Angad P. Mehta

Angad P. Mehta is an Assistant Professor of Chemistry and T. M. Balthazor Faculty Scholar at the University of Illinois, with joint appointments in Bioengineering and the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology. He holds a B.Tech. from the Institute of Chemical Technology (Mumbai) and a Ph.D. from Texas A&M University, followed by postdoctoral training at The Scripps Research Institute. His research focuses on synthetic biology, synthetic immunology, and chemical biology, with key areas including directed evolution of antibodies against pathogens, engineering photosynthetic endosymbiotic systems, and developing targeted cancer therapies.

Research highlights include pioneering work on synthetic endosymbiosis to create photosynthetic yeast platforms for biofuel production, and developing directed evolution techniques to combat emerging viruses like SARS-CoV-2. He has received notable awards such as the Sloan Research Fellowship and Ono Pharma Breakthrough Science Initiative Award.

His lab integrates synthetic biology with chemical engineering to address fundamental biological questions and translational applications in health and sustainability. Collaborations span multiple disciplines, reflecting his affiliation with cross-campus institutes like the Genomic Biology Institute.