Biomedical Materials Platform (108)
School of Basic Medical and Life Sciences, Xuzhou Medical University
Overview
The Biomedical Materials Platform (108) is a research and teaching platform within the Department of Bioinformatics, School of Basic Medical and Life Sciences, Xuzhou Medical University. The platform is oriented toward biomedical applications and focuses on cultivating academically innovative talents in the biological sciences. It integrates both dry-lab (computational) and wet-lab (experimental) capabilities, providing comprehensive training for undergraduate and graduate students.
Faculty Team
The platform comprises a multidisciplinary team of faculty members with expertise spanning bioinformatics, pharmaceutical sciences, microbiology, and biomedical engineering:
· Prof. Yi Liu — Professor, doctoral supervisor. Recognized as a "Blue Project" Young and Middle-aged Academic Leader of Jiangsu Province and a "Six Talent Summit" High-level Talent of Jiangsu Province. His research focuses on the pathogenesis of cognitive dysfunction and natural drug intervention, design and synthesis of gas-signaling molecule fluorescent probes, and antimicrobial mechanisms of nanomaterials. He has led or completed 3 NSFC projects and published over 60 SCI papers.
· Prof. Wenlong Du (PhD) — Associate Professor, master's supervisor, Young Editorial Board Member of Genomics and Applied Biology. His research focuses on antimicrobial mechanisms of nanomaterials (carbon dots, MOFs, AgNPs@ZIF-8, chitosan-silver nanocomposites) and multi-omics bioinformatics analysis of tumors and neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's disease, renal cell carcinoma).
· Dr. Youzhen Ma (PhD) — Lecturer, Jiangsu Provincial Innovation and Entrepreneurship PhD. Graduated from the School of Pharmacy, Fudan University. His research focuses on design and synthesis of β-lactamase inhibitors against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria, multifunctional antibacterial materials, and the pathogenesis of diabetic encephalopathy.
· Dr. Chuanyuan Wang (PhD) — Lecturer, specializing in bioinformatics and electronic information. His research focuses on algorithm development for gene regulatory networks, AI-based single-cell transcriptomics data analysis, and biomedical data analysis with deep learning.
· Prof. Jing Hu — Associate Professor, Jiangsu Provincial Innovation and Entrepreneurship PhD, specializing in bioinformatics.
Research Areas
1. Antimicrobial mechanisms of novel nanomaterials (carbon dots, MOFs, AgNPs@ZIF-8, chitosan-silver nanocomposites)
2. Design and synthesis of molecular fluorescent probes for CNS disease target discovery and drug development
3. Multi-omics bioinformatics analysis of tumors (ccRCC, pRCC) and neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's disease)
4. Pathogenesis of cognitive dysfunction and diabetic encephalopathy, and natural drug intervention
5. β-Lactamase inhibitor design against multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacteria
6. AI-driven gene regulatory network reconstruction and single-cell transcriptomics analysis
Teaching and Student Development
Faculty members teach a wide range of courses including Medical Artificial Intelligence (graduate core course), Python and R Programming, Life Science Research and Practice, Machine Learning Fundamentals and Applications, and Medical Research Data Processing and Visualization.
The platform has achieved notable success in student development:
· Undergraduate students have published 9 SCI papers as first authors (2021–2025)
· Student teams have won multiple awards in the National Life Science Competition: 3 First Prizes, 3 Second Prizes, and 2 Third Prizes
· Recommended graduate students have been admitted to top institutions including the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing University, and ShanghaiTech University
· One undergraduate was recognized as "2021 China College Student Self-Improvement Star"
· Faculty have supervised 9 College Student Innovation and Entrepreneurship Projects
Key Equipment
The platform is equipped with advanced instruments valued at over 2.6 million RMB, including:
· Vortex Mixer
· Thermo Scientific F3 Single-Channel Adjustable Pipette
· Constant Temperature Heating Magnetic Stirrer
· Vacuum Freeze Dryer (Lyophilizer)
· Circulating Water Vacuum Pump
· Nucleic Acid Gel Imaging System
· Gradient PCR Instrument
· Ultrasonic Cell Disruptor
Research Funding
Faculty members currently hold or have completed multiple research grants, including:
· 3 National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) projects (PI: Prof. Yi Liu)
· 1 NSFC Young Scientists Fund (PI: Dr. Wenlong Du)
· 1 Jiangsu Natural Science Foundation Young Scientists Fund (PI: Dr. Wenlong Du)
· 1 China Postdoctoral Science Foundation project (PI: Prof. Yi Liu)
· Multiple Jiangsu Province Innovation and Entrepreneurship projects
