autophagy. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 2025, 175:107418.
7 Zhu YL, Yu SH, Yang D, Yu T, Liu Y*, Du W*. Integrated Multi-Omics Analysis Unveils Distinct Molecular Subtypes and a Robust Immune-Metabolic Prognostic Model in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma. Int J Mol Sci, 2025, 26(7):3125.
8 Du W*, Yu SH, Liu RY, Kong QQ, Hao X, Liu Y*. Precision Prediction of Alzheimer's Disease: Integrating Mitochondrial Energy Metabolism and Immunological Insights. J Mol Neurosci, 2025, 75(1):5.
9 Yang H, Gu YF, He ZQ, Wu JN, Wu C, Xie YH, You YX, Yang YJ, Zhou XY, Liu Y*, Du W*. In vitro and in vivo antimicrobial effects of domiphen combined with itraconazole against Aspergillus fumigatus. Front Microbiol, 2023, 14:1264586.
10 Chen YB, Zhou XY, Xie YW, Wu JN, Li TT, Yu T, Pang YP, Du W*. Establishment of a Seven-Gene Signature Associated with CD8+ T Cells through the Utilization of Both Single-Cell and Bulk RNA-Sequencing Techniques in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma. Int J Mol Sci, 2023, 24(18):13729.
11 He ZQ, Gu YF, Yang H, Fu Q, Zhao MF, Xie YH, Liu Y*, Du W*. Identification and verification of a novel anoikis-related gene signature with prognostic significance in clear cell renal cell carcinoma. J Cancer Res Clin Oncol, 2023, 149(13):11661-11678.
12 Du W*, Xu RL, He ZQ, Yang H, Gu YF, Liu Y*. Transcriptomics-based investigation of molecular mechanisms underlying synergistic antimicrobial effects of AgNPs and Domiphen on the human fungal pathogen Aspergillus fumigatus. Front Microbiol, 2023, 14:1089267.
13 Pang YP, Wang YS, Zhou XY, Ni Z, Chen WJ, Liu Y*, Du W*. Cuproptosis-Related LncRNA-Based Prediction of the Prognosis and Immunotherapy Response in Papillary Renal Cell Carcinoma. Int J Mol Sci, 2023, 24(2):1464.
14 Du W, Zhai PF, Liu S, Zhang YW*, Lu L*. The Copper Chaperone CcsA, Coupled with Superoxide Dismutase SodA, Mediates the Oxidative Stress Response in Aspergillus fumigatus. Appl Environ Microbiol, 2021, 87(17):e0101321.
15 Du W, Zhai PF, Wang TL, Bromley MJ, Zhang YW*, Lu L*. The C2H2 Transcription Factor SltA Contributes to Azole Resistance by Coregulating the Expression of the Drug Target Erg11A and the Drug Efflux Pump Mdr1 in Aspergillus fumigatus. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, 2021, 65(4):e01839-20.
Patent
1. Du W, Liu Y, He ZQ, et al. A chitosan quaternary ammonium salt-metal nanocomposite and its preparation method and application. Chinese Invention Patent, CN116077499B, Granted.
Awards and Honors
1. Second Prize, The 9th National College Student Life Science Competition (Innovation and Entrepreneurship Category), National College Student Life Science Competition Committee, 2024.
2. Excellent Graduation Thesis Team Award for Higher Education Institutions of Jiangsu Province (2022), Jiangsu Provincial Department of Education, 2023.
3. Third Prize (Instructor Award), The 8th National College Student Life Science Competition, National College Student Life Science Competition Committee, 2023.
4. First Prize, Xuzhou Natural Science Outstanding Academic Paper Award, Xuzhou Municipal People's Government, 2022
